Four Italian policemen suspended for torture of a Moroccan in emergency room

Four Italian police officers are suspended from their duty after being suspected in a crime of torture against a Moroccan in Sassuolo on Sunday.

The four officers in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy have been seen attacking the Moroccan man while he was in the emergency room of a local hospital for a crisis of hypoglycemia. The Moroccan had been transported by ambulance to the hospital by the Red Cross of Sassuolo after being found in the street.

They began to assault the patient, forcibly restraining him on a stretcher and beating him in the chest and head, asking him insistently if he had taken drugs. The behaviors of the four agents were described in detail by the nursing staff, according to Italian newspaper “Il Messaggero.”

The report specifies they are two agents and two assistants, who are accused in particular of having drawn up a false service report.

The procedure follows a complaint filed by the general manager of the Sassuolo hospital for facts dating from October 2021. The alleged victim did not file a complaint because he “does not remember what happened, given that he was unconscious due to a severe attack of hypoglycemia”.

The Italian press adds that the belief that the man was linked to the world of drug trafficking arose from the suspicions of doctors and nurses. However, the Moroccan has been working in Italy for years, with a regular residence permit and has never been reported for drug-related offenses.

Before issuing the suspension order, the police officers were questioned by the investigating judge of Modena, adds the same source, specifying that the duration of the suspension of service differs from one officer to another, for crimes which they are accused of.

Public prosecution reconstructed the events and reported them, while the collection of data and vital parameters of the patient were in progress, the four individuals arrived at the hospital without anyone calling them.