Overview
- The 47-year-old American appeared in court introducing himself as "Rexal Ford" and delivered quiet, rambling remarks while insisting he is innocent.
- Defense lawyer Paolo Foti argued his client is unfit to stand trial due to recent mental deterioration in custody, and prosecutor Antonio Verdi opposed ordering an evaluation.
- The court admitted the victim’s parents and several anti-violence organizations as civil parties and accepted a large witness list to be narrowed later.
- Prosecutors say Anastasia Trofimova was strangled around June 3–4 and her infant daughter suffocated the night of June 6–7, with both bodies found in Villa Pamphili on June 7.
- Investigators cite phone records indicating Kaufmann contacted baby-modelling agencies about the child after the mother’s death while seeking money and preparing to flee, with a reply arriving only after his departure.