A court in Genoa has sentenced former Autostrade per l'Italia chief executive Giovanni Castellucci to 12 years in prison on Monday over the 2018 Morandi Bridge collapse that killed 43 people.

The verdict was delivered by an Italian court after a long-running trial involving 57 defendants

Italian media reported that he didn’t attend the hearing because he is already serving a six-year prison sentence in a separate case related to a fatal viaduct collapse in southern Italy in 2013. Castellucci was convicted of complicity in multiple counts of negligent homicide. The ruling was closely followed by relatives of the victims, along with lawyers, journalists and members of the public.

Some family members broke down in tears after the decision was announced, while others said they needed time to process the outcome.

During the trial, prosecutors argued that years of inadequate maintenance, ignored safety warnings and repeated delays to essential repair work had led to the collapse.

They also alleged that necessary maintenance was postponed while the operating company prioritized profits.

The case stems from the collapse of the Morandi Bridge on the eve of a national holiday in August 2018, when a roughly 50-metre section of the 51-year-old structure gave way, sending about 35 vehicles plunging onto warehouses and a riverbed below. Forty-three people lost their lives in the disaster.

Defense lawyers, however, disputed those claims, arguing that the tragedy was caused by a design flaw in one of the bridge's suspension cables rather than maintenance failures.

The first-instance ruling can still be challenged through Italy's appeals process. (ILKHA)