The confrontation outside Lycée Courbet

On Friday, 2 October 2026, clashes erupted near Lycée Courbet in Belfort as approximately 200 youths gathered during high school mobilizations across France. According to local authorities, around 50 participants engaged in violent acts, including setting rubbish bins on fire and throwing stones at security forces. A plainclothes police commander serving in territorial intelligence attempted to arrest a 17-year-old student whom he had previously spotted setting bin fires. The officer brought the teenager down in the shallow bed of a local river, which reached a maximum depth of 19 centimetres. While the commander was securing handcuffs on one of the suspect's wrists, an unidentified individual struck the officer from behind with a punch. The blow brought the officer to the ground, where multiple individuals punched and kicked him in the head and face, resulting in eight days of total incapacity for work (ITT).

Investigation and aggravated violence charges

The Belfort public prosecutor's office initially opened a judicial inquiry into attempted murder of a public official before adjusting the formal accusations on Sunday, 4 October. Belfort public prosecutor Paul-Édouard Lallois stated at a press conference that investigators lacked sufficient evidence to establish murderous intent. The prosecution subsequently requested charges of aggravated violence against two high school students, aged 15 and 17, neither of whom had prior criminal records. The 17-year-old suspect admitted to delivering two kicks to the officer's head and expressed regret during questioning. On Sunday evening, a magistrate ordered the 17-year-old into pre-trial detention, while the 15-year-old was placed under judicial supervision with orders forbidding protest participation and weapon possession.

Counter-complaint alleges attempted murder

The case quickly generated competing legal claims after video recordings of the initial arrest circulated on social networks. Defense lawyer Arié Alimi filed a formal legal complaint with civil party status on behalf of the 17-year-old Bulgarian national, accusing the police commander of attempted murder and Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez of complicity by instigation. The complaint states that the plainclothes officer held the teenager's head underwater in the riverbed, preventing him from breathing until surrounding students intervened. Alimi publicly criticized the Belfort prosecutor on Franceinfo on Monday, 5 October, asserting that the magistrate failed to examine police actions during the arrest.

“The public prosecutor of Belfort behaves like the police officer's lawyer.”

Conflicting accounts and political reactions

Prosecutor Lallois disputed the drowning accusation, noting that the river was largely dried out and that the teenager denied any drowning attempt during police custody interviews. Lallois stated that the youth explained he entered the stream simply to wash an egg from his hands, while admitting he had thrown stones at officers earlier that morning. In Paris, Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez condemned the recorded beating of the commander as an act of rare violence. The incident took place alongside nationwide high school blockades that led to 1,747 arrests on Friday, seven months ahead of France's presidential election.