Family of Italian woman who 'mysteriously' died in Scotland demands fresh inquiry two years later

Ms Rastelli was found dead by a flatmate on the morning of August 2, 2017, in her flat in Murano Street in the north of Glasgow. Picture: Google

Prosecutors in Rome have been asked to re-investigate what happened to Debora Rastelli, 25, two years after her death.

Scottish police said there were no grounds to suspect foul play, but Ms Rastelli's family are not satisfied with the outcome and insist there are "absolutely suspicious and mysterious circumstances" around the case.

Ms Rastelli was found dead by a flatmate on the morning of August 2, 2017, in her flat in Murano Street in the north of Glasgow.

Originally from the small town of Cossato in north-west Italy, she had moved to Scotland around a year earlier to learn English and find work.

Last week her family's lawyer formally lodged a petition with the Procura della Repubblica, the Italian equivalent of Scotland's Crown Office, demanding an independent inquiry.

Ms Rastelli's mother, Maria Angela Rastelli, slammed Scottish investigators claiming they failed to explain why they did not treat her daughter's death as a crime.

According to the Italian online newspaper Corriere Quotidiano, she said: "Debora was my only daughter, a healthy girl who was careful about her lifestyle and had no health problems of any kind.

"At a distance of two years after her mysterious death, I still have no peace of mind over how my poor daughter could have died."

The Scottish authorities, Mrs Rastelli added, "have not provided any official declaration about the death of my daughter aside from verbally ruling out foul play".

She said the Scottish police had failed to find a "shred of evidence" or a "single certain fact" to explain their finding that Ms Rastelli's death was not suspicious.

Mr Lauretta presented both a petition and a dossier of documents to prosecutors in Rome.

According to Italian news agencies, the petition states that Scottish authorities "hurriedly closed the case" without addressing "the many doubts" it raised.

Mrs Rastelli, meanwhile, also criticised Scottish authorities for taking too long, in her view, to pass on personal effects.

They had done so with "no small resistance", she alleged.

"No further investigation was required"

A brief local news story in Cossato about Ms Rastelli's funeral, on August 19, 2017, said she had "probably died as a result of a sudden illness".

Scotland does not automatically have public inquiries into sudden or unexpected deaths.

The Procurator Fiscal has to investigate them all and decides whether there is any evidence of criminality or any need for a full public hearing - a fatal accident inquiry.

The Crown Office said they were unable to comment on proceedings outwith their jurisdiction.

A Crown Office spokesman said: "The death of a 25-year-old woman in Glasgow on 2 August 2017 was investigated by Police Scotland under the direction of Scottish Fatalities Investigation Unit (SFIU).

"After careful consideration of the facts and circumstances of the case, the Procurator Fiscal concluded that no further investigation was required.

"Every enquiry from the Italian authorities was answered within a short timescale and the family were kept updated throughout the course of the investigation and assistance provided where appropriate."

Police Scotland has been contacted for comment.