The 14 years and 9 months prison sentence for Mario Roggero, the jeweler from Grinzane Cavour who on April 28, 2021, killed two robbers and injured a third after the assault on his shop, is final.
The Court of Cassation rejected the defense’s appeal, confirming the sentence of the Court of Assizes of Appeal of Turin. “Mario Roggero will surrender immediately, he will not wait,” announced defenders Stefano Marcolini and Sergio Rovani upon leaving the courtroom. The case is considered one of the symbolic cases in the debate on legitimate defense. Roggero has always maintained that he reacted to protect himself and his family, who were present in the jewelry store during the robbery. For the judges, however, the fatal shots were fired when the danger had already ceased, with the bandits fleeing and no longer able to represent an immediate threat. That afternoon, three men, armed with a knife and a pistol later found to be a toy, broke into the jewelry store, threatening Roggero, his wife, and daughter. After taking jewelry and money, they exited through the back of the shop to reach the car used for the escape.
Surveillance cameras recorded the entire sequence: the jeweler grabbed the revolver kept under the cash register, chased the robbers, and fired while they were trying to get away. Alessandro Modica, driving the vehicle, was injured in a leg and managed to escape. Giuseppe Mazzarino was fatally shot near the car. Andrea Spinelli tried to flee on foot but fell on the asphalt; according to the trial reconstruction, he was reached by Roggero, struck with some kicks, and again targeted with the weapon, now empty. He also died shortly after. After the shooting, the jeweler returned to the shop and called 112. For the Prosecutor’s Office, it was not a defensive reaction but an action carried out when the risk had already ended, a thesis accepted by the judges. The sentence has reignited the political debate.
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A solidarity vigil promoted by Futuro Nazionale took place in front of the Court of Cassation. “We are here today in the name and on behalf of Futuro Nazionale and General Roberto Vannacci in a solidarity vigil towards Mario Roggero, believing that defense must always be legitimate,” declared Marco Pomarici. “Maximum respect for this sentence but also great disappointment, now we await the motivations and will consider the appeal to the European Court of Human Rights,” stated lawyer Marcolini. Matteo Salvini renewed the request for pardon: “Many, very many of us stand with Mario Roggero. We ask for a pardon for him!”, announcing that the appeal will be addressed directly to the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella. The President of the Lombardy Region, Attilio Fontana, also expressed support for the initiative, declaring himself in favor of the pardon request. “It’s over, I’m spending the last minutes with my family before surrendering to prison.” Thus in a video published on TikTok Mario Roggero, who stated: “I have acknowledged that the judges in Rome wanted to sentence me to 14 years and 9 months in prison as in the previous trials, so they wanted to give me life imprisonment,” says Roggero. “I thank on this occasion all those who have been close to me, all of you, both materially and humanly. Now I will have to pass the baton to you to carry forward a law that is truly against injustices and against the increasingly rampant crime. A big hug to all of you, you will be my voice,”
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