15-Year-Old Boy Killed, 13-Year-Old Critical in Suspected Drugs Shooting in Nantes

French prosecutors say a 15-year-old boy has been killed and a 13-year-old boy is fighting for his life in a suspected drugs-related shooting in the western city of Nantes.

The 13-year-old is in critical condition, and a third boy was also wounded.

"The shots were fired at three young men," said Nantes prosecutor Antoine Leroy. He believes the attack was a settling of scores related to drug offenses.

The 15-year-old boy's aunt, Paola, from Nantes' working-class neighborhood of Port-Boyer, rejected that assessment. "You shouldn't mix everything up," she said. "He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. He wasn't involved in any of that; he had simply come to visit a friend."

As people gathered around the police cordon, the mother of one of the victims cried in despair from her car. The area features high-rise apartment blocks along the banks of the Erdre River.

"The boys were on their way to their grandmother's house," said Stella, 35. "I was home when it happened. A police officer called me to bring my son back and tell me my nephew was injured."

"I feel like I'm in a nightmare and I'm angry because I almost lost my son."

Angeline, 18, described hearing two bursts of around 10 gunshots. She then saw several people "hooded and dressed in black" running through the grass.

Nantes Mayor Johanna Rolland condemned what she called the "drug trafficking that is plaguing the country." She emphasized the distress and intense emotion in the community, already reeling from another fatal shooting at the end of last month.

On that occasion, a man was killed and another seriously wounded in the same area in a shooting linked to drug trafficking. The gunman used a pistol before escaping.

Rolland called for all police resources to be deployed to find the attackers this time.

In 2025, several French cities imposed night-time curfews on young people to combat drug-related violence.