An African migrant with an incredible seven deportation orders stabbed Italian father Santo Re to death last year, but the family is now opening up to the media about the horror they have to live with and the fact that they feel the state has failed them. In fact, they went so far as to sue the Italian government over negligence in the case.
The 30-year-old Santo, who was headed to work on May 30, 2025, as a pastry chef at Quaranta bar on Catania’s Ognina seafront, had parked in front of the highly popular pastry shop when he was approached by 37-year-old undocumented migrant Akbahue Innocent, from Zimbabwe. Innocent was working as an unauthorized parking attendant. The foreigner stabbed the victim six times after the pastry chef refused to pay for parking.
Remarkably, it was revealed after the murder, that the two men knew each other and Santo had reportedly offered the man assistance on several previous occasions.
An African migrant with an incredible 7 deportation orders stabbed Italian father Santo Re to death. Santo leaves behind a 4-month-old baby girl.
Santo’s family says that 37-year-old undocumented migrant Akbahue Innocent, from Zimbabwe, should have been removed from the… pic.twitter.com/asFSOpV9cG
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Santo leaves behind a 4-month-old baby girl.
“Santo was a father. Many times when I see dads accompanying their daughters, taking a walk together, or going to get ice cream, I know that she will never be able to do that,” said Santo’s partner.
Santo’s sister also spoke out, saying: “It is something I cannot and do not want to accept, because my brother died because of a person who should not have been in Italy. He had seven orders, seven! Not one, but seven! Seven deportation orders from the national territory, three of which with forced accompaniment to the border, but not a single one was ever executed.”
In fact, due to the extraordinary nature of the case, in which the illegal migrant suspect had seven deportation orders, the family sued the Italian government, which is run by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. Specifically, they targeted the Italian Interior Ministry, arguing that the government failed to take action against Innocent, which directly led to the death of Santo.
The legal team argued that the Interior Ministry was responsible, stating that “if Akbahue had been expelled, Santo would not have died.” They contended that because the ministry “allowed and tolerated the permanence on national territory of a subject qualified as dangerous,” the ministry is liable.
Despite the legal action, the courts found that the interior ministry was not liable to compensate the family of Santo. The Catania Assize Court issued this ruling, rejecting a request from the legal representatives of the victim’s widow and relatives.
The lawyers had sought to summon the ministry as civilly responsible in the murder trial of Santo R, reported Italian newspaper il Giornale.
In its decision, the court ruled that “The responsibility of the public administration is not covered by legislation.” This ruling is considered a significant precedent as it establishes in writing that the ministry cannot be held responsible in such cases, even when the government fails to protect its own citizens. The court specifically determined that the public administration is not liable for criminal actions committed by an illegal immigrant even when the government has failed to expel that migrant a total of seven times.
However, the courts have ruled exactly the opposite in other cases when the plaintiff is a migrant. For example, previous cases ordered the Interior Ministry to compensate migrants for delays in authorizing disembarkation from NGO vessels, or for the transfer and detention of individuals in facilities in Albania.
The criminal record of Innocent shows he had seven deportation orders in Italy between 2007 and the present day, three of which were issued in Catania starting in 2017. He was also banned from accessing the city’s downtown. In July 2019, when Innocent worked as an illegal parking attendant on Ognina’s seafront promenade, in Piazza Mancini Battaglia, he attacked two police officers who were trying to fine him and punched and kicked them before being stopped by the Carabinieri. He was arrested for intentional bodily harm and resisting and insulting a public official.
One of the two officers was hit in the face and taken to the emergency room for treatment. He was imprisoned for this crime.
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