Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini was found not guilty in a criminal kidnapping case dating back to August 2019, when he barred a migrant vessel from docking in the country, leaving it stranded offshore.
The ruling judge said Friday that “the facts do not exist.”
The case dates back to when Salvini was interior minister in 2019. He had prohibited the Spanish-flagged Open Arms NGO rescue boat from docking in Sicily with 147 asylum seekers, leaving migrants at sea under stifling hot conditions for 19 days before a Sicilian court intervened and ruled they could be brought to shore.
Children and vulnerable people onboard were air-lifted to safety throughout the ordeal.
At the time, Salvini cited national security concerns, amid government efforts to crack down on irregular immigration by sea into Italy.
The case drew international attention after American actor Richard Gere, who was vacationing in Italy at the time, took food and water out to the stranded migrant vessel. Gere was also named as a witness, but did not testify in person or writing after objections from Salvini’s defense, led by Giulia Bongiorno, who is also a member of Salvini’s Lega party.
On Thursday, Elon Musk posted on X that it was “crazy” that Salvini was being tried for “defending Italy.”
Salvini responded: “Thank you for your solidarity, @elonmusk. Defending Italy’s borders was my duty, and I am proud of what I accomplished. Whether I am convicted or acquitted, our fight for FREEDOM and SECURITY in Italy and Europe will continue.” Musk responded: “You did the right thing.”
Before nearly eight hours of deliberation, prosecutor Marzia Sabella told the court that Salvini had exceeded his powers as interior minister. “There were no national security reasons preventing disembarkation,” she told the panel of judges.
Salvini spoke with reporters outside the courthouse in Palermo before the final hearing. “I am absolutely proud of what I did. I kept the promises I made, I fought mass immigration and, whatever the sentence, for me today is a good day because I am proud to have defended my country,” he said, adding, “I would do everything I did again.”
The verdict comes as Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government fights to send migrants to Albania to be processed, a scheme which has been blocked by the judiciary. The legality of the Albanian Centers, which cost Italian taxpayers millions of euros, is now to be considered by the European Court of Justice.