what we know about the violence that occurred in Romans-sur-Isère during an action by members of the ultra-right

Dozens of people tried to enter a working-class neighborhood of this city on Saturday evening, where young people suspected of being involved in the death of the 16-year-old high school student come from. The police made around twenty arrests.

An evening which turned into a confrontation. Around 80 members of the ultra-right marched, Saturday, November 25, in the streets of the popular Monnaie district, in Romans-sur-Isère (Drôme), a week after the death of Thomas, the 16-year-old high school student stabbed during a ball in the village of Crépol on the night of Saturday November 18 to Sunday November 19. Several suspects, suspected of being involved in the young man’s death, come from this neighborhood.

On Saturday evening, police arrested 20 people, 17 of whom were taken into custody “following violence against the police”, announced the Drôme prefecture. A member of the ultra-right was beaten and taken to hospital, his life is not in danger. Here is what we know about this evening in Drôme.

Dozens of members of the ultra-right try to enter a district of Romans-sur-Isère

“Around 6 p.m., 80 individuals tried to enter the Monnaie district to fight and confronted the police”, reported the Drôme prefecture to AFP, which specified that the clashes occurred outside this district. According to France Bleu Drôme Ardèche,Some overturned trash cans and set containers on fire. Hooded and dressed in black, they marched through the streets behind a banner “Justice for Thomas, neither forgiveness nor forgetting”chanting “The street, France, belongs to us”according to images posted on social networks by ultra-right accounts.

“We were nearly 120 patriots,” claims from the far-right media Livre noir, a man on condition of anonymity. “We had no choice but to light the fuse last night”. Completely blurred, it calls for “organize against the rabble and against the State”.

Twenty people arrested after this violence

“They came from all over France,” assured the prefect of Drôme, Thierry Devimeux, at the microphone of France Bleu. “They sought to enter the Monnaie district with violence, since some of them were wearing helmets, armed with baseball bats, iron bars or firecrackers, mortars, he added. And they were trying to enter in force.” The police therefore arrested 20 people.

#Violence | 80 individuals attempted to invade the Monnaie district in #RomanssurIsere at the end of the day.
Thanks to the mobilization of @PoliceNat_26 and two mobile force units, made available this afternoon, 20 arrests including 17 in police custody were able to be…

— Prefect of Drôme 🇫🇷🇪🇺 (@Prefet26) November 25, 2023

“We’ve never seen that before,” tell a veteran of the neighborhood with France Bleu Drôme Ardèche. “I was born here, 58 years here, it’s scary what’s happening. We think of Thomas’ family, but justice will be done anyway, there’s no point in taking justice into your own hands.” He claims to have intervened with several residents to protect a man attacked during a clash between members of the ultra-right and young people from the neighborhood.

A young ultra-right injured

A young member of the ultra-right aged 20 was injured, beaten by certain residents of the neighborhood. He was taken to the emergency room of Romans hospital. “On the sidelines of the clashes between these ultra-right young people with the police, a 20-year-old young person was taken out of his car by force, his car burned and this young person was beaten up by a group of other young people including “We don’t know the identity yet. He was seriously beaten up.” detailed the prefect on Sunday. On BFMTV, he then clarified that the days of this young person, originally from Mayenne, “are not in danger”.

The authorities had been alerted in advance

The threat of this gathering had been anticipated by the authorities. “We received information yesterday [samedi]in the afternoon, that ultra-right people, coming from the four corners of France, were going to try to come to Romans to lead a punitive expedition in one of the districts of the citytold on BFMTVthe prefect of Drôme. We therefore anticipated very quickly, first by mobilizing the intelligence services and then by providing gendarmerie forces to alert on the movements of these people. Two mobile force units were mobilized on site, including the famous CRS8 which came to lend a helping hand.”

Up to 120 members of the police were present on the scene on Saturday evening. Gérald Darmanin also reacted on Sunday on the social network “find all the perpetrators of unacceptable acts”.

The numerous police forces that we sent to the site arrested 20 people in Romans-sur-Isère and, at my request, will continue to act to prevent any additional violence, wherever it comes from, and find all the perpetrators of unacceptable acts.

— Gérald DARMANIN (@GDarmanin) November 26, 2023

“The situation has calmed down, but we remain under close surveillance”the prefecture said on Saturday evening.

A parade which coincides with the indictment of nine suspects

This parade coincides with the presentation to the Valencia prosecutor’s office of the young suspects accused of having participated in the violence which led to Thomas’ death. Nine young people were indicted, the prosecutor announced on Saturday evening. These suspects, including three minors, are being prosecuted in particular for “organized gang murder”, “attempted murder” and “intentional violence committed in a meeting”. Six of them, including two minors, were placed in pre-trial detention and the three others, including a minor, were released and placed under judicial supervision, said prosecutor Laurent de Caigny.

A new gathering of the ultra-right was held on Sunday noon in the city center of Romans-sur-Isère, reports France Bleu Drôme Ardèche. Around thirty members of the movement met at Place Jean Jaurès. They moved under the close surveillance of the police, chanting again “Justice for Thomas”before dispersing without major incident.