Amanda Knox retrial: Raffaele Sollecito stopped near Italian border - CNN

An Italian appeals court convicted Raffaele Sollecito, in glasses, and his ex-girlfriend Amanda Knox on murder charges.

• Rafaelle Sollecito is stopped near the border with Austria and Slovenia, Italian police say


• He was convicted Thursday with Amanda Knox of murdering UK student Meredith Kercher


• Sollecito is not allowed to leave Italy while legal proceedings continue


• "I think we are still on the journey to the truth," Kercher's sister says of her death

Florence, Italy (CNN) -- Italian authorities stopped Raffaele Sollecito -- convicted with his ex-girlfriend Amanda Knox of the murder of Meredith Kercher -- near the border with Austria and Slovenia, Italian police told CNN Friday.

Sollecito, who is not allowed to leave Italy while the legal process continues, was halted in the northern Italian town of Udine, police said.

An appeals court in the Italian city of Florence convicted Sollecito and Knox on murder charges Thursday night after a retrial.

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Prosecutors said the couple had killed Kercher, a British student, in November 2007. Sollecito was sentenced to 25 years in prison and Knox, also convicted of slander, was sentenced in absentia to 28 1/2 years in prison.

Both have protested their innocence and can still appeal to Italy's Supreme Court.

Kercher, 21, was found partially nude in a pool of blood in the house she shared with Knox in the picturesque town of Perugia, where both women were exchange students.

But despite years of courtroom battles over her death, many aspects of the crime still remain unexplained.

Her family spoke Friday morning of their long ordeal.

Speaking in Florence, Kercher's sister Stephanie said the family might never know exactly what happened on the night of her death.

"I think we are still on the journey to the truth," she said. "I think it may be the fact that we don't ever really know what happened that night, which is obviously something we will have to come to terms with."

Lyle Kercher, Meredith's brother, said the family may have to wait until spring 2015 for a final resolution, since the verdicts reached Thursday can still be appealed at Italy's Supreme Court.

"Nothing is going to bring Meredith back, nothing will take away the horror of what happened to her," he said.

"The best we can hope for is finally bringing this whole case to a conclusion, having a conviction, and everyone can move on with their lives."

Read more: Six things to know about Amanda Knox retrial verdict

'Frightened and saddened'

Knox and Sollecito were first convicted in 2009 but those charges were overturned on appeal in 2011 and the pair were freed, having spent four years in prison.

In March last year, Italy's Supreme Court overturned the pair's acquittals, leading to the retrial that resulted Thursday night in their convictions for murder being reinstated by a Florence appeals court.

Knox's lawyer said his client would appeal the conviction at Italy's Supreme Court.

Knox, who remained at home in Seattle, Washington, while the retrial was held, said her conviction would bring no consolation to the Kercher family.

"I am frightened and saddened by this unjust verdict," the 26-year-old said in written remarks. "Having been found innocent before, I expected better from the Italian justice system. The evidence and accusatory theory do not justify a verdict of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. ...There has always been a marked lack of evidence."

CNN's Hada Messia reported from Florence and Laura Smith-Spark wrote and reported in London.

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