Twenty-nine-year-old Cape Verde
native Eddy Tavares on Friday got 10 years in jail for a January
10 acid attack on his former girlfriend, ex-model Gessica
Notaro.
Prosecutors had asked for twelve years.
The judge in the case recognised the aggravating factors of
premeditation, futile motives and cruelty.
It also sentenced the Cape Verdian to pay damages of 230,000
euros to Notaro.
The judge admitted as civil plaintiff with a provisional
payment of 1,00 euros the Butterfly association, which combats
violence against women and stalking.
It also recognised the Romagna anti-violence group AUSL,
while it did not admit the town council of Rimini or the
Emilia-Romagna regional government.
Notaro, 27, is a former Miss Italy finalist and model who
worked with sea lions and dolphins at an aquarium in Rimini on
Italy's Adriatic coast.
Two weeks after being disfigured by Tavares she posted a
photo on Facebook to thank those that have supported her in
these days.
The photo showed her hands forming a heart shape and a part
of the bandages that covered her face.
"It is hard but I will make it with your help. I love you,"
she wrote.
The police arrested Tavares, whose full name is Jorge
Edson Tavares.
Notaro had reportedly taken out a harassment order against
Tavares after the pair broke up.
In less than 24 hours, Notaro's post received over 2,000
'likes' and hundreds of messages of encouragement and
solidarity.
"Gessica would like to dedicate this heart to the doctors,
nurses and all the staff of the Bufalini hospital in Cesena, and
thank once again all the friends and people who send her
greetings every day and are standing by her side," her agent,
Mauro Catalini, added to the post.
The injuries caused by the acid are improving but Notaro will
have to undergo several operations to reconstruct her skin in
the places affected the worst: her forehead and left temple and
her left eye, which she cannot see well from now.
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