The ex-boyfriend of American student Amanda Knox has been found near Italy's border by police just hours after the pair was re-convicted of murder by an Italian court.
Twenty-nine-year-old Raffaele Sollecito, an Italian citizen, was reportedly taken into custody by police about 24 miles away from country's northeastern border. (Via CBS)
His lawyer says he was visiting the region because he wanted to be away from his "home and media hotspots" following the verdict, adding that Sollecito gave himself up to authorities voluntarily and was not trying to flee the country.
“His passport had been flagged already. It wasn’t like he could go to some border and use his passport. … He would have been stopped no matter what.”
However, the head of police in the region told the press: "I don't know if he was planning to do so [flee the country], but keep in mind the hotel is close to the border of Austria and Slovenia. Make your own conclusions." (Via CNN)
Authorities have now seized his passport as mandated by the Florence appeals court that convicted him.
That appeals court upheld the conviction of Sollecito and Knox in the brutal 2007 murder of Meredith Kercher, Knox's study abroad roommate in Italy, on Thursday — the pair's first conviction was overturned in 2011. (Via BBC)
Knox, who's now back in the U.S. and living in Seattle, was re-tried in absentia. She told ABC's Good Morning America the verdict is "unfair" and "not right," and that she is concerned for Sollecito.
"My initial thought after the verdict was, 'Oh my God, Raffaele' … I don’t know what I would do if they imprisoned him. It’s maddening."
If the conviction is upheld through yet another appeals process, Knox has been sentenced to 28 years in prison with Sollecito getting 25. Since the appeals court didn't order Sollecito be detained, he was released after his paperwork was processed.
