An appeals court judge sentenced
aspiring writer Daniele Ughetto Pianpaschet on Tuesday to 25
years and six months in jail for the murder of a Nigerian
prostitute, a crime that prosecutors say Pianpaschet described
in a book manuscript found in his home.
Pianpaschet was originally acquitted for the crime in a
2014 trial in which he proclaimed his innocence and said that
the victim, Anthonia Egbuna, was an ex-girlfriend with whom he
had remained friends.
Egbuna's body was found in the Po River in February 2012,
and investigators say she was killed in November 2011.
Prosecutor Antonio Malagnino said Pianpaschet killed Egbuna
out of jealousy.
Police became suspicious when they found Piampaschet's
manuscript for a short story that echoed the circumstances of
Egbuna's death.
They think that Piampaschet became obsessively jealous of
her clients.
Police say mobile phone records show Piampaschet called
Egbuna approximately 1,600 times - the last on the day they
think she was murdered.
Italian media have been quick to draw comparisons to the
Hollywood movie Basic Instinct, in which actor Sharon Stone's
character describes an ice-pick murder in a novel which is then
committed in real life, making her the prime suspect.
Piampaschet denied the charges and said Egbuna was killed
by her Nigerian pimps after trying to escape sex work.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © Copyright ANSA
