Italian investigators will make a forensic copy of a police body camera on Aug. 10 as part of the investigation into the death of Abderrahim Fakir, a 42-year-old Moroccan man who died during a police intervention in Bologna last month.
The forensic copy will be created at a Carabinieri RIS laboratory in Rome. The body camera belonged to the officer leading the patrol that responded with another officer to an incident on the morning of July 19 on Via Italo Svevo in Bologna’s Pilastro neighborhood.
According to investigators, the officer activated the camera before the intervention.
Prosecutors in Bologna ordered the examination as part of a manslaughter investigation involving the two police officers and four Italian Red Cross workers who were present during the incident.
The footage is expected to provide investigators with another account of the events before, during and after Fakir’s final moments. It will be analyzed alongside videos recorded by residents and security camera footage already collected during the investigation.
The Carabinieri RIS is also preparing a 3D reconstruction of the scene. After conducting an inspection using drones and laser scanners, investigators are mapping the area where Fakir died. The body camera footage could then be incorporated into the reconstruction to establish a detailed timeline of the intervention.
The forensic examination will be carried out as an irreversible technical assessment, allowing all parties involved in the case to appoint independent experts.
Gabriele Bordoni, the lawyer representing the two police officers, said he will appoint computer forensics expert Gianni Spoletti to participate in the examination.
Bordoni had previously asked prosecutors to expand the forensic analysis of Fakir’s cellphone to include videos collected during the investigation. He said integrating the body camera footage into the reconstruction would help corroborate the officers’ account of the incident.
Fabio Anselmo, the lawyer representing Fakir’s family, also welcomed the decision, saying the additional footage could help clarify what occurred during the intervention.
Meanwhile, investigators are examining material recovered from one of Fakir’s two cellphones, including photos, videos and messages, to assess his condition before his death. His second phone has not been recovered.
Prosecutors are also reviewing Fakir’s recent contact with mental health services. He visited Bologna’s Maggiore Hospital on June 20 for a psychiatric issue and was later evaluated by a local mental health center, where he received an initial diagnosis, confirmation of his treatment and a follow-up appointment scheduled for early August.
Investigators are also expected to question a Kosovo-born resident who appears in a video holding Fakir’s legs during the incident. The man, who has already been interviewed by police, reportedly left the neighborhood after receiving threats because he feared for his safety.
The investigation currently involves six people: the two police officers and four Italian Red Cross workers.
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