Saturday night, Samuel Luiz, a 24-year-old health assistant, was out with his friends in the town of A Coruña. Outside the nightclub, an argument broke out.
According to Luiz’s friends, he left the club to have a video call, when two passers-by allegedly accused him of trying to film them with his mobile phone, friends tell the Spanish newspaper The world.
“Either you stop filming us, or I’ll kill you, you sweeper,” one of the perpetrators is said to have told Luiz, according to friends.
Then Luiz is said to have explained that he was talking to a friend, but the people are said to have ignored it and attacked him. Luiz was then left with injuries to his face.
RIGHT: Samuel Luiz (24) was beaten to death outside a nightclub in the Spanish city of A Coruña on Saturday night. The murder and ill-treatment have created major reactions in the country. Photo: Twitter
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About five minutes later, the perpetrators are said to have returned with twelve other people who beat the 24-year-old until he became unconscious. Luiz was taken to hospital but died of his injuries Saturday morning.
Defendant on bail: – Completely absurd
Following the incident, the Spanish police have arrested three people after the attack.
Many suspect that the attack was a hate crime, and the murder has shocked the Spaniards. Now, more people have taken to the streets across the country to protest, according to The Guardian.
According to the newspaper The country surveillance images show that Luiz had not met the attackers on the spot before an alleged quarrel broke out about the 24-year-old’s filming. Police sources tell the newspaper that as many as ten people have attacked him.
Big protests
On Tuesday night, the Spanish police reported in a statement on Twitter that three people are suspected of the attack that led to Samuel Luiz’s death. Two men and a woman have been arrested, and they are all between 20 and 25 years old. The investigation is still ongoing, and several people may still be arrested, the police write.
PROTESTER: The violent incidents have caused great reactions throughout the country. Here, LGBTQ activists protest in Barcelona on Monday. Photo: Nacho Doce / Reuters / NTB
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The motive behind the deadly attack has not yet been clarified.
The killing has sparked massive protests in several Spanish cities after the weekend. On Monday night, protests were held in the cities of A Coruña, Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Salamanca, Bilbao and Zaragoza. The protesters had several signs in the protest, with messages such as: “Their homophobia kills us”.
Influencers beaten down in the open street
Politicians in Madrid have asked the authorities for an explanation after some protesters were arrested after clashes between police and protesters on Monday night, according to the newspaper The newspaper.
THE RAINBOW FLAG: The protests were held in several cities in Spain, such as here in Madrid. Several of those who took part in the protests demanded more rights for LGBTQ people. In the protests, the protesters brought posters and raised the rainbow flag. Photo: Guillermo Gutierrez Carrascal / Shutterstock / NTB
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Wild and ruthless action
The Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, says that he condemns the attack, and offers his condolences to Luiz’s family and friends.
“I am sure that the police investigation will soon lead to the finding of those responsible for killing Samuel, and that it will be clarified what happened,” Sánchez wrote in a Twitter message on Monday.
Gay couple beaten up – four boys charged
– It was a wild and merciless act. We will not take any steps back when it comes to rights and freedom, and Spain will not tolerate this, the Prime Minister writes further.
I trust that the investigation of @police Find the perpetrators of Samuel’s murder soon and clarify the facts. It was a savage and ruthless act.
We will not take a step back in rights and freedoms. Spain will not tolerate it. All my support to his family and loved ones.
– Pedro Sánchez (@sanchezcastejon) July 5, 2021
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José Miñones, the government’s representative in Galicia, said on Tuesday Radio Voice that the police are investigating whether the motive for the attack was homophobia, and added that the investigation is at a critical stage. He was able to inform that 15 people have testified in the case, and that the surveillance cameras will provide clarity in the course of events.
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Harassed
The assassination took place less than a week after Spain’s annual Pride celebration, and just days after Sánchez’s party, in collaboration with the other parties in the coalition government, approved a draft law to strengthen and protect the rights of LGBTQ people, according to The Guardian.
Spain’s largest LGBTQ organization says in a statement on Twitter that the attack is proof that people in the LGBTQ community are still being exposed to violence.
OUT IN THE STREETS: Several demonstrated in the streets of Madrid on Monday, after the murder of Samuel Luiz (24). Photo: Guillermo Gutierrez Carrascal / Shutterstock / NTB
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– We are abused and killed for being LGBTQ, the organization writes on Twitter.
– We will not rest, they write further.
– Was called “sweeper” and beaten up after the Pride parade
In a study published last year by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, showed that 41 percent of respondents to the survey had been harassed because of their orientation in the past year in Spain.
The survey also showed that 32 percent of those who responded, often or always avoided certain places for fear of being attacked or harassed because of their sexual orientation, according to The Guardian.
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