Naples – Engineers Michele Colimoro and Salvatore Carusio will be assigned tomorrow morning to carry out technical investigations on the cell phones seized from the seven suspects in the investigation into the death of Domenico Caliendo, the two-year-old boy who died on Saturday at the Monaldi Hospital after a heart transplant that had been found to be damaged.
Public Prosecutor Giuseppe Tittaferrante is seeking to acquire chat messages, voice messages, and any other evidence useful in reconstructing the process of the December 23 transplant and the responsibilities for its management. The doctors and healthcare workers involved are being investigated for conspiracy to commit manslaughter.
In parallel, the preliminary investigations judge's decision on the prosecutor's request for an evidentiary hearing is awaited, a necessary step to proceed with the autopsy and clarify the cause of death.
Inspectors in Bolzano: checks on transplants and transportation
Inspectors sent by the Ministry of Health arrived at the Bolzano hospital to gather documents and testimonies regarding the entire procedure for the removal and transportation of the heart destined for Naples. Last week, the same checks were conducted at the Monaldi hospital, which was at the center of the investigation.
The goal is to reconstruct in detail every stage of the transplant process: organ procurement, preservation, and transfer. Given the complexity of the procedure, the inspection work could continue in the coming hours.
The crux of conservation: the refrigerator and dry ice
Among the elements being examined by investigators is the method of preservation of the heart during transport. The dry ice used to preserve the organ was reportedly supplied in Bolzano, but it was reportedly damaged by the excessive cold when it arrived in Naples.
The photograph—which emerged in recent weeks—of the container used was particularly shocking: a portable refrigerator made of rigid plastic, similar to those found on the beach, with an orange handle and the initials “S. OP. C. CHPED” (Pediatric Cardiac Surgery Operating Room), transported from Naples to Bolzano and back with the organ.
Limongelli resigns: "No role in the transplant."
Internally at Monaldi, Giuseppe Limongelli, former head of pre-surgical cardiology, has released a clarification through his lawyer Gennaro Razzino following the outcry over his resignation.
The doctor claimed that he had no role or information in the immediate pre-surgical, surgical, or post-surgical phases of the pediatric transplant, circumstances that would have led him to leave his position.
Autopsy pending and possible new suspects
The investigation into Domenico's death is currently awaiting the scheduling of an evidentiary hearing, a crucial step towards the autopsy and the return of the body to the family.
Meanwhile, the number of those under investigation could expand: the Trento NAS (National Health and Safety Agency) has acquired from the Bolzano hospital a complete list of all personnel involved in heart removal and transportation, at every professional level. This provides further evidence of whether and where the transplant chain was interrupted.
Source EDITORIAL TEAM
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