Marseille fan faces attempted murder charge for crowd unrest

MARSEILLE, France: A supporter of French club Marseille has been handed preliminary charges including attempted murder for allegedly firing a flare that seriously injured a visiting German fan during crowd violence at Stade Velodrome last month. The Marseille public prosecutor’s office on Friday indicted the 26-year-old Marseille supporter, who allegedly launched the flare in the parking lot when Eintracht Frankfurt visited for a Champions League match on Sept. 13.

The supporter was not publicly identified. The German fan sustained a serious neck injury after being hit by the flare and is still receiving medical care. German agency DPA has reported that a 64-year-old woman was injured when she tried to remove the flare.

Seventeen police officers were also injured during the crowd violence. Riot police intervened when opposing fans launched flares and fireworks at each other from close range for several minutes inside the stadium. Seventeen people had been detained.

The night before the game, opposing groups of ultras and hooligans from Marseille and Frankfurt — numbering more than 100 on each side — were on the verge of fighting in the street before riot police stepped in. The violence at Stade Velodrome came days after 32 people were injured in a mass brawl between ultras from Nice and German club Cologne before a Europa Conference League match. Marseille play at Frankfurt on Wednesday in another Champions League game.