Italy student murder case trial begins

A major femicide trial opens in Italy Monday after the brutal murder of a university student by her ex-boyfriend that triggered outrage and national soul-searching over the roots of male violence against women.

The grisly stabbing in November of Giulia Cecchettin, 22, a biomedical engineering student at the University of Padua, cast a grim spotlight on femicide in Italy, where the vast majority of victims are killed at the hands of their current or former partners.

The accused, Filippo Turetta, 22, has confessed before a judge to the murder of Cecchettin.

Turetta, who risks life in prison, is not expected to appear in the Venice courtroom on Monday.

According to official statistics, a woman is killed every three days in Italy, a majority-Catholic country where traditional gender roles still hold sway and where sexist behavior by men is often downplayed.

Cecchettin, who was due to graduate just days after her death, was reported missing on 11 November after accompanying Turetta to a mall and never returning home.

After video cameras near Cecchettin’s home revealed images of Turetta attacking her violently before fleeing with her in his car, police launched a week-long manhunt.

Her body was found on 18 November in a gully near Lake Barcis, about 120 kilometers north of Venice. Her head and neck were punctured with over 70 stab wounds, according to media reports citing the autopsy.