A man has been arrested in Germany for allegedly torturing migrants and killing a teen in Libya. The suspect, who was wanted by Italy, is accused of operating a detention facility in northern Libya, where he and others allegedly held migrants who wanted to cross the Mediterranean.
A Somali citizen wanted by Italian authorities for allegedly torturing migrants at a facility used by human traffickers in Libya has been arrested in Germany on a European arrest warrant.
The suspect is also accused of torturing and killing a minor, also a Somali citizen.
The 29-year-old suspect was taken into custody last Wednesday (July 30) under a European arrest warrant in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, according to news agency dpa citing a German public prosecutor's office.
The arrest of the 29-year-old followed a probe carried out by anti-mafia investigators in Italy which was prompted by a complaint filed by a migrant after he landed on Lampedusa, according to a online press release by Palermo police published on Thursday (July 31).
According to dpa, eye witnesses who were held at the same facility in Libya have since backed key parts of the Somali migrant's account.
Accusations of kidnapping, torture and extortion
Investigators in Palermo, the capital of the Italian island of Sicily, believe the suspect operated a detention facility in the Libyan town of Bani Walid, located some 150 kilometers southeast of the capital Tripoli. There, he and several unidentified accomplices allegedly held migrants who wanted to cross the Mediterranean. The man is believed to be one of the persons who tortured and extorted migrants at the facility. The suspect was allegedly tasked with maintaining order at the facility and of carrying out the orders of Libyan traffickers.
Italian investigators are also accusing the suspect of having murdered a minor, who had resisted a rape attempt. Police allege that the man wanted to film the attack, to blackmail his family to pay for his release from the facility.
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IP addresses revealed suspect's location
The 29-year-old is under investigation on charges of transnational criminal association to commit offenses against persons, including murder, torture and abduction as well as illegal entry into the European Union.
The man traveled from Libya to Italy before reaching Germany, according to Italian and German officials.
German police were reportedly able to track the suspect down in collaboration with Italian investigators, who had reportedly been able to locate him by analyzing IP addresses linked to his Facebook account.