The details surrounding the death of an African doctoral student who attended school in Russia remain a mystery as the suspect’s family denies his alleged connection to a white supremacist group.
François Ndjelassili of Gabon was in the Ph.D. program and studied economics at Ural Federal University in Yekaterinburg, Russia, the Moscow Times reported. His friend, Diana Akue, told the outlet Ndjelassili died in mid-August after getting into a confrontation with several men at a Burger King. Her account comes after his friends previously told local media that he was called a “negro” and harassed before he was stabbed outside the restaurant by two men.
However, according to Akue, Ndjelassili was flirting with a woman before three Russian men she was with at the restaurant confronted him. The situation escalated into a physical altercation outside the fast-food establishment between Ndjelassili and only two of the men. Per the Times, the third man who was initially not a part of the brawl, later identified as Daniil Fomin, is accused of stabbing Ndjelassili in the armpit.
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The outlet reported that Fomin is allegedly linked to a Russian white supremacist group that was crowdfunding money for his defense team. However, his parents denied affiliation with the organization and said they cover his legal fees.
“If it’s true the killer was really from that white supremacist group, then who knows what could happen after the court ruling? These guys could get very upset about it,” Akue told the Times.
The incident put a spotlight on the violence that African students face while attending school in the country. According to Sputnik, more than 30,000 African students are getting an education in Russia, and officials predict that the number will soar as the government plans to offer more scholarships in the future. However, many of them are prone to violence due to racism, Akue said. Ndjelassili’s death has raised alarms for her and the school’s tight-knit African community.
“We are all very scared, but we are at the same time angry,” she told the Times. “As we’re not in our country, all we can do is just to be careful. But we are very scared because of what happened.”
