Italian who beat Nigerian man to death arrested as wife demands justice
The Italian police have arrested Filippo Claudio Giuseppe Ferlazzo, the 32-year-old Italian man who beat up a physically challenged Nigerian, Alika Ogorchukwu, to death in Italy.
It could be recalled that Ogorchukwu, a 39-year-old Nigerian man based in Italy, was attacked by Claudio on the streets of Civitanova Marche, a city located in the Province of Macerata, in the Marche Region of Italy for allegedly complimenting his girlfriend’s beauty.
A video which trended on social media showed how Claudio hit and choked Ogorchukwu on a busy road in the full glare of passersby who stood by watching and filming.
READ ALSO: Physically challenged Nigerian beaten to death in Italy (Video)
The Nigerian Embassy in Italy, who also confirmed the incident, described it as a ‘brutal murder’, adding that all hands would be on deck to ensure justice in the matter.
However, the Italian police said the 32-year-old Filippo Claudio Giuseppe Ferlazzo has been detained in the Montacuto prison in Ancona in connection with the killing.
The police said he was tracked down using street cameras after the attack. It also said that Claudio is being held on suspicion of murder and theft.
According to the police, “the deceased was selling goods at midday Friday on the main street of Civitanova Marche, a beach town on the Adriatic Sea coast when an Italian man grabbed a crutch the street-seller used to walk and struck him down. Footage shows him being wrestled to the ground, despite attempts to fight back”.
The police chief, Matteo Luconi, told Italian news channel Sky TG24 that onlookers called the police, who responded to the scene after the suspect had fled and attempted to administer aid to the victim. He said it was not clear if Ogorchukwu died at the scene, and that an autopsy would determine how he died.
Luconi told Sky TG24 that the assailant lashed out after the vendor made “insistent” requests for pocket change. He added that the police were questioning witnesses and had taken into evidence videos of the attack. They said the suspect has made no statements.
Meanwhile, the wife of the deceased, Charity Oriachi, has demanded justice for her late husband.
Speaking to newsmen in Italy, the bereaved wife said, “I need justice for my husband. That is what I want. The pain is too much for me.”
Daniel Amanza, who runs the ACSIM, an association for immigrants in the Marche region’s Macerata province disclosed that Ogorchukwu who was married with two children resorted to selling goods on the street after he was hit by a car which made him lose his job as a labourer due to the injuries he suffered.
He said the accident left Ogorchukwu with a limp and needing crutches.
Amanza alleged that the aggressor, Claudio became infuriated when Ogorchukwu told the man’s companion she was beautiful.
A judge in Italy on Monday ordered Filippo Claudio to remain in jail as an investigation into the death of Ogorchukwu is still ongoing.
An autopsy is said to be carried out on the deceased this week to determine the exact cause of his death.
During a hearing presided over by Judge Claudio Bonifazi for Ferlazzo at a jail near the Adriatic coastal city of Ancona, Ferlazzo “gave his version of the facts and said he was sorry,” defence lawyer Roberta Bizzarri told reporters.
She added that Ferlazzo, who is white, said: “there was no racial element” involved.
Pressed if Ferlazzo was saying he was sorry to the victim’s family, the lawyer replied, “yes, to the family.”
Ferlazzo could face charges of murder and robbery because Ogorchukwu’s cell phone was taken.
“Ferlazzo’s sorrys aren’t enough, now only justice is needed and not a vendetta,” Orgochukwu’s family said in a statement issued through their lawyer.
“It’s difficult to understand what happened,” The family’s lawyer, Francesco Mantella said.
He added in a phone call that the widow, Charity Oriachi, wants to see the suspect “face to face” to try to understand why he killed her husband.
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