Rome – The Court of Assizes of Appeal of Rome today confirmed the life sentence for Marco Bianchi, one of the four defendants for the murder of Willy Monteiro Duarte, the 21-year-old killed in Colleferro (Rome) on the night between 5 and 6 September 2020.
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For his brother Gabriele Bianchi, however, the sentence was increased to 28 years of imprisonment. The sentence comes at the end of the so-called “Appello bis”, a new trial ordered by the Court of Cassation after the second-instance judges had reduced the initial sentences, recognizing mitigating circumstances for the two brothers.
A tragedy that marked Italy
Willy Monteiro Duarte, a student of Cape Verdean origins, was beaten to death during a beating outside a nightclub. The blows inflicted by the Bianchi brothers, along with Francesco Belleggia and Mario Pincarelli, were described as “violent and brutal,” with kicks, punches and martial arts techniques.
The dynamics of the attack were retraced today in court by Attorney General Francesco Brando, who reiterated the gravity of the facts before the judges and the jury.
The mother's words: "We only have one photograph left"
Lucia Monteiro Duarte, Willy's mother, spoke to reporters after the verdict was read. With a trembling voice, she said: “The sentences will not give us Willy back. I hope that the Bianchi brothers learn to respect others. We must ensure that another family does not experience what we experienced. All we have left of Willy is a photograph and his voice is just a distant memory”.
His words filled the room with an emotional silence, as those present reflected on the cruelty of a crime that shocked the entire community.
The procedural path
The trial had a complex process. After the first-instance conviction of life imprisonment for the Bianchi brothers and lesser sentences for Belleggia and Pincarelli, the Court of Appeal reduced the sentences, recognizing “eventual intent” rather than “direct intent”.
The Court of Cassation, however, overturned this decision, ordering a new trial to reevaluate the mitigating circumstances. Today, the judges confirmed the life sentence for Marco Bianchi and increased the sentence for Gabriele to 28 years, considering that the mitigating circumstances were "equivalent to the aggravating circumstances contested". For Belleggia and Pincarelli, however, the sentences of 23 and 21 years became definitive.
The reactions of the civil party
Massimo Ferrandino, the civil party's lawyer and representative of the municipality of Artena (the defendants' hometown), expressed satisfaction with the sentence, calling it "severe but fair". “As a civil party we were already satisfied for having crystallized a very solid procedural phase.
This further sentence confirms the excellent work of all members of the public prosecution", he declared, thanking the deputy prosecutor Francesco Brando for his “hard and professional work”.
A symbolic case
The murder of Willy Monteiro Duarte has become a symbolic case in Italy, sparking a national debate on youth violence and racism. Willy, described by friends and family as a generous and altruistic boy, was killed while trying to help a friend in difficulty during a fight. His death has mobilized thousands of people in demonstrations of solidarity and has brought to light the contradictions of a society often incapable of protecting the weakest.
Now, with the final sentence, a judicial chapter is closed, but for Willy's family the pain remains unchanged. As his mother said, “no sentence will ever be able to give us back our son's smile”.
Article published on March 14, 2025 - 18pm
The life sentence confirmed for Marco Bianchi is a sentence that makes you think about how justice can act in such serious cases. However, I am not sure that these sentences are enough to stop violence among young people. We need to do more.