MILAN -- Horrific evidence of refugee mistreatment came to light on Wednesday as details of the arrest of notorious people trafficker arrested in September is revealed to the public

 A 22-year-old Somali man has been arrested in Milan following an investigation into alleged rapes and torture taking place in migrant centres perpetrated by people traffickers. The man in question, Osman Matammud, was captured last September but details of the case are only now starting to come to light thanks to the testimony of two young girls who suffered at the hands of Matammud. The investigators Luca Gaglio and Marcello Tatangelo also heard the testimonies of other victims.

 These testimonies allowed the investigation, coordinated by the deputy prosecutor of Milan Ilda Boccassini, to identify and apprehend Matammud. Matammud was said to have committed the acts of torture and rape in the Bani Walid camp in Libya as well as the via Sammartini refugee centre in Milan.

 Matammud is personally accused of the murder of four migrants, the kidnapping and ransom of hundreds of Somalis and the rape of dozens of women and prosecutors have requested permission from the Ministry of Justice to proceed with the process of bringing him to justice for crimes committed abroad.

 “In my 40 year career I have never heard of a similar horror,” said the deputy prosecutor of Milan in reference to the rape and torture which Matammud is accused of committing in collection camps back in Libya. The camp in question has been described by the investigator Marcello Tatangello as being akin to a “concentration camp.”

 The date for an investigation that hopes to clarify and consolidate the testimonies against Matammud is set to happen as soon as the 20^th of January. As well as claims of torture and rape, he is accused of facilitating the crossing of immigrant convoys that can cost as much as $7500 a head.

 With the astronomical cost of travel being beyond the means of many undertaking the journey, those unable to pay would be subjugated to beatings and sexual violence. Surveys also show that a tenth of all Somali’s who have undertaken the journey have stories of violence as well as deaths due to lack of medical care and food. There will be a press conference held in Milan later today at 17.00 to explain the details of the investigation in full. 

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