Italian Football Referee De Santis and His Fiancee Stabbed to Death in Their House

De Santis, who became a referee in 2017, worked during 130 matches in Serie D and Serie C (the fourth and the third divisions of Italian football).

Referee Daniele De Santis and his fiancee Eleonora Manta were stabbed to death in their house in Lecce, Italy, La Reppublica newspaper reported on Monday. According to preliminary reports, several people witnessed a man running from the site of the incident with a knife.

"Daniele De Santis":
Perché il quotato arbitro di Serie C e la sua compagna Eleonora Manta, di 33 e 30 anni, sono stati uccisi a coltellate a Lecce pic.twitter.com/1lBLNk8SpW

— Perché è in tendenza? (@perchetendenza) September 22, 2020

"I am shocked by this tragedy", the head of the Italian referee association Marcello Nicchi told Gazzetta. "We still know very little about the case. The thing I can say is that we are in close contact with the family and with all the people in the section [of the association]."

The police have already launched an investigation, but there has not been any official statement about the identity of the suspect.