Italy 15.12.2020
Antonino Speziale (Ultras Catania) ended up serving a sentence for the murder of Police Inspector Filippo Raciti, who died on 02.02.2007, during the riots after Catania-Palermo derby. Antonino Speziale at that time was at the age of 17 years, and now is 30 years old. He was released after 8 years and 8 months in prison. His case in court lasted 5 years after he was convicted for jail. However, family, friends and most of the society still do not believe that he is guilty of this policeman’s death.
“My sentence was unfair, and whoever made a mistake will pay for it fairly. I hope the process will be reopened. I am sorry for the death of the inspector. I know that I was responsible for resisting the police and I am guilty of it, but I am not responsible for the death of the inspector” – said Antonino Speziale.
The official police version says that Antonino Speziale, during the riots, threw a part of the sink at police inspector Filippo Raciti, which resulted in his liver injury, after which he died.
The unofficial version says that during the riots a police car was driving to the back and accidentally ran into police inspector Filippo Raciti, who later died. And the police, to cover up the accident, quickly had to find the person responsible for his death, so they chose Antonino Speziale, who participated in the riots outside the stadium.
An Italian reporter shows the element of the sink (the same one used by Antonino Speziale during the riots) how light it is (holding it on one finger). In this way, the reporter wanted to suggest that it is rather impossible that this element of the sink caused the death of a police inspector.
November 2012. A player of Cosenza Pietro Arcidiacono got banned for 3 years from profesional football for wearing t-shirt “Speziale Innocente” (eng. Speziale innocent).
Genny la Carogna, Napoli capo, got banned for 5 years from Italian stadiums because of wearing “Speziale Libero”(eng. Free Speziale) t-shirt on cup final match vs. Fiorentina in 2014.
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