Man’s death during police arrest prompts demonstration in northern Italy

A demonstration was planned in the northern Italian city of Bologna on Monday after a man died during a police arrest over the weekend.

Bologna Mayor Matteo Lepore organized the demonstration to demand the truth about the man’s death, according to Italian news agency ANSA.

Abderrahim Fakir, a 42-year-old Moroccan man, died Sunday while police officers were pinning him to the ground as they tried to handcuff him.

In a video recorded by a local resident, Fakir was reportedly seen shouting "help" and "enough" before losing consciousness as police tried to restrain him.

According to preliminary findings, police were called to intervene after Fakir allegedly experienced a psychiatric crisis, disturbed the peace and behaved erratically.

Police reportedly tried to calm him, but he allegedly behaved aggressively. The officers then used pepper spray before tying his hands and ankles together.

"He was a kind, polite, respectful person," said Barbara Spinelli, a lawyer who was helping Fakir get his residence permit renewed. "He had been living legally in Italy since he was a child, but he feared being deported."

Bologna prosecutors opened proceedings under the newly introduced “Model 45 bis” procedure to establish the circumstances and cause of Fakir’s death.

Sources said the procedure, included in a recent security decree, was being applied for the first time. It allows preliminary inquiries involving officers or others who may have acted under legally justified circumstances without immediately placing them under formal investigation.