Italian police arrest wife and partner over July murder of Mikel Rroku in Turin

Police operation in Turin

Carabinieri officers in Turin arrested two individuals at dawn on 6 October 2026 in connection with the homicide of Mikel Rroku. The suspects, an Italian woman aged 45 and an Italian man aged 52, were taken into custody following an operation conducted by the Carabinieri Provincial Command of Turin. Both face charges of premeditated and aggravated murder committed in conspiracy with one another. The arrests were carried out under a pre-trial detention order issued by the preliminary investigations judge at the Court of Turin, acting on a request submitted by the local public prosecutor's office. Following the early morning operation, the two suspects were transferred directly to prison cells, where they remain detained ahead of their formal guarantee interrogations before judicial authorities.

Discovery at Via Verolengo

The murder inquiry began three months prior, on 6 July 2026, when emergency services were dispatched to an apartment located at Via Verolengo 185 in the Lucento district of Turin. The residence was situated within a public residential housing complex managed by the Territorial Agency for Housing (ATC). Neighbors living in adjacent units had raised the alarm after detecting a persistent, foul odor spreading through the building corridors. When law enforcement personnel gained entry to the home, they found Rroku's body in an advanced state of decomposition. Forensic investigators established that the 55-year-old man had been deceased for several days before the discovery, during which time no missing persons report had been filed and no family members had alerted emergency services.

Autopsy results and victim background

Mikel Rroku was a 55-year-old Albanian national who had previously worked as a pizza chef in the region. At the time of his death, he was unemployed and receiving assistance through local social welfare services. A preliminary post-mortem examination performed by the assigned medical examiner identified severe trauma to the skull, including a deep fracture of the cranial vault. The medical examiner determined that the fatal injuries were consistent with one or more heavy blows delivered by a blunt instrument. These physical findings immediately prompted authorities to treat the case as a violent homicide rather than an accidental death or medical event, leading forensic technicians to secure the scene for specialized scientific analysis.

Direction of the homicide inquiry

The criminal proceedings were led and coordinated by public prosecutor Lea Lamonaca from the Turin Public Prosecutor's Office. In the weeks following the discovery of the body, investigators focused on reconstructing the movements of the suspects and examining interpersonal dynamics within the family circle. The victim's 45-year-old wife had previously claimed to acquaintances and authorities that she had permanently vacated the shared residence on Via Verolengo. However, witness testimonies gathered by investigators indicated that the woman returned to the apartment on multiple occasions in the weeks after the homicide. Witnesses stated that she was accompanied by the 52-year-old Italian man, whom she introduced as her new domestic partner. The combination of scientific findings, movement tracking, and witness accounts led prosecutors to conclude that the pair acted together with premeditation, culminating in their detention.