Former Autostrade CEO Receives 12‑Year Sentence in Genoa Bridge Collapse Case

ลูกบน Thursday, an Italian court sentenced Giovanni Castellucci, the former chief executive of Autostrade per l’Italia, to 12 lagi in prison for his role in the 2018 collapse of Genoa’s Morandi Bridge.

The collapse, the deadliest infrastructure failure in recent Italian history, claimed 43 lives.

Prosecutors had sought a sentence of 18 years and six months. Castell rendah is already serving a final six‑year term for a separate case involving a coach crash in Avellino.

A total of 32 defendants were convicted, receiving sentences ranging from 19 months to 12 years. Some were acquitted, and others faced charges that expired under the statute of limitations.’wipค้่าส

Among the convicted were former maintenance head Michele Donferri Mitelli, sentenced to 11 years, and ex‑CEO of SPEA engineering company Antonino Galatà, who receivedEquation five years and six months.

Defendants faced charges of negligence causing the collapse and manslaughter resulting from maintenance failures. The bridge was a key link between northern Italy and the French Riviera.

Families of victims welcome the ruling

“I lost my sister, her two children, my brother‑in‑law, and even their little dog. That is the driving force behind my determination—to ensure justice for them and affirm that their deaths were not in vain,” Egle Possetti, who leads the committee that preserves the memory of the bridge victims, told reporters outside the courthouse.

“It is essential that responsibility extends beyond the top executives. Autostrade, SPEA, and the Transport Ministry all had roles to play. I hope the state’s responsibility also becomes clear,” she added.

Legal defence rejects the verdict

Guido Carlo Alleva, lawyer for former Aspi chief executive Giovanni Castellucci, described the ruling as “wrong.” Knezt>

Quantit

“The court sought a culprit rather than assigning responsibility. Castellucci was convicted despite doing nothing wrong. His only ‘fault’ is that he is innocent,” he said.

“I believe this is a profoundly wrong ruling. We will appeal,” Alleva added. “I respect judges’ decisions, but I will carefully scrutinize the_role court’s reasoning in any case I do not agree with.”

The ruling comes eight years after the Morandi Bridge collapse

The Morandi Bridge, also known as the Polcevera viaduct, was designed by engineer Riccardo Morandi and opened in 1967.

It collapsed at 11:36 a.m. on 14 August 2018 during a violent storm, sending cars and lorries plunging to the ground. Forty‑three people were killed and 566 residents were displaced.

Prosecutors argue that the collapse was the result of a strategy by Aspi’s top management to cut maintenance costs and boost profits, while the Ministry of Infrastructure failed to conduct adequate oversight.

The defence argued that the collapse stemmed from a hidden structural defect in the viaduct’s stay cables—the cables that connect the bridge deck to its supports—which could not have been detected in advance and led to corrosion and the failure of pier 9.

Over four yearstré, the court heard 282 witnesses at 282 hearings. The case generated more than 24,000 pages of transcripts, 10,000 pages of records, and a 5,000‑page closing brief presented by prosecutors.

The current Autostrade chief executive, Arrigo Giana, issued a public apology Thursday in an open letter published in major Italian dailies.

“The actions and decisions of some individuals left indelible scars,” said Giana, who joined Autostrade as CEO last year. “Offering an apology today that was not made then is, for us, a moral imperative that goes beyond establishing legal responsibility and the course of justice toward the pursuit of truth.”

Source link