mr. Ferlazzo, a 32-year-old factory worker, is being held on charges of manslaughter and theft for using Mr. Ogorchukwu has taken. Matteo Luconi, the chief investigator for the police in Macerata overseeing the case, said in a telephone interview that an autopsy would determine the cause of death later this week. Their investigation had found nothing to suggest “elements of racial hatred,” he added. A statement from the police said the “motive for the murder” appeared to be traceable to “minor reasons”.
Besides the violence and the bystanders, the murder touched a nerve because the Marche region, where Civitanova is located, has been the scene of heinous crimes against migrants. In February 2018, an Italian right-wing sympathizer shot and wounded six African immigrants in Macerata, about 30 kilometers inland from Civitanova Marche, marking the city as a bastion of intolerance. Two years earlier, a Nigerian man was murdered in the town of Fermo, just south of Civitanova, after trying to defend his wife against racist statements.
Italians have left bouquets of flowers, potted plants and hand-scribbled notes at the site of the deadly beating. “Stop racism”, read a note.
In an email, Mr Ferlazzo’s lawyer, Roberta Bizzarri, said her client, his girlfriend, and his mother all “felt pain” because of what had happened, adding that Mr. Ferlazzo “had overt psychiatric disorders, a recognized borderline diagnosis.” She also said that “this very sad story” was “not a case of racism”.
Fabrizio Ciarapica, the mayor of Civitanova Marche, met the widow of Mr. Ogorchukwu, and on Sunday the city council passed a motion to assist the family. Money has been set aside to help pay for the funeral and a bank account has been opened for donations. “The community is always ready to help those in need,” Mr Ciarapica said in a statement sent on Sunday.
The mayor also pledged “to protect the image and values of Civitanova, who has always been a civilized, welcoming, generous, peaceful and supportive city and who is bewildered and saddened by an affair alien to his character and soul.”
