Vela Celeste Collapse: Nine Years of Inaction and Three Deaths: Prosecutor Requests Trial of Six Officials

Naples – A request that tears away institutional responsibilities and reopens the wounds of a tragedy that, according to the Naples Prosecutor's Office, could have been entirely avoidable. The Naples Prosecutor's Office has requested the indictment of six officials of the City of Naples as part of the investigation into the collapse of the Vela Celeste (Light Vela) in Scampia, which occurred on the night of July 21-22, 2024.

The charges, of varying degrees, are extremely serious: negligent disaster, multiple manslaughter, and failure to maintain. Municipal employees involved in the management of public buildings are in the crosshairs of justice, held accountable for the disaster that resulted in the deaths of three people and injuries to eleven, including seven minors.

The victims of that fateful night were Roberto Abbruzzo, his mother, Patrizia Della Ragione, and her aunt, Margherita Della Ragione. Their families have filed a civil suit, alongside the eleven injured, seeking justice for a tragedy that unfolded amidst degradation and neglect.

The shadow of the eviction that never took place

The central, and most dramatic, aspect of the prosecution's case is the institutional inertia that lasted nearly a decade. The Vela Celeste, in fact, should have been evacuated and cleared out as early as 2015. An evacuation order dated October 12th had been issued specifically to prevent risks arising from the complex's structural conditions.

However, that measure, intended to protect the lives of residents, remained a "dead letter," wrapped up in the drawers of the technical offices of Palazzo San Giacomo.

The investigation documents speak clearly: already nine years before the disaster, the Vela presented a picture of urban and institutional decay that required urgent interventions, which never occurred.

The tragedy triggered an immediate social crisis: approximately three hundred displaced people found themselves homeless. For three weeks, in an act of protest and necessity, they occupied the Federico II University building in Scampia, drawing national attention to post-collapse housing conditions. Only after a long and complex process was it possible to proceed with the final eviction and begin the necessary demolitions.

Although the prosecutor's order was in the air, the formalization of the indictment request took the suspects by surprise. The six people involved, in fact, claim they have nothing to do with the facts and are ready to defend themselves, maintaining that they can prove their innocence during the preliminary hearing, which will determine whether or not they will stand trial.

The matter now passes to the investigating judge, who will set the date for the preliminary hearing, thus initiating the judicial process to determine who is responsible for the collapse, which has marked another painful chapter in the history of Scampia.