German bioweapons experts are supposed to solve the mystery of poison murder

Campobasso (Italy) – Was her murderer sitting at the table? Was he watching her get closer to death with every spoonful? Seven months after 15-year-old Sara Di Vita was poisoned with ricin at Christmas dinner in Italy, there is a new investigation into the case.

On Thursday, the house where the family of the long-time mayor of the small municipality of Pietracatella in the south of the country lived was examined again. This time, experts from Germany are supposed to solve the mystery of the murder of the girl and her mother!

Scientists traveled with BKA officials an

The residential area around the property has been cordoned off since the morning, as the Italian news agency Ansa reported. Accordingly, only employees of the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) in Berlin are allowed to enter the crime scene together with the public prosecutor.

The specialists could be seen on television covered from head to toe in white protective clothing. According to BILD information, these include Dr. Christian Herzog, head of the Center for Biological Hazards at the RKI, and the ricin researcher Dr. Be Sylvia Worbs. The German scientists traveled to Italy at the beginning of the week, accompanied by BKA-officials.

The deadly poison is difficult to contain find

After so long, can they still find traces of the deadly Gifts? According to reports, among other things, the drains in the house were examined. Samples taken should be brought to Germany and evaluated there. Apparently the investigators have already reconstructed the crime, but there is a lack of crucial evidence.

Ricin is difficult to detect, but is all the more deadly: just a pinch of the powder is enough to cause a person’s organs to fail. The symptoms after Christmas dinner were similar to those of food poisoning. The 15-year-old died a few days later, her mother Antonella (†50) died shortly afterwards. Father Giovanni Di Vita (55) became seriously ill but survived. A toxicology test was negative for him. It was only two months later that forensic scientists found traces of the poison in his daughter’s blood and on one of his wife’s hair.

Father apparently had enemies

The motive is unclear, since it is not even certain whether all family members were killed intentionally. An older daughter, Alice (19), was not present at the meal. The focus would also be on public conflicts from the former mayor’s two terms in office. The former politician apparently had enemies in the village of 1,200 residents. More than 200 witnesses have been interviewed there in the past few months, some even several times in a row.