Lavitola manipulated Ranucci to gain a political position: no agreement reached regarding the attack.

Rome – The attack on Ranucci was planned to "boost the journalist's popularity and accelerate" Lavitola's "political" plans. This is stated in the order issued by Rome's preliminary investigations judge, Iole Moricca, ordering the pre-trial detention of businessman and former journalist Valter Lavitola, accused of instigating the bombing that took place in front of the Report host's home in Pomezia, near Rome, last October.

The arrest warrant served this afternoon on 60-year-old Valter Lavitola, the former editor of L'Avanti, is rich in evidence linking his friendship with the host to a plan to convince Sigfrido Ranucci to run in the upcoming political elections. According to the investigating judge, the plan was not intended to harm the host or his family. Rather, the plan was to "do good."

Lavitola wanted to increase the popularity of the Report host with the attack

"The aim was to further the political rise of journalist Ranucci and evidently secure a prominent role for himself in the new political landscape," the investigating judge wrote. "There is no doubt that, in the minds of the accused Lavitola, the criminal act was intended to appear, in the eyes of the victim and the public, as an act of intimidation or retaliation. In any case, it was intended to be a warning to journalist Ranucci to intimidate him from continuing his investigations, but never to actually endanger the journalist's safety."

According to the investigating judge, the technical analyses of the attack's modalities and the quantity of explosives used also make it clear that the explosion was not intended to endanger anyone, but rather to raise awareness of the journalist and increase his popularity.

According to the investigating judge, Lavitola's plan had a dual purpose, and this is what emerges from the material obtained from the phone.

The attack would have guaranteed Ranucci "strong media exposure," shielding him from efforts to exclude him from Report and offering him "visibility that could translate into electoral support." This, according to the investigating judge, is "the dual purpose of the plan": on the one hand, to remedy the attacks and criticisms his friend was facing, which could have led to his losing his hosting position on the program; on the other, to increase his popularity to encourage his 'entry into the political arena.'" Finally, analysis of the phone records allowed the reconstruction of what happened immediately after the Campo Ascolano attack.

The bond with Lavitola: Ranucci shared the difficulties he experienced at Rai and the attempts to oust him from Report

The judge, analyzing the motive, details the relationship between the suspect and Sigfrido Ranucci, who "shared with Lavitola the difficulties he experienced at RAI" and "furthermore, there is no doubt that the project pursued by Lavitola was instrumental in securing a prominent position for himself in the Italian political landscape."

The two had a very close relationship. The host informed the entrepreneur of his difficulties at RAI and of the attempts to oust him from Report. On January 25, 2025, the journalist confided in the entrepreneur: "Meanwhile, RAI has issued a circular to oust me." And again: "The anti-Ranucci circular arrived [...] Gasparri & company requested an audit of Ranucci, and Rossi complied," also sending him the documentation.

In May 2025, Ranucci also forwarded RAI's formal reprimands to Lavitola. On that occasion, according to the investigating judge, the suspect hinted at a hope for a dismissal that could serve as a trigger for his candidacy: "They might even have a little more courage and fire you."

The idea of ​​the candidacy had been instilled for about two years: in June the survey revised by Ranucci and Mieli had also been launched.

Lavitola had been instilling the idea of ​​running for office in Ranucci's head for months. He took every opportunity to remind the journalist that his popularity could be exploited politically. And that idea, initially snubbed, gradually became more and more present in the minds of the Report host. Even more so after the attack. This was precisely Lavitola's goal.

Ranucci was considered capable of "shuffling the deck" and beating the other candidates. According to the investigating judge, however, the journalist never formally supported the project, but instead showed openness or curiosity.

The turning point, according to the order, came after the attack. Lavitola began to transform his political intuition into a concrete project, commissioning a survey and investing time and money. Lavitola began taking action a few months after the attack, involving well-known journalists. The messages reveal that Ranucci's outbursts about work-related difficulties ceased after the attack.

At the same time, he allegedly shared with his friend polls and comments on his strong popularity. "Therefore, it is certain that the bombing of Ranucci represented an extremely positive and favorable outcome for the ambitious project pursued by Lavitola," the judge wrote.

According to the reconstruction, Lavitola was aware of the "favorable economic climate and began to implement his plan after seeing the journalist's growing popularity." "Brother," the wiretapped businessman told his interlocutor, "this wouldn't be a pre-candidacy; he would be guaranteed 110% of the vote for president. I alone would take 30%, without a party, without anything."

So much so that between May and June the entrepreneur began to press for a survey at his own expense to assess the possibility of entering politics.

For days, he begged his journalist friend to look at the questions he'd ask interviewees and make changes. Another of Lavitola's "friends" also participated in these changes: journalist Paolo Mieli. But Valter Lavitola's political plans were dashed when the first arrests for the attack arrived at the end of June. The release of the survey, which cost €8, coinciding with news of the investigation, prompted the entrepreneur to postpone the electoral test.

The investigating judge: "Ranucci was unaware of the plan for the Lavitola attack."

"At this time, no evidence has emerged, as can be seen from the findings obtained, to suggest that the journalist was in collusion with Lavitola." Rome's investigating judge, Iole Morrica, writes in a passage from the pre-trial detention order. The outpouring of solidarity following the attack had boosted the Report host's popularity, but according to the investigating judge, Valter Lavitola's convoluted plan could not have been shared with the raid's victim. This is evidenced by wiretaps and conversations intercepted after the search and the charges filed against Lavitola on July 4th.

That day, investigators decided to block the businessman's departure for Cameroon, arriving at his home as he was about to get into his car. After the search, Lavitola called Ranucci, attempting to convince him that the prosecutor's allegations were absurd and concealing details of a conversation he had with one of the investigators who had executed the search warrant. Lavitola realized that his plan had been partially revealed: his intent, the investigator hypothesized, was not to harm his friend, but to "do good," that is, to increase the popularity of the aspiring prime minister.

Ranucci is the victim of Lavitola's manipulations, who tries to convince him of the absurdity of the accusations against him.

On the contrary, the investigating judge emphasizes, "the findings lead us to believe that the journalist was the victim of the suspect's manipulation, due, on the one hand, to the suspect's refined cunning, and, on the other, to the deep bond between the two, which was so strong that the victim's reaction of shock and disbelief immediately upon hearing the news of his friend's indictment was induced. On the other hand, it is certain, as revealed by multiple wiretaps, that Lavitola continued to manipulate the victim and fueled his belief that the investigators' theory was absolutely implausible, believing that as long as he had the victim's support, his position would be advantageous."

The investigating judge then concludes: "In light of these data and considering the truly multiple investigative elements that have emerged against the suspect, and given that, despite the multiple investigative hypotheses explored during the investigation, all the evidence acquired converges in indicating that the instigator of the criminal action is the current suspect, Valter Lavitola."