Cremona – Vittorio and Fabio De Iulio, uncle and nephew, reining athletes (an American equestrian discipline), were sentenced to two years and three months each for the brutal attack on Stefano Zucchi, a 35-year-old former employee of the Pedavena brewery in Cremona.
The beating, which occurred on the evening of November 16, 2021, left Zucchi seriously injured. A 38-year-old colleague who had come to his aid was also a victim of the attack.
Violence for trivial reasons
The incident occurred on a hectic evening, in the post-Covid era, when a Green Pass was still required to enter the premises. The defendants, who had been frequenting the pub for several days, showed up in number, about ten.
"The place was packed, and there were only a few of us employees," Stefano Zucchi told the court, explaining that service had slowed down. The first complaints were about the wait for drinks, then about a tiramisu that never arrived.
“At a certain point, five or six of them got up and came towards me, surrounding me,” Zucchi testified, as reported by the online newspaper Cremonaoggi.
“I was face-to-face with one of them, and I thought he was going to headbutt me. So I instinctively raised my hand to protect my face, and then I was hit with punches in the face and kicks from all sides.”
The victim described the brutality of the attack: "I didn't fight back, but they didn't stop until I was on the ground. 'I'll kill you, I'll make you pay,' they told me, as I tried to curl up and cover my head as much as possible. When I was on the ground and they were kicking me, I saw they were wearing boots."
Stefano Zucchi was hospitalized for five days and remained on sick leave for a total of 174 days. Among his most serious injuries was a compound fracture of his left ulna, the result of numerous blows he received while trying to protect himself. "The bone broke in half, which means he took a lot of beatings," commented Luca Curatti, Zucchi's lawyer.
Stefano's 38-year-old colleague also suffered injuries while attempting to defend him, bravely throwing herself into the fray. "Even though the place was packed, none of the customers moved. They were filming," the woman bitterly recalled, highlighting the indifference of those present.
Pre-trial compensation and sentencing
Before the sentencing, the two defendants had already bypassed their lawyers and sent compensation of €15.000 to Zucchi and €1.200 to his colleague.
A gesture that lawyers Luca Curatti and Annalisa Sinelli, representing the plaintiffs, harshly criticized: "It's not enough to pay money whenever you want, however you want, and without even notifying us. No one ever showed up in court, and no one ever apologized or took any interest in the condition of the two injured."
In addition to the conviction, the judge awarded Zucchi a provisional sum of €3.000, confirming the damages claimed by the plaintiff at €27.275,50 (of which €15.000 has already been paid). The remainder must be paid through civil proceedings, in addition to legal costs. For Zucchi, on her claim for €3.000 (of which €1.200 has already been paid), the judge ordered the remaining €1.800.
"The absurdity of what happened is obvious," the lawyers reiterated, emphasizing that Zucchi "was simply doing his job, and was treated humiliatingly. He was insulted, ridiculed, he tried to remain calm... all of this, for truly surreal reasons, escalated into a violent attack." "Unheard of violence and futile motives," added attorney Sinelli, highlighting the disproportion between the cause and the brutality of the attack.
The situation described in the article is truly worrying and shouldn't be happening. Violence is never the answer and makes us reflect on how we behave in society, even when there are problems.
I agree with what Gianmarco wrote, but there are many things that aren't clear. Why hasn't anyone helped the victims? It seems people are afraid to intervene in these cases.