Threats signed with a swastika sent to the director and other journalists of La7 news programme

The anonymous letter was signed “Boia chi molla”. Besides Enrico Mentana, Floris, Formigli, Damilano, Gruber, Giannini and Fanuele were also insulted.

On the 16th January 2019 the journalist Enrico Mentana, director of the Tg La7, announced that he had received a letter containing insults and threats against him and other journalists: Giovanni Floris, Corrado Formigli, Massimo Giannini, Marco Damilano, Lilli Gruber and Francesca Fanuele. The anonymous letter, written in block letters, was signed “Boia chi mollaa!” and with a swastika. Enrico Mentana published it on Instagram. The text read: “Soon we will punish you, we know everything about you, punishing you is a duty”, La7 is a “receptacle of communists”.

The letter was delivered ten days after the neo-Fascist attack on journalist Federico Marconi of L’Espresso and photographer Paolo Marchetti, during the commemoration of the fallen of Acca Laurentia in Rome, near the Verano cemetery. The news of the incident had a major impact.

Mentana has received many expressions of support including from the world of politics. Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte in a note commented: “The intimidation directed at the director Mentana is a cowardly and unspeakable act. The threats to those who practice journalism are unacceptable in themselves but also because they constitute a serious attack on the freedom of the press “. Conte said he was very worried because this episode came so soon after that of the attack on the reporters of L’Espresso.

RDM (wt)