ROME (AP) — Amanda Knox's former Italian boyfriend says he must heal the "wounds" inside his heart and soul, now that he and the American have been definitively acquitted of her British roommate's 2007 murder in the Italian town where all three were students.

Raffaele Sollecito, 31, made his first public comments Monday since the judicial saga against him and Knox ended Friday with acquittals by Italy's top criminal court.

Sollecito told reporters in Rome that he "feels like he was kidnapped" in the 7 ½ years since he was arrested, including some four years he spent in prison after an earlier conviction for Meredith Kercher's slaying.

He said he spoke with Knox by phone after the acquittals, and both wished each other well. He said they remain friends, nothing more.