There's not enough evidence to confirm house arrest. This is what the Rome investigating judge wrote in his warrant validating the arrest of David Stojanovic, the 25-year-old accused of the death of Leonardo Fiorini, a 27-year-old from Isola Liri in the Frosinone area who fell from a B&B on Thursday evening in Rome. However, he did not order any precautionary measures.
The young man has been a free man since Saturday evening, although he's still under investigation for the very serious charge of voluntary manslaughter. The man—who works as a clerk in a shop in the center of the capital—has also tested positive for cannabinoids.
In the nine-page preliminary investigations judge's order, the investigating judge reconstructs what happened on November 13th on Via Calepodio, in the Monteverde neighborhood. The judge cites a series of testimonies collected by the Carabinieri from residents and neighbors who witnessed the events leading up to the tragic fall from the third floor. "These are declaratory sources," the judge continues, "all consistent in stating that the suspect held Fiorini by the leg to prevent him from falling."
The judge, however, found them "contradictory regarding what happened a few minutes before the fall and, in particular, regarding the manner in which" the victim "climbed astride the balcony railing and then fell to the ground, a circumstance which is fundamental to understanding the precise dynamics of the event for the purpose of its correct legal classification."
At the home, the Carabinieri found the television ripped from the wall, the bed unmade, and clothes scattered around the apartment. The document also reports the version given by the 25-year-old during questioning by the prosecutor at 3:45 a.m. on Friday morning. Stojanovic stated that his friend had invited him to spend the evening with him that evening.
"As soon as he arrived, they smoked a joint he had brought, had dinner, and then started watching a movie," the document states, "and immediately afterward, Leonardo said he wasn't feeling well, and he told him to go lie down on the couch."
The 25-year-old then added that his friend began to have "frenzied outbursts, he got up, said incoherent things and slapped himself, then he took off some of his clothes and tore others, he attacked him by punching him, he ripped the television off the wall and he seemed almost possessed."
This whole thing lasted about 50 minutes. In his account, the suspect claims that at a certain point, Fiorini suddenly jumped up and ran toward the French window leading to the balcony. "He said he wanted to jump and other phrases like 'it never ends,'" and Stojanovic ran after him, according to his version, in an attempt to stop him. The 25-year-old said that Leonardo struggled "and pushed his torso over the parapet."
"He had managed to grab one of his legs," the investigating judge reported, "and started calling for help from the neighbors because he couldn't hold him any longer, while he continued to struggle, saying the exact words, 'I want to fall down, let me go.'"
(Unioneonline)