Italian news outlet ANSA quoted Italian officials involved in the investigation of Giulio Regeni’s death on Friday saying that the “the case is far from closed” after Egyptian police claimed Thursday to have killed five gang members who are accused of kidnapping and murdering the Italian student.
The comments come after Egyptian authorities announced Thursday that they found belongings of the Cambridge University PhD student in an apartment in Qalyubia, near the capital.
However, “there is no definitive element confirming they were responsible” the Italian investigators told ANSA, arguing that the alleged kidnappers are unlikely to have tortured Regeni to death.
Regeni, 28, was found dead in a ditch along the Cairo-Alexandria Desert Road on 3 February, nine days after his disappearance, amid allegations of possible security involvement due to his research related to Egypt’s labour and connections to workers’ unions and members of the Egyptian opposition.
The Egyptian prosecution started Friday the investigations by interrogating the wife and sister of the main defendant in the case, Saed Abdel-Fattah.
Abdel-Fattah, now dead, was allegedly accused of forming a criminal gang, near New Cairo area, which specialised in “impersonating policemen” for purposes of kidnapping and robbing foreigners living in Egypt. His wife and sister are being charged with hiding a fugitive and possessing stolen goods.
