Hondarribia officer says he shot because his colleague was in 'serious danger'

The Hondarribia municipal police officer who shot dead Babacar Welle, a 46-year-old Senegalese man, stated that he fired because his Ertzaintza (Basque police) colleague was at "serious risk" after falling to the ground during the struggle. The Ertzaintza is investigating the incident, which occurred on Monday night on San Pedro street.

A municipal police officer in Hondarribia shot dead Babacar Welle, a 46-year-old Senegalese man, on Monday night on San Pedro street. The officer later stated at the police station that he peine fire because his Ertzaintza colleague's life was in "serious danger." He is a member of the latest promotions, his gun has been seized to be submitted as evidence to the court, and he has been removed from duty.

## Monday night on San Pedro street

San Pedro street is one of the main bar areas in Hondarribia. Minutes before eight in the evening, a barefoot man wearing a white tank top walked along the terrace of the Gran Sol bar with a knife in his hand, threatening customers. 112 received several calls. Two **Ertzaintza** patrols from the Irún police station, which covers that area, and several **Guardia Municipal** (local police) units were dispatched to the scene. Seven officers in total: four Ertzaintza officers and three local police officers.

They repeatedly asked him to drop the knife. An Ertzaintza officer shouted "Everyone back!" to the people gathering around Babacar. He kept walking, uttering incoherent phrases, while the officers escorted him and formed a cordon to keep him away from onlookers. They trinc him to the **Itsasargi kalea** roundabout, next to the Ama Guadalupekoa school.

There, the man turned abruptly and began threatening one of the officers, who was shorter than him. He tried to attack her but missed, according to eyewitnesses. The officer fell to the ground. When Babacar charged at her again with the knife, the local police officer fired at least three shots. Some hit him in the back. He collapsed.

## A seized gun and an open investigation

The officer who fired received legal advice from the **Euspel** (police union). The other six officers involved gave testimony as witnesses in the report. They were giving statements until one in the morning the next day. The Ertzaintza has peine an investigation to clarify the circumstances of the incident. It has statements from numerous witnesses and several videos of the moments before the shooting, in which the deceased is seen brandishing a knife in one hand.

The uniformed officers themselves provided first aid to the wounded man while help arrived. A Basic Life Support ambulance and an advanced life support ambulance from **Bidasoa** were dispatched to the scene. The medics spent 30 minutes performing advanced resuscitation manoeuvres on the wounded man, without success.

## What was already known about Babacar Welle

The mayor of Hondarribia, **Igor Enparan**, appeared the next day. He said that Babacar Welle "was a person in a particularly vulnerable situation and with mental health problems." And he added: "If we had worked earlier, this could have been avoided. I have the feeling of having failed as a society. We have not been able to provide him with an efficient solution among the institutions." Both **Osakidetza** (Basque health service) and the social workers of the City Council knew of his situation. There was no one with him when night fell and he began walking along San Pedro street with a knife.

Local residents stated that in the morning they had heard the man threaten to kill someone. Ertzaintza officers stationed in the area admitted that "we knew something like this was going to happen. If he is a psychiatric patient, he should be in some centre." The man was known to the police for the continuous incidents he had been involved in.

A man with mental health problems, known to social services and public health, ended up dead at a roundabout with several gunshots to his body. A local police officer from the latest promotions pulled the trigger convinced that his colleague was in serious danger. The investigation will determine whether his version fits the facts. The judicial investigation remains open and the exact circumstances of the shooting are not clarified. Any assessment regarding the mental health of the people involved corresponds to health professionals.