Italy’s top court has fully acquitted Milan prosecutors Fabio De Pasquale and Sergio Spadaro in the long-running Eni-Nigeria corruption case, ruling that “the fact does not exist” (perché il fatto non sussiste) and annulling without referral their earlier conviction for refusal to perform official duties.
The sixth criminal section of the Court of Cassation overturned the decisions of lower courts in Brescia, where the two prosecutors had previously been convicted at both first instance and on appeal in October 2025.
The Supreme Court ruling definitively closes the criminal proceedings, establishing that the alleged offence never occurred.
Their defence lawyer, Massimo Di Noia, welcomed the decision, saying: “The conclusions of the Cassazione's Procuratore Generale were total: he asked for the non-existence of both the material fact and, in the alternative, the subjective element. He could not have said more than that.”
He later added: “My colleague Fabio Federico and I are truly happy. This ruling brings justice after many years of suffering.”
