A trial date has been set for Massimo Galioto, an Italian homeless man accused of killing University of Wisconsin student Beau Solomon.
Galioto allegedly pushed 19-year-old Solomon into the Tiber River in July 2016, causing him to drown. Galioto’s trial, which was set Thursday, is scheduled to take place May 8.
Solomon, a former UW student, went to Rome in the summer of 2016 for a five-week-long program with John Cabot University.
On July 1st, 2016, he disappeared around 1 a.m. after drinking at a pub with other students. Three days later, his body was found in the Tiber river, according to reporting by the Wisconsin State Journal.
Solomon was originally from Spring Green, Wisconsin. He had just finished his first year at UW, where he majored in finance. After he disappeared, more than $1,700 was charged to his credit card, including a large purchase in the Milan.
Galioto has been charged with petty crime in the past and has been the lead suspect in this case since the investigation began. At the time of Solomon’s death, a Rome news service reported Galioto’s then-girlfriend, Alessia Pennacchioli, told police she watched him push Solomon into the river after an argument erupted between the two men.
While Galioto has repeatedly insisted on his innocence, he was arrested and charged with manslaughter by Italian police. He was released in December 2016 after Pennacchioli gave uneven testimony in court, WSJ reported.
News of Solomon’s death drew worldwide attention, resulting in a meet-up between Solomon’s parents and Pope Francis in the Vatican City.
Solomon’s parents have since filed a lawsuit against John Cabot University, claiming negligence on behalf of the university for failing to warn UW students of four recent deaths young adults which had occurred near the Rome campus under suspicious circumstances.
