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New Caledonia gendarme under scrutiny after fatal police shooting
A police intervention in New Caledonia has sparked controversy after the death of a 32-year-old man, identified as Fara Tournier. The incident occurred in the town of Plum, south of Nouméa, during the night of Thursday to Friday, when a gendarmerie patrol was called to break up a fight reportedly linked to alcohol consumption.
According to the public prosecutor, Yves Dupas, the officers came under threat when the driver of a pick-up truck allegedly drove toward them. In response, two shots were fired. One of the gendarmes, who admitted to pulling the trigger, stated he felt in “immediate danger” and did not see the victim, who was later found unconscious on the ground.
Witnesses, however, dispute this version. Several said that three shots were fired, with the first striking Tournier, who was standing in a group between the vehicle and the officers. “Anyone could have been hit,” one witness told AFP.
An autopsy is expected to clarify the cause of death, as fragments were reportedly found near the victim’s head. The gendarme involved has been placed under the status of “assisted witness” in an investigation for “intentional violence resulting in death without intent to kill, aggravated by the use of a weapon.”
The case recalls past tensions between law enforcement and residents in the region. Last year, two young men died during a gendarmerie operation in the Saint-Louis area, a community often at the heart of clashes with police.