The Sassari Court of Appeal has confirmed the conviction of Sergio Appeddu for the death of little Richard Mulas , the 7-year-old boy who drowned on 2 September 2018 in the swimming pool of the “Gli Ulivi” residence in Orosei.

The judges instead acquitted Alessandra Gusai "for not having committed the crime" , partially reforming the first instance sentence.

In the ruling read today in Sassari, the Court presided over by Maria Teresa Lupinu confirmed the remainder of the Nuoro Court's November 2023 decision. Appeddu was also ordered to pay the costs of the appeal and those incurred by the civil parties.

In the first instance, the two spouses, she the owner and he the administrator of the accommodation facility, had been sentenced respectively to ten months and one year of imprisonment for manslaughter.

According to the prosecution, the tragedy was caused by the lack of maintenance of the pool and the absence of a protective grate on the drainage and suction nozzle where the child remained trapped.

The tragedy occurred on September 2, 2018. Richard Mulas was playing near the pool when he dived to retrieve a ball that had fallen into the water. After putting his arm into the drain, which lacked a safety grate, he became trapped underwater. Rescue and resuscitation efforts were unsuccessful.

In the appeal trial, the defendants were represented by attorneys Basilio Brodu and Adriana Brundu. The civil parties, consisting of the child's parents and sisters, were represented by attorneys Francesco Lai and Piera Pittalis.