Roma teenager shot in the head by Greek police after 'stealing €20 worth of petrol' dies in hospital

A teenager shot in the head by police after allegedly leaving the vehicle without paying 20 euros for petrol has died.

The 16-year-old's shooting sparked violent protests and the Roma community says his ethnicity was a factor.

Since the December 5 incident, he had been in critical condition following emergency surgery.

A hospital in Thessaloniki, Greece's second-largest city, said that despite “tireless efforts”, the boy died on Tuesday morning.

Antonis Tasios, secretary of the Roma community where the teenager lived, said: “Everyone here is crying. It's unfair that a child leaves like this. We are in great pain.”

A 34-year-old police officer has been charged with attempted manslaughter and illegally firing his weapon.

Around 200 people from the Roma community demonstrated outside the court during his appearance on Friday.

“It wasn't the gas, it wasn't the money, the cops shot because he was Roma,” people chanted.

Some also burned 20 euro notes, the same amount as the gasoline he allegedly stole.

Violent protests spread from Thessaloniki to other regions, such as the capital Athens, with vehicles set on fire, barricades burning and Molotov cocktails thrown at riot police.

The teenager, who has not been formally identified, is said to have left a gas station in his truck without paying and was chased by police on motorbikes.

The arrested police officer told the court he fired after the boy tried to ram him three times and because he feared for the lives of his colleagues.

Citizen Protection Minister Takis Theodorikakos, who heads Greece's police force, tweeted his “deep sadness for the death of the 16-year-old boy” and offered his condolences to the teenager's family.