Italian footballer jailed for beating ex-girlfriend to death

An Italian footballer, who stalked and beat his ex-girlfriend to death with a hammer week after he was reported for stalking, has been jailed for life.

Giovanni Padovani, 28, who played for Sancataldese as a centre-back, was on Monday (February 12) handed a life sentence for murdering his former partner, Alessandra Matteuzzi, 56, outside her home on August 23, 2022, Daily Mail reported.

Alessandra was reportedly speaking with her sister, Stefania, over the phone when Stefania heard her screams as Padovani, also a former model, fatally assaulted her.

Padovani used various objects including a hammer, his fists, a baseball bat, and eventually a bench he had taken from a nearby garden. He had travelled to Bologna, northern Italy, and waited outside her property after being advised by his team to skip a training session.

He ambushed Alessandra, launching a brutal attack that Stefania overheard during their phone call. Stefania recounted to a local TV station: “She got out of her car and started screaming, ‘No Giovanni, no, I beg you, help.’ I immediately called the (police) who arrived straight away.”