France's human rights ombudsman on Wednesday said that it was opening a probe into the arrest of a boy aged 14 that left him with facial wounds and raised new controversy over police behaviour. The boy, named as Gabriel, had been caught trying to steal a scooter in the Paris suburb of Bondy in late May and was detained. He says that during his arrest he received serious eye injuries after being kicked four times by the police. Interior Minister Christophe Castaner said this week that he was "troubled" by the reports of the incident, which comes amid new protests in France over the 2016 death in police custody of young black man Adama Traore. These protests have been given momentum by the wave of global anger over the death in US police custody of George Floyd. The ombudsman, an independent consultative body headed by French politician Jacques Toubon, will look into the rights of the child and the methods of the police in its investigation, it said. The family's lawyer, Stephane Gas, told AFP he was "satisfied" that the independent ombudsman was looking into the case. Critics allege that racism and brutality is entrenched in the French police force but senior officers insist that while problems exist they are caused by a small number of individuals. al-tll-sjw/