Pavia prosecutors seek trial for Andrea Sempio over Garlasco murder

Prosecutors ask for a trial

Prosecutors in Pavia have asked for Andrea Sempio, 38, to be sent to trial for the murder of a young woman in Garlasco. The request was reported on 6 November 2026. Sempio is the only person under investigation in the new line of inquiry, and the claim that he killed her is the prosecutors' position, not a verdict. According to a note from the prosecutors, the motive was the victim's refusal of a sexual approach that Sempio allegedly made. The request is the central step before any trial, and the preliminary hearing judge, known as the gup, can either dismiss the case or open a full trial. Sempio's defence has said it will contest that reconstruction.

Sempio's first comments

Sempio spoke to Quarto Grado, the Retequattro programme hosted by Gianluigi Nuzzi, as he was about to get into a car. He said the request was something he had expected and that he hoped to reach a courtroom quickly to settle matters.

“It is not news that falls from the sky. We hope to get to court as soon as possible to settle everything.”

Asked how he was taking the request, he described his state as tension rather than fear.

“No fear, tension yes, because the moment is what it is.”

Asked whether he saw a link between the alleged refusal and his soliloquies and videos, he denied it. He said he did not believe the prosecutors saw one either, because the material that had recently leaked was not cited in their final report. On the victim's family, he said he hoped the case was close to its end for both his side and theirs, and that his side could finally prove its position.

Aggravating circumstances and the defence

The prosecutors' note also lists two aggravating circumstances. The first is cruelty, based on the number and severity of the wounds inflicted on the victim, including at least 12 lesions to the skull and face. The second concerns the motive, which the note describes as abject and linked to hatred following the rejection. Sempio's defence disputes these reconstructions, and the judge will have to decide whether there are grounds for a trial. No court has ruled on the charges, and the allegations remain those of the prosecution.

The postal bond dispute

A newspaper report said an 85,000 euro postal savings bond was linked to Sempio and his parents. Sempio's lawyers, Angela Taccia and Liborio Cataliotti, rejected the report as a very serious fake news that had no basis in fact. They said Sempio never gave a mandate, instruction or delegation to lawyer Stefano Rossi of the Associazione Italia di Roma to cash the bond. They also said a certified email sent to Poste Italiane had no legal force, because it was sent by someone without authority to act. The lawyers invited Rossi and the association to publicly clarify how Sempio's name came to be linked to the bond and to the alleged assignment. Sempio reserves the right to take action against those responsible for the story.