Body found in France's River Loire confirmed as missing music fan
30 July 2019
A body found in the River Loire is that of a man who went missing after French police raided a music festival last month, local officials say. They say Tuesday's autopsy on the badly decomposed body found close to the festival site in Nantes confirmed it was Steve Maia Canico, 24. Fourteen other people were rescued from the river soon after falling in during the police crackdown on 22 June. An inquiry has found no link between the raid and Mr Canico's disappearance. This was announced by French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe on Tuesday. But he added: "More than five weeks after the events, what happened that night remains unclear and I am not satisfied." Since Mr Canico's disappearance, posters have been put up in the area around the western French city that read "Ou est Steve?" (Where is Steve?). The free techno party was organised as part of France's Fete de la Musique (Music Day). It was held on Ile de Nantes - an island in the centre of the city, surrounded by two branches of the River Loire. The annual event encourages people to play music in public places every 21 June. Police intervened to stop the party when it failed to end in the early hours on 22 June, saying the music "had exceeded the set time". Witnesses say police fired tear gas and rubber bullets. Footage was shared on social media showing police carrying batons and riot shields moving in on the bank of the Loire. There was no barrier along the river and a number of revellers fell in, before they were rescued by firefighters. Steve Maia Canico was last seen in the early hours on 22 June, and friends say he went missing when police intervened. Friends have told French media outlets that he could not swim, while witnesses have described seeing a man struggling on the surface of the water.
The free techno party was organised as part of France's Fete de la Musique (Music Day). It was held on Ile de Nantes - an island in the centre of the city, surrounded by two branches of the River Loire. The annual event encourages people to play music in public places every 21 June. Police intervened to stop the party when it failed to end in the early hours on 22 June, saying the music "had exceeded the set time". Witnesses say police fired tear gas and rubber bullets. Footage was shared on social media showing police carrying batons and riot shields moving in on the bank of the Loire. There was no barrier along the river and a number of revellers fell in, before they were rescued by firefighters. Steve Maia Canico was last seen in the early hours on 22 June, and friends say he went missing when police intervened. Friends have told French media outlets that he could not swim, while witnesses have described seeing a man struggling on the surface of the water.
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What happened in June?