SENEGAL Community in DENVER Calls For Justice After Fire Kills Five Senegalese Immigrants
Djibril and Adja Diol, and their 3-year-old daughter Kadidia, and Hassan Diol and her infant daughter, Hawa Beye / Credit: Denver Police Department
By Gary Raynaldo DIPLOMATIC TIMES
DENVER – A suspected arson fire swept through a home in the Green Valley Ranch neighborhood in Denver last month killing a Senegalese family of five including a 3-year-old. Despite a $40,000 award being offered by Colorado authorities, no suspects have been identified or arrested for the horrific crime. The award was initially at $14,000. The August 5 fire started around and killed Djibril and Adja Diol, and their 3-year-old daughter Kadidia. Also killed in the blaze was Djibril’s sister Hassan Diol and her daughter, Hawa Beye. Many unanswered questions are swirling around the tightly-knit Senegalese community in Denver with some fearing it may have been a hate crime targeting the West African immigrant family who were Muslim. The Denver Police Department is treating the fire as a homicide. However, the department is not investigating the incident as a hate crime.
“The community is living in fear right now because we don’t know,” Dia said. “We don’t know if we’re being targeted, we don’t know, and that makes it even more scary.”
-Moussa Diol, who is Djibril Diol’s brother, said at an August 7 press conference.
Denver Police Chief Joe Montoya said at the August 7 press conference:
“We need to find these individuals, or individual, and we have to be able to hold them accountable for what they did on that day,” Denver Police Chief Joe Montoya said during an Aug. 7 news conference. “We owe this to that family. We owe this to the Senegalese community, and we owe it to the country of Senegal.”
Meanwhile, the Senegalese community wants answers and information:
“It’s been a month and we still don’t have any information; we still don’t know what’s going on,” said Mariam Kyabou, a family friend told CBS4-Denver TV. “We just want justice and we just want them to prioritize it and take it serious.”
Denver Fire Department responded to 5312 N. Truckee Aug. 5, 2020 and found a heavily involved fire. Five fatalities were found in the home: denverfiredepartmenttwiiter/
Denver Fire Department responded to 5312 N. Truckee Aug. 5, 2020 and found a heavily involved fire. Five fatalities were found in the home. Photo / denverfiredepartmenttwiiter/
Denver Police Release Pictures Of Masks Suspects In Fatal Fire That Killed Family
Denver police officials released a chilling image of three masked people suspected of setting a fire that killed five Senegalese immigrants, including two young children on Aug. 5, 2020. The suspects were dressed in full white face masks and dark hoodies. They fled the area in a dark-colored, four-door sedan / Credit: Denver Police Department.
Senegal President Macky Sall offers Condolences To Senegalese Family of Five Killed
J’ai appris avec émotion le décès de 5 de nos compatriotes dans un violent incendie à Denver, aux États-Unis.
J’adresse mes condoléances attristées aux familles des victimes et souhaite prompt rétablissement aux blessés.
C’est une affaire très grave que nous suivons de près.— Macky Sall (@Macky_Sall) August 6, 2020
Senegalese President Macky Sall offered his condolences to the Diol family the day after the blaze.
“I was moved to learn of the deaths of five of our compatriots in a massive fire in Denver. I extend my heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims and wish a speedy recovery to the injured. It is a very serious matter that we are following closely.”
-Senegalese President Macky Sall tweeted in French, the official language of Senegal.
Denver Is Home To A Thriving Senegalese Community
By Gary Raynaldo / © Diplomatic Times / Downtown Denver.
The Denver metro area has about 2,000 Senegalese nationals living there. Djibril Diol, nicknamed Djiby by his family, came to the U.S. from Senegal more than 10 years ago. He graduated in December 2018 with a degree in civil engineering from Colorado State University. Diol was well-loved by his friends and family; his brother describing him as “a good person, a good worker, and a good Muslim.”
JUSTICE FOR THE DIOL FAMILY PETITION SET UP
“This petition has been created to raise awareness of what has happened to the Diol family, as the media coverage has been severely lacking. We are demanding the Denver police department increase their focus on this case and that they do not let up until their killer has been arrested, charged, and convicted. ”
GOFUNDME PAGE FOR THE DIOL FAMILY –
