The Killing of Nahel Merzouk
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On June 27, 2023, at 8:18 a.m., 17-year-old Nahel Merzouk was killed by a police officer in Nanterre (Hauts-de-Seine department, France). Filmed by a witness, his death sparked a wave of revolt across France. One year after the event, INDEX reveals a detailed reconstruction of the circumstances surrounding Nahel Merzouk's killing.
- Incident date
- Location
- Nanterre (France)
- Victim(s)
- Nahel Merzouk (17 y.o.)
- Consequence(s)
- Killed
- Force(s) involved
- National Police (FR)
- Methods employed
- Firearm
- Partenaire(s)
- Blast
On June 27, 2023, at 8:18 a.m., 17-year-old Nahel Merzouk was killed by a police officer in Nanterre during a traffic stop on passage Arago. Filmed by a witness, his death triggered a wave of unrest across France.
One year after the events, Index publishes a detailed 3D reconstruction of the killing. The investigation cross-references the footage of three witnesses, the judicial case file and, for the first time, the recording of the urban CCTV camera facing passage Arago. Adding the autopsy report and photographs of the vehicle, Index reconstructs the car’s trajectory, Nahel Merzouk’s position at the wheel and the officer’s action at the moment of the shot.
The twenty-two seconds before the shot
The reconstruction establishes that, in the twenty-two seconds preceding the fatal shot, police officer Florian M., who fired, struck the windshield of the vehicle driven by Nahel Merzouk four times with his weapon. The second officer, Julien L., struck the inside of the passenger compartment and raised his weapon to the level of the teenager’s head. One second before the shot, one of the two officers most likely uttered a death threat.
When he was hit, Nahel Merzouk had his left hand raised in front of his face, most likely in protection: the bullet passed through his wrist before striking him in the chest.
Self-defence contradicted by the footage
As the vehicle set off again, its trajectory moved away from the sidewalk and the low wall to the officer’s left. The CCTV footage, combined with the 3D reconstruction, contradicts Florian M.’s statements during questioning:
“I opened fire because I felt myself being pushed backwards by the vehicle, towards the wall that was quite close behind me.”
At the moment of the shot, one second after the vehicle set off again, both lanes of passage Arago were still blocked by stationary vehicles: Nahel Merzouk’s car had no immediate means of escape. The officer nonetheless justified his action by invoking self-defence under article L. 435-1 of the internal security code.