Giovanni Castellucci sentenced to 12 years in prison for the 2018 collapse of the Morandi bridge in Genoa

Giovanni Castellucci, the former chief executive of the motorway operator Autostrade per l’Italia, has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for the 2018 collapse of the Morandi bridge in Genoa. The disaster occurred during a summer rainstorm, sending 35 vehicles plunging to the ground and killing 43 people. The Italian court convicted 32 of the 57 defendants, including several executives and ministry officials, for negligence and manslaughter. While prosecutors argued that the collapse was caused by years of inadequate maintenance and ignored warning signs to maximize profits, defense lawyers contended that the disaster resulted from an original design flaw in the bridge's stay cables. The court ruled that the collapse was both foreseeable and preventable. Other notable sentences included 11 years for Michele Donferri Mitelli and five and a half years for Antonino Galatà. Following the verdict, Arrigo Giana, the current head of Autostrade, issued a public apology to the victims' families for the tragedy.

Sources