The supreme Court of Cassation on Wednesday rejected an appeal by the Palermo Prosecutor's Office against Deputy Premier and Transport Minister Matteo Salvini's acquittal on charges of kidnapping and refusal to perform official duties in the case of the Spanish NGO ship Open Arms, making the ruling definitive.
The Cassation's prosecutor-general had said Salvini did not have a case to answer and called on the court to reject the appeal.
The case regarded charges of kidnapping and refusal to perform public acts against the League leader for halting the disembarkation of 147 migrants rescued by the Spanish NGO Open Arms vessel in August 2019 as part of his closed-ports policy when he was interior minister.
"Acquitted," Salvini said in a social-media post.
"Defending borders is not a crime".
