API
< Back to all clusters
[CRIME] · Italy · 10 sources

started · updated

Pietracatella ricin investigation: Police search 155 school computers

Investigators in the Pietracatella ricin poisoning case have launched a major forensic operation targeting 155 computers across four schools in the Molise region. The investigation follows the deaths of Antonella Di Ielsi and her 15-year-old daughter, Sara Di Vita, in late December 2025.

Authorities are analyzing digital footprints to identify individuals who may have searched for information regarding ricin. A key focus is a series of Reddit posts made between August 2025 and January 2026. Initially, an anonymous user requested information on how to use ricin for a fictional character; later, the queries shifted to whether the toxin could be detected during an autopsy and how long it remains in the body.

The Larino Prosecutor's Office is also exploring a new hypothesis: that the intended target of the poisoning may have been Gianni Di Vita, the husband and father of the victims, rather than the two women themselves. The computer searches, conducted by the Campobasso Mobile Squad and the State Police's Central Operational Service, include the Riccia Agricultural Institute, the Scientific High School in Riccia, the Mario Pagano Classical High School in Campobasso, and the Casacalenda comprehensive school.

Entities

Antonella di Ielsi · Gianni Di Vita · Larino Prosecutor's Office · Pietracatella · Procura di Larino · Sara Di Vita

Claims

What the coverage asserts, and how many sources carry each claim.