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Three Arrested in Brutal Killing of 24-Year-Old Gay Man in Spain
Three Arrested in Brutal Killing of 24-Year-Old Gay Man in Spain
The killing sparked large-scale protests in Spain that were followed by police violence.
Spanish police announced they had apprehended three men over the killing of Samuel Luiz, a 24-year-old nursing assistant. Luiz had been beaten to death in the northwestern city of A Coruna in Galicia.
In the very early hours on Saturday, July 3 Luiz was assaulted near a club, according to The Guardian. Luiz died later in a hospital.
"The investigation remains open until the facts are fully clarified," the Spanish national police tweeted, adding that more arrests in the case are possible.
\u201cDetenidos 3 j\u00f3venes de entre 20 y 25 a\u00f1os, vecinos de A Coru\u00f1a, como presuntos autores de la agresi\u00f3n violenta que acab\u00f3 con la vida de Samuel Luiz\n\nLa investigaci\u00f3n contin\u00faa abierta hasta el total esclarecimiento de los hechos. No se descartan m\u00e1s detenciones en pr\u00f3ximas horas\u201d— Polic\u00eda Nacional (@Polic\u00eda Nacional) 1625589141
Luiz's friends told Spanish outlet El Mundo that he had left the club briefly to video chat with someone when two people accused Luiz of filming them. One of the men beat Luiz in the face, the friends said. A few minutes later they were joined by 12 others who attacked Luiz, leaving him unconscious. Friends say that Luiz was recording his friends, not the men.
LGBTQ+ groups in Spain had organized large demonstrations on Monday calling for justice after Luiz's killing. According to reports police turned out in riot gear and at times beat the crowds with batons.
Local politicians have criticized the police for their reaction to the protests. A local green party spokesperson, Monica Garcia, was just one of those critics, writing on Twitter about the police actions and posting a video of the police clashing with protestors.
\u201cNo entendemos la desproporcionalidad de la actuaci\u00f3n de la polic\u00eda en estas im\u00e1genes tras la concentraci\u00f3n pidiendo #JusticiaPorSamuel. Exigimos una explicaci\u00f3n @MercedesDS21 .\u201d— M\u00f3nica Garc\u00eda (@M\u00f3nica Garc\u00eda) 1625518605
Hate crimes against LGBTQ+ have increased by 8.6 percent in Spain between 2018 and 2019. In 2019, 278 hate crimes were reported, according to data from the Interior Ministry and reported by Reuters.
On Tuesday, two gay men were allegedly attacked in Valencia, Spain on Tuesday by a crowd of young people for being gay, reported La Marea.
Luiz's killing and the attacks come a week after Spain's Pride Parade and after a draft law passed that would strengthen the rights of LGBTQ+ people.
Spain's prime minister, Pedro Sanchez, posted on Twitter in support of the investigation.
"I'm confident that the police investigation will soon find those who murdered Samuel and shed light on what happened," Sanchez wrote. "It was a savage and merciless act.
"We will not take a step backwards when it comes to rights and freedoms and Spain will not tolerate this."
\u201cConf\u00edo en que la investigaci\u00f3n de @policia d\u00e9 pronto con los autores del asesinato de Samuel y esclarezca los hechos. Fue un acto salvaje y despiadado.\n\nNo daremos ni un paso atr\u00e1s en derechos y libertades. Espa\u00f1a no lo va a tolerar. Todo mi apoyo a su familia y seres queridos.\u201d— Pedro S\u00e1nchez (@Pedro S\u00e1nchez) 1625505238
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