A Nigerian man who fled his country with his wife after surviving a Boko Haram attack on a church has been killed in an allegedly racist attack in Italy, where he was seeking refuge.
Emmanuel Chidi Namdi, 36, was attacked by an “ultra” football fan who is understood to have connections to far right groups, after he allegedly tried to defend his wife from racist abuse, according to reports.
Amedeo Mancini, 35, was arrested on Thursday on suspicion of racially aggravated manslaughter. He allegedly referred to the 24-year-old woman as an “African monkey”, and attacked Namdi when he attempted to defend her, according to Italian media reports. Namdi fell into a coma and was pronounced dead on Wednesday.
His lawyer, Francesco De Minicis, told the news agency Ansa that his client had not intended to kill the Nigerian during the attack in the small Italian town of Fermo.
Namdi and his wife, identified by her first name, Chimiary, were being hosted by Fermo town’s parish while they sought asylum. They are believed to have fled from Boko Haram and travelled through Niger and Libya before boarding a boat to Italy.
Italian press reported that the Nigerian couple had lost a daughter in an attack in NIgeria by the Islamic terrorist group Boko Haram. Chimiary also had a miscarriage on the treacherous journey over to Italy - and the couple were also beaten by people smugglers.
Chimiary has been granted official refugee status by the Italian government since the incident, according to a tweet by BBC journalist Julian Miglierini.
The couple had been at the Fermo bishop's seminary since September after fleeing Nigeria. A local priest, Father Vinicio Albanesi, said the attack was probably linked to four bombs recently planted outside Fermo churches that have worked with migrants. The bombs, which caused little damage and hurt no one, were left outside the churches including the Duomo between February and May this year.
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