Power of Attorney of the Republic
in the jurisdiction of the Court of Perugia
Declaration of Arrest issued by the Prosecutor
To the judge of the preliminary investigations of the Court of Perugia
The Prosecutor Giuliano Mignini sustains
Given the following procedural documents;
Seeing as there are serious clues of the crime of conspiracy in murder aggravated by sexual assault for which he proceeds against DIYA Lumumba, born in Kindu (Zaire) on 5 May 1969, KNOX Amanda Marie and SOLLECITO Raffaele, in generalized terms, for the following reasons:
For that which concerns KNOX and DIYA, the former gave conspicuously contradictory and improbable deposition in the course of the investigation. In particular, KNOX affirmed to have spent the night between the 1st and 2nd of November in the company of SOLLECITO Raffaele, met by her only a few days before the fact, while he, after initially confirming KNOX's declarations, confessed to have lied according to KNOX's direction and clarified as having separated from KNOX at 9:30PM on the 1st of November 2007, remaining in his residence where he received a call on his land-line from his father at 11:30PM. Furthermore, by the data relative to the cell phone traffic of the number 3484673590, in use by KNOX, emerges a void of traffic from 8:35PM of the 1st of November to 12:00PM of the 2nd of November. There is an analogous void of cell phone traffic from 8:42PM of November 1st to 6:02AM of November 2nd found in the traffic for the number 3403574303 in use by SOLLECITO Raffaele. A text message was found to have been sent at 8:35PM of November 1st by KNOX's number 3484673590 to 3387195723, that of her co-defendant Patrick, in which she wrote "Ci vediamo dopo" ["See you later" or lit: "We'll see each other after"] thus confirming that in the following hours KNOX would find herself with Patrick in the apartment where the victim was.
KNOX, in the deposition of this date, finally confessed to the criminal action perpetrated against Kercher; the defendant, in fact, testified as having met with Patrick, as was communicated in the message found in the memory of her cell phone operating in Perugia, the message of 8:35PM, responding to a message from DIYA arrived at 8:18PM, identified thanks to the analysis of the cell phone traffic relative to the number in use by KNOX.
This last message was not present in the memory of the cell phone.
The same KNOX, in the deposition of this date, then confessed that, having met with Diya at the basketball court of Piazza Grimana, she went with DIYA to Meredith's residence where Diya, after having sexual relations with the victim, killed her.
The sexual intercourse must be considered of a violent nature, considering the particularly intimidating context in which it occurred, of which KNOX must be considered to have contributed.
Furthermore, it must be added that KNOX, in the spontaneous depositions given on this same day, punctually confirmed to have contacted DIYA, to have met with him the night between the 1st and 2nd of November and to gone with him to the apartment of the victim. She then said to have stayed outside the bedroom of the victim while DIYA went inside with her and she added to have heard the scream of the young woman.
KNOX testified to particularities that confirmed hers and SOLLECITO Raffaele's involvement in the event, like the fact that she awoke after the fact in the latter's bed.
Regarding the elements against SOLLECITO, there are numerous incongruities verified in his first declarations in respect to his latest and the fact that, from preliminary observations, the shoe print of the shoe worn by SOLLECITO appears compatible in form with that found at the scene of the crime. Furthermore, the fact that KNOX declares to not remember what happened between the scream of the victim and her reawakening in the morning in Sollecito's bed who, furthermore, was found to have in his possession a pocket knife that could in the abstract be compatible, in type and dimensions (full length 18cm, of which 8.5cm being the blade), with the object that produced the most severe wound in the neck of the victim.
Having regarded all of the elements described and all of them convergent as a result of an intense and articulated investigation activated upon the discovery of Kercher's cadaver and culminating in the confession and the accusation of complicity of DIYA, called "Patrick" by KNOX, the serious clues of the crime must be considered fully valid and consenting the arrest, in consideration of the limits of the law.
The risk of DIYA's escape must be considered valid, seeing as he is foreign, and considering the particular gravity and cruelty of the crime, that of sexual violence, and the possibility of the imposition of particularly brutal punishment.
Regarding KNOX, she demonstrated a particular unscrupulousness in repeatedly lying to the investigators and in involving in such a grave matter the youth SOLLECITO.
ORDERS
The arrests of DIYA Lumumba, KNOX Amanda Marie and SOLLECITO Raffaele in generalized terms and their conduction to the Casa Circondariale [prison].
One proceeds with the request for the confirmation of the arrests in a separate action.
One sends to the Secretary to the extent applicable concerning the registration of Diya Lumumba and Knox Amanda Marie, born in Washington (USA) on 9 July 1987, residing in Perugia, Via della Pergola #7, as well as Sollecito Raffaele, he also in generalized terms.
Perugia, the 6th of November 2007, 8:40AM,
PROSECUTOR Dr. Giuliano Mignini
.