All eight defendants acquitted in first Milan urban planning trial over Torre Milano skyscraper

Verdict and charges

The seventh criminal section of the Milan court cleared all eight defendants in the Torre Milano case on 16 June 2026. Judge Paola Braggion ruled that the facts did not constitute a crime, rejecting the prosecution's argument that the 24-story tower had been built through building abuse and unauthorized subdivision. The eight included two builders, an architect, and five former municipal employees who had followed the tower's authorization process. The decision is the first from a series of probes opened by Milan prosecutors into the city's urban planning management.

The Torre Milano project

Torre Milano, a 24-story tower on via Stresa near Piazza Carbonari, replaced two low-rise office buildings that once housed a publishing house. Depending on the source, the tower's height is given as 82.25 meters or 85 meters. The prosecution's case rested on the claim that the project, because it involved a novel structure, required a full urban implementation plan (piano attuativo), while the builders had proceeded under a segnalazione certificata di inizio attività (SCIA), which is intended for renovations.

Prosecution's case

Prosecutor Marina Petruzzella had requested convictions and confiscation of the entire building. For the main figures, builders Carlo and Stefano Rusconi, architect Giovanni Maria Beretta, and former municipal officials Giovanni Oggioni and Franco Zinna, she sought 2 years and 4 months of arrest plus a €50,000 fine. Two other former officials, Francesco Mario Carrillo and Maria Chiara Femminis, faced 2 years and €30,000 fines, while Pietro Ghelfi faced 1 year and a €16,000 fine. Petruzzella argued that the tower was an entirely new construction unlawfully treated as a renovation and that the entire building was an abuse.

Wider investigations

The investigation that led to this trial began nearly four years ago and is one of multiple strands. Some of those probes have since expanded into bribery allegations. Notably, Giovanni Oggioni, former director of the city's Sportello Unico Edilizia and former vice-president of the Landscape Commission, was arrested in March 2025 on separate corruption charges and is a defendant in several proceedings.

Reactions and next steps

When the verdict was read, applause broke out in the courtroom from some defendants. Judge Braggion will file the written reasons for her decision within 90 days. The acquittal may serve as a precedent for other ongoing cases in Milan's urban planning prosecutions.