Two men have been charged by French police following a savage assault that left a bus driver brain dead in Bayonne. Philip Monguillot, 59, was attacked when he attempted to challenge passengers who were not wearing mandatory face masks on his bus in the south western city.
Prosecutors say that the two men ‘violently kicked and punched the upper part of his body, including his head’, causing the married father of three to die later in hospital of his injuries. They are both in their early 20s and were already known to local police.
The senseless and tragic crime has shocked the community, with Bayonne’s bus drivers refusing to return to work until after the victim’s funeral.
In France facemasks are compulsory aboard public transport as part of its effort to combat Covid-19, which has taken some 30,000 lives in the country.
In Ireland, where facemasks are also compulsory on public transport, new legislation could see non compliant passengers face a 2500 euro fine and up to six months in prison.
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