UPDATE: Ghanaian pickaxe killer was a known criminal

A Ghanaian immigrant who went on a 45-minute killing spree in the northern outskirts of Milan, Italy on Saturday was already known to the police: the illegal immigrant had several criminal convictions, according to a report in Sunday's Il Giornale newspaper.

Adam Mada Kabobo, 31, was arrested on April 15 in Viale Monza, also in Milan, but was released after questioning. Although undocumented, the police took his fingerprints through which it was possible to identify him quickly yesterday afternoon. They were, at the time of his arrest in April, unable to deport the illegal immigrant because Kabobo appeared to have applied for political asylum in July 2011 but was rejected by the Territorial Commission.

Kabobo, however, did not give up and filed an appeal for his asylum claim, and was awaiting trial at the court of Bari. Following the request for political asylum, Kabobo was transferred to the reception center for asylum seekers in Bari. In August a riot broke out inside the center: Kabobo, along with 200 other immigrants, was arrested for aggravated theft, resisting a public officer and interruption of public service.

Once released from prison for the Bari riot he was put on parole but he did not adhere to the terms, and for this he was arrested again and transferred to the prison of Lecce. In January 2012, he was again arrested but on February 17 he was released from prison.

Kabobo appears to have no fixed abode and is not one of the immigrants registered and supported by the Municipality of Milan, although it is possible that may have used the services of other humanitarian organisations or associations which give support to immigrants or the homeless.

The incident has rekindled the political debate on immigration in Italy.

This article is the second in a two-part report from Italian newspaper Il Giornale. You can read the first report here.

The details above have been transalted from Italian