French police have launched an investigation and one person has been arrested after two motorcycle officers were brutally beaten by a group of up to 15 attackers during a routine traffic stop on the outskirts of Paris.
A police spokesperson said the two cops were hospitalized following the attack on Sunday at around 5pm local time in the Parisian suburb of Aulnay-sous-Bois.
French media reported that one officer sustained cracked ribs and a dislocated shoulder.
The Bobigny prosecutor’s office confirmed on Monday that local police were investigating the incident in order to identify the attackers, and that one person had been arrested.
In footage posted to social media, two officers can be seen grappling with a man on the ground, while several people kick the cops.
One man appears to shout encouragement to the attackers.
French news site Actu17 reported that as many as 15 people were involved in the skirmish, which reportedly broke out after police pulled over two young men who were also riding a motorcycle.
The driver of the bike reportedly failed to produce a registration certificate and driver’s license for police, before the brawl involving more men erupted.
A police bike was said to have been damaged amid the ruckus, while one of the assailants reportedly stole the keys of the other officer’s vehicle.
The attack was heavily condemned by Valerie Pecresse, the president of the Ile-de-France region containing Paris and its surrounding areas.
“Once again police officers lynched when they were only doing their job! Faced with these intolerable images, what is the state doing to reinforce the missing personnel and finally pronounce truly dissuasive and enforced sanctions?” she wrote in a tweet.
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