Ercolano Massacre: Appeal launched following the explosion of the illegal factory

Naples – The second-degree trial for the Ercolano massacre begins tomorrow, October 2, before the First Section of the Naples Court of Assizes of Appeal. Vincenzo D'Angelo and Raffaele Boccia will be in the dock. The legal case stems from the dramatic event that occurred inside the illegal fireworks factory on December 18, 2024, which turned into a death trap for three young workers.

The victims are twins Sara and Aurora Esposito, 26, and 18-year-old Samuel Tafciu, whose partner gave birth to a baby girl last year (the family is represented by lawyer Massimo Viscusi).

The first degree verdict and the turning point on possible intent

The first-instance trial, conducted before the preliminary hearing judge of the Court of Naples using the abbreviated procedure, concluded on December 10, 2025, with a landmark ruling. The judge sentenced Vincenzo D'Angelo and Pasquale Punzo—owners of the clandestine factory and employers of the victims—to 17 years and 6 months in prison, upholding the prosecution's charge of voluntary manslaughter with eventual intent, gangmastering, and illegal manufacturing or possession of explosive devices (against a request from the Public Prosecutor for a 20-year prison term). Raffaele Boccia, on the other hand, received a four-year prison sentence for possession of the explosives alone.

A historical precedent in criminal labor law

The ruling issued by the Naples Court represented a turning point in both doctrine and procedure: for the first time, the crime of voluntary manslaughter with eventual intent was recognized within a workplace context marked by systematic and extremely serious illegalities, transcending the traditional classification of a simple workplace accident resulting from negligence.

In the criminal field, the only illustrious precedent in the field of workplace safety linked to the concept of eventual intent remains the complex judicial affair of the ThyssenKrupp fire in December 2007 in Turin, despite the profoundly different factual dynamics.

Punzo's position and the recalculation of the sentence

Pasquale Punzo's position, however, will not be subject to the appeal. The defendant chose not to appeal, resulting in his sentence becoming final. Due to the reward mechanism introduced by the Cartabia Reform—which provides for a reduction of one-sixth of the sentence for failure to appeal a first-instance sentence issued under the fast-track trial—Punzo's final sentence is reduced to 15 years of effective prison.