Are Deaths Of Two Students In Rome Somehow Connected?
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The murder of a Wisconsin college student in Rome stunned the world, and now a suburban Chicago family wonders whether the death of their son could be connected.
The similarities in the two cases are raising questions about whether American students are being targeted, CBS 2's Roseanne Tellez reports.
When the Mogni family of Glen Ellyn heard of the death of Beau Solomon, whose body was found in the Tiber River on Monday, they knew exactly what the Solomons were going through
"My heart went out to them, and I felt like I was reliving what happened to Andrew," said Theresa Mogni.
Solomon, 19, was robbed and beaten, police said.
Andrew Mogni, 20, was found with severe head trauma in the same area of Rome, also near the Tiber river just last year.
Like Beau, Andrew had arrived in Rome just that day to study at John Cabot University.
"He had looked forward to it so much he had taken Italian and talked about for a year and half," said Theresa Mogni.
And like Beau, Andrew left a bar at 1 a,m. Italian police first thought he may have fallen off a wall to his death. But his wallet, cell phone and gold cross were missing. The led his parents to believe he'd been robbed and beaten.
"Being an American there, you do stand out and you do become a target," said Theresa Mogni. "And you've got to understand that and really protect yourself."
Andrew died after 80 days in a coma. This new death has led the Mognis to caution other families to think long and hard before sending a child to study abroad.
In a statement on their website, John Cabot says it's greatly saddened by the death of Beau, but says there's no elevated threat.
