A homeless man died after being beaten in a street brawl in Granada, Spain, that police believe was part of a disturbing new pattern in which gang organisers reportedly recruit drug addicts, many of them homeless, to fight each other in front of onlookers. The victim was left brain-dead following the fight on Saturday and later died in hospital; National Police are treating his death as a homicide and are examining video footage of the incident. The case highlights the exploitation of vulnerable addicts for entertainment or profit and has prompted a criminal investigation into the practice.

Footage shows the two bare-chested men trading punches while a crowd of more than a dozen people watched and cheered rather than intervening; the victim collapsed after a flurry of blows and never recovered. His opponent, also homeless, has been arrested and charged with reckless homicide. Investigators believe organisers offer participants either drugs or €20 to fight, and that such bouts have been occurring almost daily over the past month across neighbourhoods in northern Granada. The article separately notes an unrelated case in France, where a police officer is under investigation after a homeless man died following an altercation at a music festival in Carcassonne.