Washington, December 05: THE US Government is expected to wade into the fray after an Italian court convicted and sentenced American Amanda Knox for the murder of her housemate, the defendant’s aunt said overnight.
“They are involved. They have been involved since the beginning,” the 22-year-old’s aunt, Janet Huff, told CNN two hours after a court in Perugia meted out a 26-year jail sentence to Knox and a 25-year sentence to her former Italian boyfriend for the murder of Briton Meredith Kercher.
“We’ve been receiving emails from government officials saying now it’s time to do something,” Huff said, without naming the US officials or describing how they would step in.
“The mantra we keep hearing from everyone – we’ve been promised over and over again – had it come to this verdict, they would have been involved.”
Italian prosecutors presented DNA and other forensic evidence against Knox, boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito and a third person, Rudy Guede of Ivory Coast, who was convicted separately after opting for a “fast-track” trial in exchange for clemency.
The prosecution alleged the three youths were high on drugs when they tried to engage Kercher, 21, in a sex game that turned violent, leaving her dead with stab wounds to the neck.
Knox’s family issued a statement saying they planned to appeal the verdict.
“We will continue to fight for her freedom,” the statement said.
Ms Huff said she was at home watching the news with relatives, friends and reporters and that “everyone fell apart” when the verdict was released.
“We are just crushed,” she said, adding that the family was preparing for an extended stay in Italy in order to follow the appeals process to its conclusion. The process, she said, could take up to two years.
—Agencies