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Paola, the mother of Giulio Regeni, follows his coffin during his funeral service in Fiumicello, Northern Italy, Friday, Feb. 12, 2016. Image Credit: AP

Cario: Egypt’s Interior Ministry said on Wednesday its investigation into the death of an Italian graduate student whose body turned up in a Cairo ditch showing signs of torture has yielded several possibilities including criminal or revenge motives.

Giulio Regeni, 28, had been researching independent trade unions in Egypt.

“The investigation leads to several possibilities including criminal activity or the desire for revenge due to personal reasons especially as the Italian had many relationships with people near where he lives and where he studied,” the ministry said in a statement carried by state news agency MENA.

Egypt’s interior and foreign ministers have both dismissed the notion of security forces being behind Regeni’s murder.