Vannacci targets President Mattarella in AI video seeking pardon for jailed jeweller Roggero

Roberto Vannacci, leader of the Futuro Nazionale party, has released a new video generated with artificial intelligence that directly involves President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella in the campaign to grant a pardon to jeweller Mario Roggero. The film, shared on the Instagram account of the MEP and former general on 25 July, is the second such AI-produced clip in a matter of days and depicts Vannacci as a Roman commander securing a 'gratia' for the prisoner from an emperor with Mattarella's face.

The new AI propaganda video

The video opens with Vannacci, clad in golden armour, walking through an ancient Roman senate towards an older political figure seated on a throne, whose features are those of Sergio Mattarella. Vannacci hands him a sealed parchment scroll. After a few seconds, the word 'Gratia' is burned onto the previously blank page. The Mattarella-emperor then rises and places a diamond-like object on the scales held by a statue of Iustitia Augusta, the blindfolded goddess of justice, causing the balance to tip.

A white dove arrives at the barred window of a cell where a man with the face of Mario Roggero is held. A tear falls from his right eye. Vannacci then unlocks the manacles from the jeweller's hands and walks him out of the prison, where a crowd applauds. The freed man sighs with relief and embraces his wife and daughters.

A pattern of AI-powered political messaging

The new film confirms a communication strategy labelled 'Slopaganda' that leans heavily on AI-generated content designed for high visual impact and viral reach. The videos are produced using Grok, the generative chatbot integrated into X and developed by Elon Musk's company xAI. The style echoes content used in recent months by political figures such as Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Only days earlier, Vannacci posted another AI video in which he appeared as a Roman emperor sitting in the Colosseum alongside Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Senate President Ignazio La Russa, and his wife Camelia Mihailescu. With a turned-down thumb, he symbolically condemned his political opponents, shown in the arena ready to face lions. Those depicted in that earlier clip included PD secretary Elly Schlein, M5S president Giuseppe Conte, former prime minister Romano Prodi, and PD deputy Laura Boldrini. The first video prompted the prime minister herself to distance herself publicly.

The Roggero case

Mario Roggero, a jeweller from Grinzane Cavour in Cuneo, received a final sentence of 14 years and 9 months for killing two robbers who had just left his shop. He is currently held in Bollate prison. The case has mobilised parts of the right, with Vannacci positioning himself to the right of both the League and Brothers of Italy by pushing the issue into a direct confrontation with the Quirinale.

The new video was published not only on the official profile of the MEP but also by an account named 'Robertus Vannaccius', close to the former general. His caption alongside the film was: 'Grazia per Roggero. Amen'. The clip also features the Futuro Nazionale deputy Rossano Sasso among the secondary characters in the Roman setting. The sequence ends with Vannacci accompanying Roggero out of his cell under an epic music soundtrack, a visual that removes any ambiguity about the political demand being made.

Pressure on the Quirinale

By placing the President of the Republic in a scripted scenario where he is portrayed as personally balancing the scales of justice and then approving the release, the video constitutes a direct form of pressure on the Colle. The film follows other recent calls for a pardon, though this marks an escalation in both medium and symbolism. A caption accompanying one article noted that Vannacci is effectively pulling the president's sleeve in public, going beyond the earlier involvement of Justice Minister Carlo Nordio in the debate over Roggero's fate.

The use of AI to fabricate a presidential decision in a stylised Roman setting has triggered fresh irritation. The earlier video had already drawn sharp reactions across the political spectrum. The sequel doubles down on the format, inserting the highest constitutional office directly into a partisan campaign narrative, timed while Roggero remains detained and his case continues to attract media attention. The video closes with Roggero reunited with his wife and daughters at sunset against the backdrop of the monuments of ancient Rome, delivering the unequivocal message that only political intervention can secure his freedom.