Swiss court acquits police officers over Black man's death, sparking anger

FILE PHOTO: A graffiti calling for justice for Mike Ben Peter is seen in front of the Cathedral, the day before the start of the trial of the six police officers facing homicide charges after he died of a heart attack during his arrest in February 2018, in Lausanne, Switzerland, June 11, 2023. Picture taken with a long exposure. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/File Photo

LAUSANNE, Switzerland (Reuters) -A Swiss court on Thursday acquitted six white police officers of charges of negligent homicide in the death of a Black man who suffered a fatal heart attack after he was held down in the street during an arrest.

The case has raised questions about structural racism in Switzerland and the prosecution had compared it to the killing of George Floyd in the United States, who died after an officer knelt on his neck for more than nine minutes in 2020.