Overview
- The Milan Court of Appeal, in a ruling Thursday, cleared Mattia Lucarelli, Federico Apolloni and three friends with a full acquittal stating the crime did not occur.
- An earlier judge had convicted them in June 2024 under a shortened procedure, giving Lucarelli and Apolloni three years and seven months in prison.
- The woman, who was 22 at the time of the alleged assault, withdrew her civil claim after receiving compensation in recent weeks.
- Deputy prosecutor Massimo Gaballo had urged the court to confirm the convictions, and the prosecutors may still appeal after the court publishes its reasons in about 90 days.
- Investigators said the alleged assault dated to the night of March 26–27, 2022, after the woman met the group outside Milan’s Il Gattopardo nightclub, citing phone videos in the case file; outside court, former player Cristiano Lucarelli shouted at reporters after the acquittal.