MADISON, Wis. — A Minnesota man with a string of domestic violence convictions was charged in the death of a Saudi Arabian college  that occurred last October.

Cullen Osburn, 27, of Minneapolis, was charged with felony murder and aggravated battery in the death of University of Wisconsin-Stout student Hussain Alnahdi, 24.

The incident stemmed from a confrontation in northwestern Wisconsin.

Alnahdi’s death was first thought to be a hate crime incident, however when Osburn spoke to authorities in the few days after he fled the scene of the crime, he said the confrontation had nothing to do with race.

He promised to come in and talk to detectives, but said he was scared and needed a lawyer present.

However, he never ended up coming in.

Osburn was arrested in Minnesota and would have to be extradited. No other details of the arrest were given.

According to the criminal complaint, police responded to a fight outside a Menomonie pizza restaurant during the early-morning hours of Oct. 30 found Alnahdi unconscious and bleeding from his nose and mouth. He died the next day from a skull fracture.

Osburn’s brother, Deontre Hughes, told police he saw Alnahdi and another man pushing Osburn. He said that Osburn swung at Alnahdi after Alnahdi ripped Osburn’s necklace off.

Another witness told police she saw a man talking to Alnahdi, who put his hands up in the air as if to say he didn’t want a problem. The man then hit Alnahdi twice, she told police.

“The Defendant was adamant that the altercation was not a result of anybody’s race but did not want to say anything else without a lawyer,” the complaint said.

Osburn faces up to six years in prison on each charge, with more possible time due to convictions in Minnesota, including several for domestic abuse and violating no-contact orders going back to 2008.

Students at the University were shocked by Alnahdi’s death, describing him as an outgoing student who had many friends. The campus held candle light vigil in his honor following his death.