The investigation is considered "complex and delicate": After torture allegations against prison guards, the Italian prosecutor investigates a media report against 15 law enforcement officials.
According to La Repubblica newspaper, prison officials in San Gimignano, northern Italy, allegedly mistreated a Tunisian prison inmate. The public prosecutor in Siena accuses the officials of having beaten and humiliated the prisoner last year.
Four of the guards are said to have already been released from duty last week. According to the media report, the prosecution relies on recordings from surveillance cameras and testimony from other prisoners.
According to the human rights group Antigone, these are the first torture investigations. Torture in Italy has been a separate offense since 2017, so police or other public servants face imprisonment of five to 12 years.