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Nigerian arrest death: ex-police officer probed for offensive photo

Protestors daub the word Mike on the Lausanne court
Demonstrators daubed the word "Mike" on the facia of the Lausanne court during the hearing into Mike Ben Peter's death. © Keystone / Laurent Gillieron

A former Swiss police officer is being investigated for a controversial photograph that apparently shows him mocking a Nigerian man who died whilst being arrested.

The photograph, taken in 2018, shows the ex-police officer in a thumbs up pose in front of the inscription “RIP Mike”.

Mike Ben Peter, a 39-year-old black Nigerian, suffered a fatal heart attack after he was held down in the street in Lausanne during a drugs arrest in 2018.

On June 23, the Lausanne district court cleared six police officers, all white, of charges of negligent homicide. But the dead man’s family have since launched an appeal.

The offensive photograph was first revealed by Swiss public broadcaster RTS.

The police officer in the photo left the force in 2020 and currently works in another department in the city’s administration.

A spokesperson for the Lausanne council said a request has been lodged to open administrative proceedings against the man in the photograph.

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