Two hours to listen to the conclusions of the expert in the courtroom, who answered the questions of the lawyer, prosecutors and judges on the dialogue between wife and husband intercepted almost three years ago by the carabinieri while the two were in the car in front of the Court of Cagliari. The professional in charge of transcribing the interview would have confirmed the meaning of the chat already transcribed by the defense consultant: in summary, the man made it clear to the woman (this is the thesis) that he had indicated to the investigators the photo of the perpetrator of the murders 31 years ago only after an investigator had shown him precisely that of the alleged perpetrator. Making the indication unreliable.

In the capital

This is the outcome of yesterday's appointment in Rome in the process of reviewing the trial which cost the (definitive) life sentence of pastor Beniamino Zuncheddu di Burcei , 57 years old, in prison since February 1991 as the perpetrator of the triple crime committed the previous month on the mountains between his country and Sinnai (a massacre linked to trespassing of livestock and ferocious quarrels between farmers). But the hearing did not prove to be decisive: once the deposition was completed, the Court of Appeal was appointed to evaluate what to do with the request of defense attorney Mauro Trogu, who wants to demonstrate that his client is in reality extraneous to the facts, has set January 31 as the final date. That day, barring unforeseen events, the panel will decide whether to admit the review (which could also overturn the sentence of three decades ago) and the witnesses cited by the defence. Even if in reality already at the start of the procedure, in February 2021, the Court took that step.

The talks

Everything revolves around the statements of the survivor of the ambush, Luigi Pinna, decisive in the prosecution of Zuncheddu. He had recognized him as the perpetrator of the massacre, effectively closing the investigation. Reconstruction that the pastor has always rejected, swearing to his innocence, so much so that he is unable to access conditional freedom precisely because he has not admitted his responsibility (despite the almost 32 years spent in prison: today he is in semi-liberty) and not having compensated for the damages to the victims. The doubts of the Attorney General of Cagliari about what had actually happened became a certainty (for the investigators) precisely by listening to the conversation between the wife and husband: the man, having left the courthouse where he had been summoned by the investigators to clarify some points on the massacre, he had entered with his wife in the car, where the bugs had been placed.

The talks

In the interview, among other things, Pinna said "they wanted me to say that Marieddu ( the policeman who had worked on the crimes ) showed me the photograph before", that is, the image of Zuncheddu (as a suspect in the blitz) in advance of the recognition officer: «They understood that it really is like this, and it is the truth...», said the survivor, «they already understood what really happened». Therefore for the Attorney General "the only source of evidence" against the pastor was "unreliable" and "the main evidence that led to the conviction" was "false". Hence the request for revision. Yesterday the expert appointed by the Court would have confirmed the meaning of the wiretaps. Then the lawyer Trogu asked for the suspension of the execution of the sentence until the conclusion of this judicial process (Zuncheddu is on Covid leave and can sleep at home, with the revocation scheduled for December 31st he should return to prison every night). The judges reserved their decision.

Andrea Manunza

© Riproduzione riservata