Overview

• Carabinieri detained 28-year-old Gaetano Maranzano, who admitted responsibility and claimed he lost control after alleging prior harassment of his partner.
• The victim, Paolo Taormina, was intervening to halt a group assault near his family’s pub in Piazza Spinuzza by the Teatro Massimo.
• Authorities ordered an autopsy to confirm cause of death and the weapon used, with early accounts of a close-range head shot still unverified.
• Investigators are analyzing surveillance video from nearby venues and taking witness statements to establish the sequence of events.
• Local reports say Maranzano posted a TikTok clip after the killing that referenced a mafia-themed TV drama, and a candlelight vigil is planned from Politeama to the Teatro Massimo and the pub ’O Scruscio in the Champagneria district.