Charged to stand trial for the death of a newborn baby in the thermal cradle of the church of San Giovanni Battista in Bari, the parish priest Antonio Ruccia and the electrician in charge of maintenance, Vincenzo Nanocchio. This was decided today, Thursday 13 November, by Bari Court judge, Ilaria Casu.
Both were charged with murder as part of the Prosecutor’s investigation into the death of a newborn baby which occurred in a thermal cradle located in several rooms adjacent to the parish. The boy was found dead on January 2.
The first hearing has been set for February 5 2026 before judge Domenico Mascolo.
After the rejection of the defense application submitted jointly by the Public Prosecutor and the Defense represented by lawyer Salvatore D’Aluiso, the Prosecutor requested an indictment while the Defense requested an acquittal.
The newborn’s death was likely caused by hypothermia caused by a series of factors: a malfunction of the bed’s thermal sensor, which did not activate the alarm so that the alert system was connected to the parish priest’s cell phone, and the room’s air conditioning system, which instead of providing heat, provided cold air.
