‘We want justice’: Hundreds gather for protest over death of Yves Sakila

Hundreds of people have called for justice as they gathered for a protest following the death of a Congolese man after he was detained by the security guards of a department store in Dublin city centre.

Yves Sakila, 35, was pronounced dead in hospital after the incident in Henry Street on Friday.

An alleged video of the incident, which has been shared online and on messaging apps, has been described as “deeply disturbing” and has caused concern among minority communities.

Gardai said security personnel detained a man in connection with alleged shoplifting at a retail store in Henry Street after 5pm on Friday.

The detained man became unresponsive at the scene and was later pronounced dead in hospital.

Fiosru, the office of the Garda Ombudsman, said it attended the scene on Friday after gardai referred the incident to them.

Black Coalition Ireland held a press conference in Dublin on Thursday and called for a “full, transparent, and independent investigation” into the death of Mr Sakila.

It also organised a demonstration outside the Merrion Square gates of Leinster House, which was attended by hundreds of people.

Demonstrators united in chants of “justice for Yves, dignity for all”, “no more silence, no more violence”, and “no justice, no peace” as well as: “What was his name? Yves Sakila”.

More than a dozen people spoke at the two-hour event, which also included protest songs and poetry.

Those addressing the crowd included elected representatives, spokespeople of migrant groups and friends of Mr Sakila.

Speakers imparted words of inclusion, peace and solidarity, while demonstrators waved Congolese flags and placards with slogans such as: “Justice for Yves Sakila”.

Ireland’s special rapporteur on racism was among the speakers and told the crowd she had sent a letter to the police ombudsman, the Garda Commissioner and the Justice Minister calling for a “full, independent and transparent” investigation into Mr Sakila’s death.

Dr Ebun Joseph expressed “profound shock and grave concern” about the circumstances of his death, adding that footage of the incident had caused “significant distress, fear and outrage”, particularly among Black and minority ethnic communities.

In her letter on behalf of the advisory committee on racism, she said: “We are deeply concerned about the growing erosion of confidence in the criminal justice system among many minority ethnic communities. Public confidence cannot be restored through silence, minimisation or procedural formality alone.

“It can only be restored through meaningful accountability, transparency, fairness and a clear demonstration that every human life is afforded equal dignity and protection under the law.”

Speaking to reporters at the protest, a man who knew Mr Sakila at school said he had been a “very down-to-earth young man”.

Walter Kabangu, the director of the Congolese Chamber of Commerce in Ireland, said he learned about what happened through the social media video.

“It’s such a sad, shocking (thing) to see,” he said, adding: “It could have been preventable.”

Mr Kabangu said the community was “very shocked and saddened” but was “coming together”.

“There’s still a sense of reality sinking in – such a young man dying.”

He appealed for calm in the community and said: “We want justice to be served, and we want everything to be done accordingly with the law.”

Miriam Boosh, the MC for the event, told those gathered: “We’re here today to mourn Yves Sakila, to stand in solidarity with his family, his friends, his community and to demand justice.

“I want to acknowledge first that this is a peaceful gathering rooted in dignity, unity and accountability.

“To Yves’ family, we hold your grief with care and we stand with you in this moment of unimaginable loss.”

Suzie Tansia, of Congolese Community Ireland, said the recent days had been “very painful” for their community.

“What happened to Yves Sakila has really shaken a lot of us, as parents, as brothers, sisters, as a community.

“We are hurting. We choose dignity, and we choose to stand together peacefully, while asking for answers.”

She added: “Yves Sakila was a man who did not deserve to die. He was a human being, like you and I. He was somebody’s son, and that could have been any one of us.”

A man in his 80s was injured in the incident and there were also expressions of support for his swift recovery during the event.

The department store, Arnotts, said in a statement it was “deeply saddened” by the death of Mr Sakila following an incident outside its Henry Street store and said it was co-operating with gardai.

It said it was conducting a full review with the independently contracted firm that provides its security services.

In a statement on Thursday, gardai said they are “continuing to investigate all of the circumstances surrounding” Mr Sakila’s death.

They said the state pathologist had completed a post-mortem examination, but its results were not being released for “operational reasons”.

Gardai have also recovered footage from CCTV and social media of the incident.

However, they are still appealing for witnesses to come forward.

At the earlier press conference, a solicitor for the Sakila family said he understood that Mr Sakila was a vulnerable person as he had been homeless and had certain drug issues.

John Gerard Cullen said Mr Sakila had a non-derogable right to life – but had died “over an alleged bottle of perfume”.

Councillor Yemi Adenuga said Mr Sakila had been failed by the system and he should have been supported through his challenges.

The Serious Crime Unit in Store Street has appointed a senior investigative officer and established an incident room.

Meanwhile, a liaison officer has also been appointed for his family.

A garda spokesperson said: “Investigations are ongoing.”