The murder of a Nigerian street vendor in broad daylight shocks Italy

The murder of Nigerian vendor Alika Ogorchukwu in broad daylight in the Italian city of Civitanova Marche, located in central Italy, has shocked the country this Saturday, with criticism of the "indifference" of those who attended the crime without intervening.

The man was a Nigerian national, 39 years old, married and had an eight-year-old son.

He died on Friday afternoon at the hands of Italian Filippo Claudio Ferlazzo, 32, who was imprisoned accused of voluntary manslaughter and robbery, because he took the victim's phone.

“The murder of Alika Ogorchukwu is shocking.

Unheard of ferocity.

widespread indifference.

There can be no justifications and silence is not enough.

The ultimate outrage against Alika would be to turn the page and forget”, denounced the leader of the Democratic Party, Enrico Letta.

Even the far-right leaders Matteo Salvini and Giorgia Meloni, always critical of immigration, have reacted to request the maximum punishment for the aggressor in a country immersed in the middle of the electoral campaign.

The Italian elections to choose the future prime minister after the departure of Mario Draghi will be on September 25.

The Nigerian, a street vendor, was in the central street Umberto I in Civitanova, a tourist port on the Adriatic coast, when he was attacked by the Italian.

This sparked a fight in which the Italian struck several blows at Ogorchukwu until he was thrown to the ground and then stood on top of him until he ended his life, as can be seen in the videos made by passers-by.

The spokesman for the Macerata police force (center), Matteo Luconi, explained that, although the investigation is still open, at the moment there are no elements that allow the crime to be attributed to racism, but rather "it seems that it arose" when the victim was asking for alms. .

According to the first reconstruction, carried out during a press conference, Ogorchukwu approached his assailant to ask for money and, after refusing it, he beat him to death.

The murderer has asked Ogorchukwu's family for "forgiveness" through his lawyer and has alleged that the fight arose because he "insistently begged for alms" and because he grabbed his girlfriend's arm, who was with him at the time and who has already testified as a witness.

Numerous people, including members of the Nigerian community, have gathered this Saturday in Civitanova and the nearby city of Ancona to demand justice.

The association of Sant'Egidio, dedicated to the reception of refugees in Italy, has lamented these events and calls to "stop the violence, but also the violence that opens the way".

“It is an episode that has occurred in a street normally full of people, in the heart of Civitanova.

There are even those who have recorded it, others shouted at the aggressor, but nobody intervened”, the organization has denounced.

The acting Minister of Health, Roberto Speranza, has assured that “indifference is as serious and unjustifiable as violence”.

Even the far-right leaders Matteo Salvini and Giorgia Meloni, always critical of immigration,

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