GENOA – “I still feel responsible, but not guilty”. With these words Giovanni Castellucci, former CEO of Autostrade per l'Italia (Aspi), opened his deposition in the trial for the collapse of the Ponte Morandi, which occurred on August 14, 2018 and cost the lives of 43 people.
“I feel responsible for the management of the bridge, because we were the custodians of that asset,” said Castellucci, a defendant in the case along with 57 other people.
During his spontaneous statements, the former CEO also spoke about the reconstruction of the viaduct: "I have always given my availability for the reconstruction. The collaboration with the mayor and commissioner Marco Bucci was total. Of course, we could have done it faster". However, the reconstruction was entrusted to an Italian consortium that excluded Aspi from any involvement.
Regret for the management of communication
During the hearing, Castellucci also expressed regret for the communications released in the days following the disaster: "I made a mistake in the terms and methods of the press release. It was wanted by Consob, but in hindsight I consider it a mistake."
On the collapse of the bridge, the former manager then added: “It saddened me that a bridge collapsed in which a wealthy company invested and had been working on continuously for at least three years”. Castellucci stressed that the inspections had been entrusted to the engineering company Cesi, which had judged the control procedures “certainly adequate”.
“I cannot accept that this bridge collapsed,” he concluded. “It was a defeat for everyone: for the community and for the efforts made to ensure safety on our highways.”
Article published on March 26, 2025 - 13pm
