Yesterday morning at the Pistoia Court, in front of judge Patrizia Martucci, the preliminary hearing of the proceedings concerning extortion and doping involving the professional cycling team Vini Zabù and its activities in 2021 took place.

The investigation by the Carabinieri's Nas unit in Florence, directed by prosecutor Leonardo De Gaudio, was initiated after cyclist Matteo De Bonis tested positive in an out-of-competition anti-doping control and led to the execution of twenty-four search warrants against team managers and athletes. The investigation intertwined with another inquiry started by Nas, always under the Pistoia Prosecutor's guidance, after receiving a report from the specialized Carabinieri unit in Florence from the Swiss Anti-Doping Agency, arising from anonymous reports on their dedicated platform. In these reports, cyclists allegedly described doping practices and "strong psychological pressure and harassment by management to induce them to return part of their salaries".

Yesterday, judge Martucci sent to trial Angelo Citracca, former cyclist and team general manager, charged with extortion against an athlete and attempted extortion against the athlete's wife and another athlete; Luca Scinto, currently leading the Franco Ballerini Lucchini Energy junior team, charged with extortion in conjunction with Citracca and receiving stolen goods for possessing ASL-stamped sheets used to produce medical requests for doping substances; Davide Del Sarto, former sports director of cyclist Matteo De Bonis, charged with attempted extortion in conjunction with Citracca.

Judge Martucci, however, acquitted Scinto and six other athletes accused of doping during a race in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, for lack of procedural grounds, and referred the documents related to another doping incident involving Scinto and former cyclist Liam Bertazzo to the Forlì Prosecutor's Office for territorial competence.

The trial will begin on May 22, 2026, in front of judge Jacqueline Monica Magi.