Autostrade ex-CEO jailed for 12 years over Genoa bridge collapse
A court has handed down lengthy prison sentences to the former head of Italy's motorway operator, signalling severe legal consequences for executives who prioritise profits over ageing infrastructure safety.
Giovanni Castellucci, the former chief executive of Autostrade per l’Italia, has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for his role in the 2018 Morandi Bridge collapse, which killed 43 people in Genoa. He was the highest-ranking of 32 defendants convicted on Thursday, receiving the maximum penalty in a case that has sent shockwaves through Europe’s infrastructure concession sector.
Castellucci was found guilty of complicity in multiple counts of manslaughter through negligence. His lawyers immediately announced an appeal, arguing the former CEO had appropriately relied on Italy’s leading engineers for structural assessments. "The gravity of the event requires justice to remain based on individual responsibility, not the search for a scapegoat," his legal team said in a statement following the verdicts.
For European investors and private operators managing public assets, the trial underscores the escalating legal and financial perils of neglecting ageing transport networks. Prosecutors successfully convinced the court that Autostrade repeatedly ignored warning signs and deliberately postponed essential maintenance on the 51-year-old bridge to continue generating and distributing profits. The defence maintained that a fatal flaw in the original design of stay cable No 9 made the collapse inevitable, arguing no maintenance programme could have prevented the tragedy.
The corporate fallout from the disaster has already permanently reshaped Italy’s motorway landscape. The collapse of a 50-metre section of the bridge during a summer storm ignited a fierce political battle over who controls the country's critical toll roads. This ultimately forced the Benetton family to relinquish its controlling stake in Autostrade per l’Italia, ending an era of private control over a vital public asset.
The trial, which involved 57 original defendants, became a broader test of Italy’s notoriously slow justice system. Sentences handed down on Thursday ranged from one year and 11 months to 12 years, while several other defendants were acquitted or saw their charges expire under the statute of limitations. In a hushed courtroom packed with roughly 400 people, including relatives of the victims, the judge read out the verdicts to a mix of weeping and silence.
The physical damage in Genoa has been repaired, replaced by the Genoa San Giorgio Bridge designed by architect Renzo Piano. However, the legal reckoning for the companies managing Europe’s ageing infrastructure continues. Victim spokesperson Egle Possetti noted that families still need time to process the complexity of the rulings, saying: "We need to better understand the ruling; there are a large number of defendants involved."
