A breakthrough has been reached in the case of two women, a mother and daughter, who died shortly after Christmas at Campobasso's Cardarelli Hospital from suspected food poisoning. A new investigation has been launched, currently against unknown persons, for premeditated double homicide.

Sara Di Vita, 15, and her mother, Antonella Di Jelsi, 50, were allegedly poisoned with ricin in their home in Pietracatella. Reliable sources have learned that traces of the poison were found during blood tests conducted both in Italy and abroad. The tests were conducted in Italy, as well as in Switzerland, and investigations have reached as far as the United States, seeking cases of poisoning similar to the one in Molise.

Initial tests on the food consumed by the family over the Christmas holidays revealed no abnormalities, and medical error was suspected : the two women had returned home after visiting the emergency room at Campobasso's Cardarelli Hospital, but their conditions subsequently worsened, culminating in their deaths. Five doctors were therefore investigated for manslaughter.

Now the story is completely rewritten with the entrance on the scene of ricin, a poisonous substance (present in the castor oil plant) which, after ingestion, causes nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and shortness of breath; the poisoning can then progress to the point of causing the failure of various organs and death.

Investigators are now continuing their work to identify the person responsible for the poisoning and how it occurred. The victims' home remains under seizure; Gianni Vita and his daughter Sara—the other two members of the victims' family—now live in another home.

(Unioneonline/D)

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