CAIRO, Apr 29 (Aswat Masriya) – The Italian foreign minister Paolo Gentiloni asked Egypt for more “serious” collaboration on the murder case of Ph.D. student Giulio Regeni, the Italian news agency ANSA reported Firday.

Regeni, 28, was a Ph.D. student researching trade unions in Egypt. He went missing in Cairo on the fifth anniversary of the 2011 Uprising, then his body was found in February, bearing bruises and signs of torture, in a roadside ditch on the outskirts of the Egyptian capital. 

"For us, a return to normality of relations depends on serious collaboration," ANSA quoted Gentiloni as saying on RAI radio today.

On April 9, the Italian foreign ministry recalled its Egypt ambassador, Maurizio Massari, to Rome for consultations following a meeting held in the Italian capital between Egyptian and Italian investigators and officials where the Egyptian delegation was expected to present the findings of its investigation into Regeni's murder.

Egyptian police had said in March that a gang which specializes in impersonating foreigners and stealing their belongings was responsible for killing Regeni. The interior ministry stated on its official Facebook page that police had killed five of the “gang members” in an “exchange of fire” and shortly afterwards found Regeni’s belongings in the apartment of one of the deceased relatives.

The families of the deceased suspects denied the police narrative, according to investigative pieces made by local and international media. 

Regeni’s family ruled out criminal gain as a motive for the Italian student’s murder, while his mother stated in a press conference at the Italian parliament that Regeni’s torture and murder is not an “isolated incident.”

Though it is not yet clear who was behind Regeni's murder, eyes were directed towards Egypt's interior ministry as being involved in his torture and death.

The interior ministry denied, however, any responsibility for the incident.

Italian officials have repeatedly asked Egypt for more “cooperation” in the investigation.

Meanwhile, ANSA also reported that Regeni’s family said they were “anxious” over the recent arrest of Ahmed Abdalla, one of the consultants of Regeni’s case.

Security forces took Abdallah, who is also the president of the Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedom (ECRF), from his home on Apr. 24.