A 46-year-old Italian man is fighting for his life after being the victim of a robbery in which he was stabbed multiple times by three members of a Moroccan gang in Rome.
The attack occurred at approximately 11.30 p.m. on Sunday evening, outside the Roma Termini railway station in the heart of the Italian capital.
Arturo Luca Battisti, from Milan, was stabbed three times in the chest by a gang who robbed him of his mobile phone and €20 in cash.
Emergency responders attended the scene and escorted the victim to a nearby hospital where he underwent surgery. He remains in the hospital in serious condition, according to Il Giornale newspaper.
Three Moroccan nationals, all young men, have been arrested by authorities and have been charged with attempted murder.
Prosecutor Francesco Basentini told local media the charges would be upgraded to unintentional homicide should the victim die of his injuries.
It’s the second time in under two months that a knife attack has been reported outside Rome’s main railway station, and locals are questioning authorities about what action is being taken to secure the area, which they believe has deteriorated in recent years.
On Dec. 31, a 24-year-old Israeli tourist was stabbed inside the railway ticket kiosk as she purchased a train ticket, which ultimately led to the arrest of a homeless Polish man.
Last year, an illegal Tunisian migrant was arrested after attacking an elderly nun; he had punched her in the face while waiting for a train at the station. The attack gained national attention after former Interior Minister Matteo Salvini tweeted the news with the caption, “Obviously the aggressor, once again, is a stowaway.”
