Farewell to Don Bruno Pittau , a priest who dedicated his life to the care of souls in the parish of Sant'Ignazio da Laconi in Serramanna and in that of the Blessed Virgin of Montserrat in Samassi where he was born.
He was 90 years old. He carried out his pastoral mission with generosity, commitment, love, and fidelity to the Gospel. Three brothers, all priests: Bruno, Dino (the eldest), and Tonio (pictured) .
Bruno, along with Dino, has doggedly sought the truth about the death of Tonio, parish priest of Cagliari Cathedral, who died under mysterious circumstances in 1988. His body was found at the bottom of a cliff on an old Fiat 125. A few meters from the body, the priest's car, a white Ford Fiesta, was found destroyed with its headlights on. It is December 23rd. The previous afternoon, Don Tonio had left the Cathedral after celebrating his fiftieth birthday with his brother Dino, nuns, and missionaries. He receives a phone call, says goodbye to everyone, visibly worried, and faces a tragic fate.
There are many questions surrounding his death, and Bruno and Dino have sought answers from law enforcement and the judiciary in vain. All investigations have come to nothing. Bruno and Dino Pittau have always maintained their belief that Don Tonio was murdered . Regarding the motive, Dino told the Unione Sarda a few years ago that it could be linked to " thefts from the Cathedral museum, the Cellini plate and the display case for solemnities made of gold and containing over 1,500 diamonds ." Or "to immoral behavior" in the Cathedral.
Historian Gianfranco Murtas dedicated his book "The Bishop's Mirror. The Villamaura Case" to this tragic event, aiming to uphold the sacrosanct principles of truth and justice. Murtas waged the same battle as Don Tonio's brothers. In the same spirit, another book, recently published by Ediuni, pays homage to the memory of the Cathedral's parish priest. Journalist and author Paolo Matta wrote: "Light as a Tombstone: The Mysterious Death of Don Tonio Pittau, the "Martyr Parish Priest" of Cagliari Cathedral" (to be presented on December 9th). Who knows if all this will help reopen a case that remains an unsolved mystery. Bruno and Dino's (who died in 2023) battle has yielded no results. For them, and especially for Don Tonio, we must begin to find answers.
