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The death of a Moroccan man in police custody has sparked protests – some violent – in the northern city of Bologna after video of the incident showing officers forcefully subduing the man circulated online.
Prosecutors in Italy told CNN that two police officers and four first responders are under investigation for the involuntary manslaughter, of the 42-year-old man, who died after being handcuffed and restrained by officers.
The man has been identified by his family as Abderrahim Fakir, who they say was a legal resident.
In video of his arrest Fakir can be heard crying for help as at least two officers pin him down. It has drawn comparisons to the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis in 2020.
An autopsy has been ordered to determine the cause of Fakir’s death, according to the Coroner’s office.
Police would not provide any details to CNN regarding the incident, citing the ongoing investigation.
However they told CNN affiliate and Italy’s national broadcaster, RAI, that they arrived at the scene on Sunday, responding to emergency calls from local residents about a man creating a disturbance, screaming and kicking garage doors.
They said officers called for an ambulance, but the video of the incident shows medical personnel waiting for police to allow them to approach Fakir. He was declared dead at the scene just before 10 a.m. local time, the Bologna mayor’s office told CNN.
It’s unclear from the video what transpired earlier in the encounter and how police initially engaged with Fakir.
Thousands of protestors took to the streets of Bologna on Sunday and Monday. Some people were seen burning cars, breaking store windows and clashing with riot police, who used tear gas and water cannon to subdue them.
On Tuesday, Italy’s Prime Minister Georgia Meloni called for calm, saying some protestors used Fakir’s death as a pretext for violence.
“Regarding Abderrahim Fakir’s death, it is imperative that any responsibilities be rigorously determined. The truth must be sought thoroughly, without prejudice and without any concessions,” she said on social media.
“But nothing can justify violence against law enforcement. Those who chose to use this incident as a pretext to ravage the city, attack officers, and sow violence, endangering the safety of citizens who had nothing to do with the unrest, were not seeking the truth: they were seeking confrontation,” she added.
Bologna’s center-left mayor Matteo Lepore, who had urged people to gather in the city to demand justice for Fakir, told the crowd that Italy did not want “ICE agents and victims like George Floyd.” But he called the violence, “blind, unjustified, and senseless.”
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