The Judge for Preliminary Investigations of Trento rejected the request for dismissal of Maurizio Fugatti, president of the Province of Trento, regarding the cruel killing of the M90 bear. The provision, filed on 7 November 2025, recognizes serious circumstantial elements to proceed with the forced indictment within ten days. The investigation also involves two provincial officials, held responsible for physically carrying out the demolition.
The ordinance is clear: as reported by ENPA, the animal was not drugged before the killing, despite it being radio-collared and therefore perfectly traceable. During the operation three shots were fired, but only two reached the target, causing no immediate death. The autopsy then confirmed that M90 bled to death, after a long agony caused by internal bleeding.
The accusation of cruelty and violations of protocol
According to the investigating judge, the method of intervention was not only unnecessary, but it violated the precautions of the PACOBACE protocol, which provides for the mandatory presence of a veterinarian. The absence of this figure has led to avoidable suffering, making the crime of killing an animal with cruelty configurable pursuant to art. 544-bis of the penal code.
The court’s decision comes after the Public Prosecutor’s request for dismissal, strongly contested by ENPA, which for months had been asking for justice for the M90 bear. For the association, the indictment represents a decisive step for the protection of wildlife in Italy.
Enpa’s reactions and the symbolic value of the case
Ivana Sandri, ethologist and president of Enpa of Rovereto, spoke of a “act of justice due“for an animal killed “in an atrocious and unnecessary way”. Even Carla Rocchi, national president, defined the ordinance as “a historical turning point”, recalling how for years the autonomous Province of Trento has managed the presence of bears and wolves with “levity and lack of transparency”.
M90, a young specimen of about two and a half years old, was shot down in February 2024 after being judged “dangerous” due to his excessive familiarity with humans. His death, however, according to forensic experts Cristina Cattaneo and Orlando Paciello, was marked by exploding bullets of 30.06 caliber, which caused the fatal hemorrhage. For Enpa, this story does not just concern a bear, but “the right of wild animals not to die needlessly”.
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