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After Yearlong Probe, Aunt and Uncle Arrested in Aggravated Homicide of Four-Year-Old in Tufino

Prosecutors say forensic evidence links prolonged denutrition with trauma, culminating in a fatal pulmonary illness.

Overview

  • Carabinieri executed a pretrial detention order issued by the Nola investigating judge, taking the aunt and uncle into custody on charges of aggravated homicide.
  • The investigation led by the Nola prosecutor’s office since December 2024 drew on medico-legal reviews, scientific surveys and support from the Carabinieri’s RIS in Rome.
  • Autopsy findings describe severe denutrition progressing to cachexia along with serious burns, bedsores and a fracture, with the combined condition preceding a lethal pulmonary disease.
  • Investigators cite exchanges of messages and statements that point to sustained maltreatment and child neglect contributing to the child’s physical decline.
  • The caregivers gave differing accounts in two emergency calls the night of the death, and a September 2024 social-services visit noting the child as well cared for now stands at odds with later findings from the informal placement arranged after parental authority was suspended.