Protest outside Malaga courthouse demands justice for Haitam, who died while being restrained by police with two Tasers

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A hundred relatives and friends gathered a week after his death, which is currently investigated by the judicial authorities

María José Díaz Alcalá

Monday, 15 December 2025, 20:10

Around a hundred people gathered outside the courthouse in Malaga on Monday to demand justice for the death of Haitam Mejri, 35, who suffered a cardiac arrest on 7 December after he was restrained by the police with two Tasers in Torremolinos.

According to his family and friends, he was in a call shop only to charge his phone and pay an Uber driver, while the police hold that they were called because Haitam was attempting to rob the establishment. Haitam's circle describes his death as "police abuse".

"Justice for Haitam," could be heard outside the courthouse on Monday. The demonstrators were addressing the police deployed in the area. They demanded clarity in the investigation into that Sunday evening on Calle Hoyo. They say the Haitam "was not a thief" and that his posthumous reputation should be cleared of the crime.

"They want to make him out to be a thief to justify this tremendous injustice that has ended his life and unfortunately that of his family (...) He did nothing to deserve this terrible end. We are going to bring everything to light and condemn this act," Haitam's brother Naser said. He received the news about his brother's death the following morning, while in Peru. The last time he spoke to Haitam was on Thursday or Friday, by video call. "How could I imagine that this would be the last time?" he asks.

Neither he nor his family witnessed the moment, but they say that their account is based on the videos recorded by witnesses. "They could have restrained him in a thousand ways but they used the least correct one. They acted with no professionalism, no mercy, no conscience," they state. Naser claims that a new recording reveals that "once he was already restrained, they were brutal".

For the moment, Haitam's family has not had access to the definitive autopsy report, which will clarify the cause of the cardiac arrest. They have access to a forensic evaluation from that Sunday, in which the cause of death is described as "violent", i.e. death caused by an external force, whether accidental, homicidal or suicidal.