VITERBO – Friends of the two CasaPound members accused of rape may be liable to charges of aiding and abetting if they deleted a video of the crime, according to investigations by Il Fatto Quotidiano.

 Videos and photos of the rape of 36-year old woman were shared on a Whatsapp group of the Blocco Studentesco, the youth branch of the neofascist group CasaPound.

 When it became clear that the crime was being investigated by the police, there were attempts to get all members of the group to delete the videos and then the entire “conversation” itself.

 Franceso Chiricozzi, 19, and Riccardo Licci, 21, are accused of rape at the Old Manners bar in Vitbero, a notorious right-wing hotspot. The former was a city councillor for CasaPound.

 Licci’s father was on the Whatsapp group and added to the instructions. “Riccardo, throw the phone away immediately,” he urged.

The investigating judge explained: “Examination of the messages received on Whatsapp by Riccardo Licci…show that the abhorrent images of group sexual violence, which have the clear intention of further mocking the poor woman and which exhibit such a crime as if it were a trophy, were shared with third parties. These included Licci’s father.”

 The case has caused controversy in government, with Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini advocating chemical castration but his counterpart Luigi Di Maio maintaining “prison is the only solution.”

 Earlier in the week, Salvini came under criticism for choosing a publishing house for his new book which close links to CasaPound.

 CasaPound has distanced itself from Chiricozzi and Licci, and both were expelled from the group.

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