The men were armed with machetes, hunting knives and axes.
A few hours after the Ganesh parade, a major Parisian meeting for the Sri Lankan community, fourteen men were arrested by the police on Sunday afternoon. All of Sri Lankan origin, they were armed with axes, machetes and knives. The brawl left two injured. The 14 men remained in police custody for two days.
The police arrested fourteen people of Sri Lankan nationality about to engage in a street brawl on Sunday August 26 in the 19th arrondissement of Paris . The men were armed with machetes, hunting knives and axes. By searching in their bags, the police even found tear gas canisters and an iron bar.
All were taken into police custody for “participating in an armed group” . Their custody was extended on Monday August 27. The majority of men are between the ages of 18 and 26, reports Le Parisien .
“They have nothing to do with us”
“They had made an appointment to hit each other!” ” , Simply summed up a police source in the local daily. Two victims then declared themselves to the police: two men, aged 19 and 28, both living in Seine-Saint-Denis .
The incident took place a few hours after the Ganesh parade, a large annual gathering of the Sri Lankan community of Ile-de-France which brought together nearly 40,000 people. “They have nothing to do with us,” assured the organizer of the event Monday at Parisien . “Even though there were fights after the procession last year” .
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