"According to the Court of Cassation, the Open trial proves to be for what it is, that is, an absolute scandal. The Supreme Court, not defending them, has clearly explained five times that the work of the magistrates of Florence has broken the rules".

Thus Matteo Renzi, after having participated at the beginning of the preliminary hearing, in Florence, on the Open proceeding , which sees him among the 11 defendants for whom the Prosecutor has asked for indictment.

"I was president of the Council of Ministers and therefore I respect the institutions", Renzi added, speaking with reporters. "I will also be here at the next hearings compatibly with the calendar where possible. I will be here to say very frankly that we are respecting the law". "The magistrates of Florence - argues Renzi - instead have not respected either the Constitution or the law or the sentences of the Court of Cassation. In a few years this affair will be in the manuals of judicial news as an absolute scandal".

"There is a very high level defense board - the senator of Italia Viva then observed -, extraordinary lawyers, facilitated by the Supreme Court which was the first to crumble the accusatory system of the Florence prosecutor".

"If magistrates who have to judge others do not respect the Constitution, I'm here to tell them to their face", Renzi thundered.

The investigation focuses on Open, a foundation heir to Big Bang born in 2012 with the aim of supporting the activities and initiatives of Matteo Renzi by providing a financial, organizational and ideas contribution and according to the Prosecutor's Office it would have been a kind of "safe" for the financing of political activity.

For his part, Renzi has always referred the accusations to the sender and has also denounced the Florentine prosecutors for alleged violation of Article 68 of the Constitution on the prerogatives of parliamentarians and abuse of office. Reason for which the Genoese prosecutor, competent to proceed against Tuscan colleagues, has opened and also already closed the investigations with a request for dismissal.