Many thanks to Gary Fouse for translating this article from Il Giornale:

Bologna: Sexually assaults a woman and beats a woman who came to her aid. 20-year-old Somali arrested

by Rosa Scognamiglio
February 8, 2024

It occurred in the university area. The woman was returning home when she was attacked from behind and abused. In addition, the woman who came to her aid was kicked. The 20-year-old Somali, illegally in Italy, was identified by the victims.

Attacked from behind and abused outside her home. It is the latest sexual violence committed in the university area of the city of Bologna. The attacker, a 20-year-old Somali, without a fixed abode and in Italy illegally, after the sexual assault also kicked a girl who tried to aid the victim, a 30-year-old woman. Fortunately, the intervention of a police patrol avoided the worst. The foreigner, who is now in the Dozza jail, must answer for sexual violence, beating, and receiving stolen goods. The police officers seized some cell phones of dubious origin from him.

The shocking sexual violence

The sexual assault was committed on via Belle Arti, which already had appeared in the news a few months ago because of another case of sexual violence. It was at 9:40 pm on Tuesday. The 30-year-old was returning home when she was surprised from behind by the Somali. After trying a verbal approach in vain, he grabbed her violently and groped her in her private parts. The woman screamed and struggled. He ran away but was then chased and stopped by a girl who had tried to aid the victim. At that point, the foreigner threw himself at the young girl, kicking her. After that, he disappeared.

The capture of the attacker

Meanwhile, a patrol car from the Due Torri San Francisco police station was passing by via Belle Arti. The officers immediately stopped and took the statements of the two females. In the course of a few minutes, another patrol car tracked down the attacker in Puntoni Square. The foreigner tried to dodge the police stop, but the officers stopped him and arrested him. Now he is in the Bologna jail awaiting validation of the arrest. Besides the sexual violence, the young man is also charged with beating and receiving stolen goods, given that he had a stolen iPhone 14 with him and two other smartphones of dubious origin.

Previous assaults

As Il Resto di Carlino [news] well recalls, last September, also on via Belle Arti, a girl was thrown to the asphalt by two Tunisians who tried to rape her. Fortunately, a passerby succeeded in chasing away the attackers, avoiding the worst. A couple of months later, in November, another woman was attacked by a Gambian. In that circumstance, the foreigner was stopped by the police while committing the act.

“The mayor should get back to caring about Bologna,” said Matteo Di Benedetto of the Lega in regard to the terrible story. “We understand that there are issues of a national character that interest him more, but security must return to the center of the Bologna political agenda,”