1 Jul 2017

Four teenagers charged in relation to New Caledonia death

4:35 pm on 1 July 2017
French police officers in New Caledonia.

French police officers in New Caledonia. Photo: AFP

Police in New Caledonia have charged four teenagers in connection with the fatal accident of a woman motorcyclist near Noumea last March.

The four, aged between 14 and 17, have reportedly confessed to planning a car-jacking near St Louis but then decided to seize the motorcyle they heard approach instead.

They have been accused of causing her fall and death which until now had been unexplained.

Her death prompted concerned citizens to form the Collective against Insecurity in New Caledonia.

This came after intense social media debate over whether her fall was an accident or the result of foul play because the incident happened along the troubled stretch of the main road near St Louis.

The road, which has been the scene of unrest late last year, was repeatedly closed, disrupting the life of thousands.

The victim was a nurse on her way home from work.