Willy Monteiro Duarte (1999–2020) was an Italian citizen of Cape Verdean descent who was beaten to death in Colleferro, near Rome, on 6 September 2020 while trying to defend a friend in trouble. Born in Rome to Cape Verdean parents, he had trained at a hotel school and worked as an assistant cook. His killing provoked strong public reaction in Italy, and he was posthumously awarded the gold medal for civil valour.
Background and killing
Monteiro Duarte was born in Rome in 1999 and later lived in Como and Paliano before settling in the Lazio region. After attending a hotel school in Fiuggi, he worked as an assistant cook in a hotel. He was killed in the beating in Colleferro, in which four men from Artena were involved, including two brothers and two others known to police. The brutality of the attack had a strong impact on Italian public opinion, and the four suspects were arrested on the same day.
Trial and public response
The trial of the four defendants began in June 2021 before the Frosinone court of assizes, with sentences ranging from life imprisonment to 21 and 23 years handed down at first instance. Appeals and a Court of Cassation ruling later reshaped several sentences. The government responded with tougher penalties for brawling and a new administrative ban, known as the Daspo Willy. In 2023 a square named after him was inaugurated at the site of the killing.