Lawyers representing the family of Stefano Cucchi, a young man who died in custody 10 years ago allegedly due to brutality by Carabinieri police, have called two former defence ministers as witnesses for a related trial into an alleged cover-up of the case, sources said Wednesday.
Eight Carabinieri, including high-ranking officers, are on trial for alleged cover-ups of the truth about Rome draughtsman Cucchi's death in 2009.
Former defence ministers Ignazio La Russa and Elisabetta Trenta are on the Cucchi family's witness list ahead of a hearing on November 12, as well as Carabinieri Commander Giovanni Nistri and several other generals, the sources said.
The Carabinieri is a paramilitary police force under the command of the defence ministry. For several years the case looked set to end without anyone being brought to justice for Cucchi's death, allegedly because of the cover-up.
But a breakthrough came last year when one of five Carabinieri on trial in relation to Cucchi's death accused two others of the beating that allegedly caused it.
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