Ponticelli, killed by mistake, was also denied a farewell. The hunt for Fabio Ascione's killer is underway.

Naples – A bullet to the heart, fired in a case of mistaken identity, and a final, desperate journey to death. Fabio Ascione, 20, with no criminal record, a life divided between his family and his shifts at a bingo hall in Cercola, is yet another innocent victim of a war that wasn't his. And while Ponticelli mourns his "golden boy," the state locks down, denying the community even the right to say goodbye.

The Ascione family received a cold shower last night. The police imposed a ban on public funerals, after having already blocked the candlelight vigil scheduled for 18:00 PM. A bitter decision, it sparked protests from relatives and anger throughout an entire neighborhood.

The decision to ban public funerals

Let's be clear: there's no shadow of doubt over Fabio's profile. The authorities' veto stems from the sheer need to protect public order: the fear is that a demonstration could become a stage for further raids or retaliation, in an urban area where the shadow of the De Micco clan continues to dictate the law.

Despite the restrictions, dozens of people—relatives, friends, and even ordinary citizens who didn't know the boy—met spontaneously outside the parish church of Saints Peter and Paul, just steps from the scene of the attack, where a memorial mass was later held.

The emotion is palpable. Those who speak describe Fabio as a young man far removed from the criminality of the streets, dedicated to his work and deeply attached to his parents.

Yet, behind the tears, an impenetrable wall of silence persists. The Carabinieri investigation, coordinated by the District Anti-Mafia Directorate, is proceeding rapidly and appears close to a breakthrough, but they must contend with a chilling code of silence. The crime took place outside the Lively bar: Fabio, who had just gotten off work, was with a small group of his peers when the gunmen opened fire. From that moment on, darkness reigned.

The neighborhood's wall of silence

To this day, no one knows—or wants to say—who loaded Fabio's dying body into a car and dumped it like a cumbersome package in front of the Villa Betania hospital emergency room, disappearing into thin air. No friends are speaking out, no one saw it, no one is cooperating.

Investigators, however, have one thing certain: Fabio died as a result of a tragic mistake. The hitmen's true target was another young man, present at the scene and involved in a previous, violent brawl between neighborhood youths and a group from Volla. It is precisely this Vesuvian town that the DDA's spotlight is now focused on. The hunt for the commando is on, but in Ponticelli, for now, all that remains is the silence of those who know and the tears of those who cannot even accompany Fabio on his final journey.