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An African migrant has been arrested for stabbing a 25-year-old man to death, Melvin Mendy, on Friday evening last week. The incident occurred after Mendy and other residents asked the man to leave the area near his 19th arrondissement building in Paris. Local residents denounce what they say are major security flaws in the area including a persistent issue with dangerous squatters.
The parking lot in the area still features large bloodstains from Mendy, according to a report from Le Parisien. It was on the sidewalk at Rue Mathis that Mendy was stabbed in the stomach on Oct. 10. Police say Mendy and other residents of the building approached the African migrant, who was sitting in a chair in their parking lot. They asked him to leave, at which point he punched one of the neighbors and charged Mendy with a knife.
Melvin went into cardiorespiratory arrest due to the stab wounds and was treated by the Paris Fire Department. Later, despite efforts to save his life, he perished at the La Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital the next day.
Families and friends flocked to the small apartment in the area, with many of them there to support the grieving mother. Le Parisien reporters indicated that the mother’s cries could be heard throughout the building. Notes from neighbors were posted to the family in the building, with one message reading: “Strength to you.”
The paper reports that, unlike many other buildings, there is a warm atmosphere among neighbors, with many residents knowing each other. The residents are currently struggling to understand how such violence could happen to someone from their community, describing Melvin as an “adorable” young man.
Melvin, who had lived in the building for a few years, was described as a “great kid’ by one of the neighbors. “He was discreet, he always helped me carry the groceries. It was a shock.”
While the suspect, who is from Guinea-Bissau, has been arrested and charged with murder, there are questions about whether he will see any prison time. As is the case again and again in Europe, a source told Le Parisien the man allegedly suffers from “psychiatric disorders” and has recently been released from a specialized psychiatric facility.
The mother of the 28-year-old suspect was the one who alerted police about the stabbing attack, which led to his arrest.
Residents say that entering the building is not hard. Even the garage door to the underground parking lot has not closed properly for weeks.
Le Parisien reporters said they easily gained access to the buildings, where they saw trash piled up and were hit with the strong smell of urine in the stairwells.
“It’s a mess,” said one neighbor, who was close to Melvin. “There’s no security here. Look, we can open it however we want,” he said while showing Le Parisien reporters how easy it was to open the door.
All residents spoke of intruders who routinely gain access to the underground parking garage, where they squat. A number of young squatters routinely show up and have “settled” inside the parking garage.
It still remains unclear whether the man was a part of this squatting group. However, there are concerns that these squatters could eventually kill more residents. In May, a fire broke out in the parking garage of the building, and the reporters indicated that five months later, the smell of the fire is still present.
“No one has come to clean it up,” said one tenant.
