The 16-year-old demonstrator who was shot at by police during a farmers protest in the Netherlands says he is under investigation for manslaughter.
The incident occurred on Tuesday night in the northern town of Heerenveen when Jouke Hospes had live rounds fired at his tractor during the protest.
Authorities immediately claimed that Hospes had deliberately tried to drive his vehicle into officers, but video footage of the confrontation shows this did not happen.
Hospes described how the incident began, saying farmers were already starting to leave the area when they were confronted by armed police.
“Behind me, it was clear, so I decided to go around it. I calmly crossed the sidewalk and drove very calmly. I went to see if traffic was approaching and if I could cross the road. I was driving [slowly], and suddenly I heard a PANG in my right ear. I thought there soon would be a second one.”
“I didn’t have any damage, so I thought it was a rubber bullet… However, I stopped for a while at Oudehaske, and when I was walking around the tractor, I saw a hole in the iron. All kinds of thoughts went through my head.”
Hellbound and Down 