Group stalking, a breakthrough in the Bruzzone case: actions in Rome and a web that goes back a long way

A notification arrives on the cell phone: it’s a group chat. Inside, a mosaic of sexual allusions, photo montages with a face glued onto bodies that don’t match, threatening and harassing phrases. It is an excerpt from a file that, according to investigators, tells of a persecutory campaign lasting at least three years. Today, the Prosecutor's Office of Cagliari has concluded the investigative phase and stamped an investigation closure notice signed by prosecutor Gilberto Ganassi: in the register of suspects is criminologist Roberta Bruzzone, accused of group stalking in collaboration with three other individuals; the victims are colleague Elisabetta Sionis and her minor daughter. The documents – including the chat transcripts – will be sent to the Prosecutor's Office of Rome for territorial jurisdiction. The rest is a map of relationships, trials, convictions, and dismissals that, as often happens in judicial news, do not fit into a single newspaper headline.

What the closure notice says: the names, the hypotheses, the route to Rome

According to what has been reconstructed, the Prosecutor's Office of Cagliari has closed the investigations against Roberta Bruzzone, hypothesizing the crime of persecutory acts in collaboration, to the detriment of Elisabetta Sionis – forensic psychologist, now judge of the Juvenile Court of Cagliari – and her minor daughter. The closure notice signed by prosecutor Gilberto Ganassi has been sent to the Prosecutor's Office of Rome for jurisdiction, containing the chat transcripts which – according to journalistic reconstruction – would document the agreements that preceded the online attacks. The other three suspects are also mentioned in the document: Monica Demma, Marzia Mosca, and Giovanni Langella.

Investigators hypothesize a persecutory campaign lasting at least three years, consisting of sexual allusions, “photo montages of the victim's face”, and threatening messages. The conversations, it is read in the journalistic summary, would have taken place in group chats and on social media, with a repeated script of content and relaunches. It is important to remember that these are hypotheses of crime and that the suspects enjoy the presumption of innocence until a final sentence.

A thread leading to 2017: the context and the spark of the Pitzalis case

The story – according to the reconstruction – dates back to 2017 and intertwines with one of the most controversial cases of crime news in recent years: the death of Manuel Piredda and the serious burns suffered by his ex-wife Valentina Pitzalis. In this context, disputes, defamation suits, and counter-suits have accumulated, creating a backdrop of fierce public and judicial opposition. A hearing on June 17, 2025 in Cagliari – reports the publication La Nuova Sardegna – saw Roberta Bruzzone in court in a different proceeding for defamation as the injured party, confirming a short circuit of cross-accusations among professionals, family members, and figures surrounding the controversial Pitzalis case.

The judicial precedent: the conviction of Lipari and the expanding picture

In the framework outlined by the documents, a significant precedent emerges: the first-degree conviction of Lucio Carmelo Lipari to two years for stalking against Elisabetta Sionis. The case – followed by the Sardinian press – shed light on a method: the systematic use of social media to attack the reputation, private life, and family peace of the victim, with posts, videos, and alleged fake profiles. An investigation by L’Unione Sarda on June 30, 2024 clearly depicted that context: the Cagliari criminologist Sionis “in the crosshairs” of a network of stalkers who allegedly exposed data, details, and insinuations to “destroy the public image” and attack private life. 

In the background, a social galaxy that has appeared in more than one trial: closed chats where content is planned, pages that chase each other, profiling, and photo montages that turn a person's life into a cruel spectacle. It is precisely the transcripts of those conversations that have been included in the file now sent to Rome, along with the names of the other three suspects. 

Bruzzone's version: “Bad words, yes. But I was exasperated. And I am the victim”

In the telephone interview, signed by journalist Viola Giannoli for la Repubblica, Roberta Bruzzone announces her stance: she rejects the label of stalker, explains the expression "she deserves a bad thing" as a vent - not a threat or incitement - and claims the state of mind of someone who, according to her, has been subjected to a defaming campaign for years. It is the counter-narrative that the criminologist reiterates even in her Facebook posts: she presents herself as a privileged target of "online hate", insults, toxic montages, and fake news, calling to witness a long history of complaints and trials in which she has often constituted injured party. The broader context is that of digital violence that often spills over into real life.

This is not the first time that Bruzzone publicly recounts feeling exposed to threats and persecution: in interviews over the past few years, she has denounced a climate of hate fueled by social media and stated that she has suffered campaigns of defamation and even threats of physical assault. A parallel thread - and in many ways a mirror - that feeds her thesis: her verbal excesses would be improper reactions but placed within a framework of personal and professional exasperation.

Who is Elisabetta Sionis, the colleague at the center of the case

The figure of Elisabetta Sionis is crucial to understanding the genealogy of this conflict. A Sardinian criminologist, forensic psychologist with a background as a honorary judge at the Juvenile Court of Cagliari, she has herself become the subject of proceedings in which she has constituted injured party for stalking and defamation via social media. This aspect has produced, over time, measures and rulings that have been called into question in Appeal for reasons of jurisdiction: today, part of those documents is destined for a new evaluation in the Roman courts. Her institutional profile — and the related implications on territorial jurisdiction — is one of the technical knots that have just reshuffled the cards.

What happens now: timelines, decisions, guarantees

The transmission of the documents to the Prosecutor's Office of Rome opens a new phase. For the defense, it will involve accessing the documents, examining the chats, and – if deemed necessary – submitting briefs or requesting supplementary documents. For the prosecution, the goal will be to assess whether to file a request for indictment, seek dismissal, or explore further investigations. The timing will depend on the complexity of the case and the strategies of the parties. The fundamental principle remains intact: the presumption of innocence of the suspects until final judgment.