Turkish man fatally shot by German police laid to rest in Mannheim

COLOGNE, Germany

Ertekin Ozkan, a 49-year-old Turkish man who was fatally shot by German police, was laid to rest at Mannheim cemetery on Tuesday.

Turkish Consul General in Karlsruhe Mahmut Niyazi Sezgin and Ozkan's relatives attended the funeral.

Police officers who attended the ceremony did not wear formal uniforms.

On Dec. 23, police in the southern German city of Mannheim killed Ozkan after claiming that he was holding a knife and threatening officers with an attack.

Following the fatal shooting, the German police method of "neutralization" was heavily criticized on social media.

With several videos posted on social media showing the shooting of Ozkan while he was some 3-4 meters away from the police team, social media users said police should have attempted to injure him rather than fatally shooting the Turkish man.