Czech Police prosecuting one of the men who assaulted Romani people in Sokolov this summer, Internal Affairs says officers procedure was correct
The Czech Police have launched the criminal prosecution of one of the assailants who attacked Romani people in Sokolov earlier this year. On the other hand, the behavior of several persons who insulted the intervening police officers in a vulgar fashion has been reported to the relevant local administrative body as misdemeanors against civil coexistence.
The behavior of the officers who intervened at the scene of the clash has also been investigated by the Department of Internal Affairs and none of the officers were found to have committed any wrongdoing. ROMEA TV reported the news yesterday.
The incident transpired on 23 July at the Sokolov train station. After disembarking from a train, a group of aggressive young men first assaulted young Romani children who were playing there.
The men later also attacked adults. Several Romani people suffered minor injuries and one woman’s arm was broken by the aggressors.
Eyewitnesses said that during the brawl, the group of youths shouted “Black swine, we’ll kill you, to the gas chambers with you!” at the Romani people. The police later confirmed that some of the attackers were “ultras”, fanatical followers of a team that plays at the top of the Czech national football league.
The Antifa.cz website identified the men as a group of fans of the SK Slavia Praha team. Police began criminal prosecution of one of the assailants over the incident, but the other participants in the street battle, apparently Romani people who vulgarly abused the officers, will be dealt with by the local administration on misdemeanor charges.
“Detectives in Sokolov began the criminal prosecution in this case of a 32-year-old man from Prague whom they accused of committing the offence of rioting. The officers also dealt with the behavior of all participants in this conflict, some of whom insulted others or the intervening officers in vulgar terms. The behavior of several people was reported to the relevant administrative body to be dealt with as a misdemeanor against civil coexistence. If, during the investigation, other illegal behavior is discovered, it will also be addressed,” police spokesperson Kateřina Krejčí said in an interview for ROMEA TV.
Many eyewitnesses from the Romani community complained of the approach taken by some police officers at the scene of the incident. Several were said to have mocked the Romani people, to have ridiculed them by insulting them and alleging that they all are welfare recipients, and by saying they did not have to protect them for that reason.
“In various pieces of video footage recorded during the course of the incident and published on social media in particular, the intervening officers are repeatedly accused by local residents of having approached the intervention incorrectly or of inappropriate behavior. The Department of Internal Affairs has reviewed the content of each video quite intensively, as well as testimonies obtained from all eyewitnesses. The investigation did not ascertain a single case of the commission of illegal or inappropriate behavior or of an incorrect official approach by the intervening officers,” the police spokesperson said.
