Italian authorities seal famous 'Castle of Ceremonies' wedding venue after definitive confiscation

The operation

On the morning of 24 July 2026, a joint force of municipal police, Carabinieri, and state police began executing a preventive seizure and eviction order at the Grand Hotel La Sonrisa in Sant'Antonio Abate, near Naples. Known to the public as the "Castello delle Cerimonie" (Castle of Ceremonies), the venue became famous through the Real Time television program. Officials posted seizure notices at entrances, sealed offices and commercial premises, and began the process of permanently removing any remaining occupants.

We thank the police and the judiciary for their timely intervention, which further certifies the correctness of the acts and decisions of the municipal offices. Our duty was to enforce a final sentence.

The legal path to confiscation

The operation marks the culmination of a complex legal case. The structure was definitively confiscated following an appeals court ruling on 14 June 2022, which became final on 15 October 2024 when the Court of Cassation confirmed the sentence for illegal land subdivision. In April 2025, the property was formally transferred to the municipality's inalienable patrimony.

Despite the revocation of the hotel and restaurant license (upheld by the Campania Regional Administrative Court and the Council of State) and a municipal ordinance granting 60 days to vacate voluntarily, the premises were never returned. The deadline expired on 11 July 2026. The Torre Annunziata Prosecutor's Office, led by Nunzio Fragliasso, then investigated the continued occupation as a crime of invasion of land or buildings under articles 633 and 639 bis of the penal code.

The legal reasoning

The GIP (judge for preliminary investigations) accepted the prosecutor's argument, applying a recent Court of Cassation orientation. The ruling holds that unauthorized occupation of another's property constitutes a crime regardless of the use of violence or secrecy, even when the occupant is the former owner. The seizure decree is subject to appeal before the Review Court.

The remaining occupants

Despite the eviction in progress, members of the Polese family remain on the premises. According to reports, they had been living inside the castle habitually. Parallel to the criminal investigation, three companies (La Sonrisa spa, Ipol spa, and Pol.Fra) have challenged the municipal eviction order before the Campania Regional Administrative Court, but no date has yet been set for a hearing.

The workers and the future

The seizure has also brought attention to the unresolved issue of the venue's former employees. The property had not initiated any corporate crisis procedure, and in recent weeks numerous workers demonstrated in front of the Prefecture of Naples to demand an institutional discussion table. The mayor stated that the administration is "gradually taking all the necessary steps to take possession of the entire property complex," which now belongs to the municipality. The future use of the site remains to be determined.