The Verona Public Prosecutor’s Office has requested the dismissal of the case against an Italian State Police officer who fatally shot 27-year-old Malian national Moussa Diarra outside Verona Porta Nuova train station in October last year.

After a year-long investigation, prosecutors concluded that the officer, identified as Assistant Chief Coordinator A.F., acted in legitimate self-defense when Diarra attacked him with a knife.

According to Chief Prosecutor Raffaele Tito, the investigation found “beyond doubt” that the officer’s use of force was proportionate to the threat. “The defense was without a doubt proportionate to the offense, both because of the current nature of the danger and the unjust nature of the offense,” Tito said. “The possibility of homicide is excluded, even on an objective level, given the justification for self-defense in this specific case.”

The prosecutor’s office stated that Diarra, who was armed with a large kitchen knife, lunged at the officer from close range. “It has clearly emerged that Diarra, who was holding a kitchen knife with an 11-centimeter serrated blade in his right hand, approached A.F. with unjustified aggression, always keeping a very close distance and not fleeing, and attacked the officer while brandishing the knife,” Tito wrote.

As reported by Il Gazzettino, investigators concluded that the officer did not provoke or intentionally place himself in danger. “The police officer was attacked with a knife, which is no less lethal than a gun,” the prosecutor said, emphasizing that the officer’s response was necessary to protect his own life.

The shooting occurred on the morning of Oct. 20, 2024, when Diarra reportedly confronted railway police outside the station. Witnesses said he appeared agitated and ignored repeated warnings to drop the weapon before charging at one of the officers. A single shot was fired, fatally wounding him.

Prosecutors have now signed a formal motion to close the case, which will be reviewed by a judge in Verona. “Our sense of grief for the tragic death of a 27-year-old remains unchanged,” Tito added, as cited by Il Messaggero. “The reason why he ultimately behaved so aggressively that day has not yet been fully clarified.”

Lawyers representing Diarra’s family expressed their dismay at the decision and announced plans to appeal.

Migrant rights groups framed the murder as a racial attack, insisting the Malian refugee, whose brother said had faced time in Libyan detention centers before arriving in Europe, had been confused and deserved medical attention over a gunshot.

“Moussa Diarra was a racist murder, and although the policeman’s shot was the fatal one, it was neither the first nor the last in the crossfire that is institutional racism in this country,” wrote Osservatorio Repressione in October last year.

Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini bluntly disagreed at the time, writing on social media, “With all due respect, we will not miss him. Thank you to the police for doing their duty.”