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A further 79 people have been arrested in Paris as violence continued to disrupt Paris St Germain’s (PSG) celebrations after its historic Champions League win, the capital’s police chief has said.
After more than 100,000 people welcomed the return of PSG players to the French capital following their 5-0 thrashing of Inter Milan in the Champions League final on Saturday, a second night of scattered violent incidents ensued.
Paris police prefect Laurent Nuñez told RTL radio that groups of individuals gathered close to the PSG stadium and on the Champs-Élysées avenue after midnight, causing trouble.
“During the night, after 1 am, individuals with malicious intent returned to the ring road near the Parc des Princes,” he said.
Nuñez said that some of the people had used makeshift barriers and blocked the ring road for “at least” 15 minutes, before being dispersed by a “rapid reaction from the police.”
He said that other troublemakers set off fireworks and vandalised local shops, with “four or maybe five” looted.
Nuñez said calm was restored by 3:30 am in the early hours of Monday.
PSG had earlier put on an open-top bus parade in the city for its fans.
The winners of European club football’s biggest prize arrived in Paris on Sunday afternoon and headed to France’s most famous avenue, the Champs-Élysées, which overnight on Saturday saw acts of violence and clashes with riot police.
Police had made more than 560 arrests across France on Saturday night, with Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau confirming that 307 people were being held in custody.
The Interior Ministry said in a statement that 22 police officers had been injured in the violence, 18 of them in Paris.
“The overall number of arrests is very high, it is completely unprecedented,” Nuñez said.
Celebrations were largely peaceful but degenerated into violence in some areas.
A 17-year-old boy was stabbed to death in the western city of Dax during a PSG street party after the final, the national police service said.
While in Paris, a man in his 20s was killed when his scooter was hit by a car during PSG celebrations.
