Michael Schumacher’s doctors will begin lowering his sedation level in order to start the process of waking him up, his agent said on Thursday.
The seven-times F1 world champion slammed his head on a rock while skiing off-piste in the resort of Meribel. Since the accident in December he has been in an artificial coma for more than four weeks in a hospital in the eastern French city of Grenoble.
“Michael’s sedation is being reduced in order to allow the start of the waking-up process, which may take (a) long time,” his agent, Sabine Kehm, said in a statement.
French police on Tuesday arrested 12 suspects over the killing of two students lynched by a mob armed with hammers, baseball bats and knives.
The killings last Friday in the Echirolles suburb of Grenoble sparked outrage in France and prompted President Francois Hollande to travel to the southeastern city late Monday to visit the families of the dead young men.
Hollande was accosted as he visited the poor suburb by a local resident who lambasted security forces for failing to stop the violence she said was plaguing the area.
Interior Minister Manuel Valls also travelled to the city and on Tuesday denounced what he called a “massacre” and vowed that the killers would be tracked down.
Three suspects, who may be of most interest and all have convictions for violent crimes, are still on the run, prosecutor Jean-Yves Coquillat told reporters.
Kevin Noubissi and Sofiane Tadburt, both aged 21, were beaten and stabbed to death by a gang of about a dozen people in a park. Noubissi was stabbed seven to eight times, and Tadburt 30 times, the prosecutor said.
The gang was reportedly seeking vengeance after a minor incident outside a high school involving Noubissi’s younger brother.
Funerals for the two friends were due to take place Wednesday at the local mosque.
On Tuesday evening police said about 10,000 people took part in a memorial march to honour the two young men, who were said by friends and families to be model students.
Participants marched in silence while carrying white balloons and holding up placards showing photos of the victims.
Most of those arrested Tuesday in Grenoble were aged between 18 and 21, and most have criminal records, officials said.
No one has admitted guilt, the prosecutor added.
Two brothers, both in the military, were the first to be arrested in the case, police said, after being brought in for questioning on Monday. One was found near Grenoble, the other in a town about 500 kilometres (300 miles) away.
Their mother was also brought in for questioning Tuesday. – AFP
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Michael Schumacher’s doctors will begin lowering his sedation level in order to start the process of waking him up, his agent said on Thursday.
