Bologna 21 May 2024 – “Sofia was one transparent girlwho gave everything for life and for friendship”. With his voice moved and broken, still shocked by what happened on Thursday afternoon, Francesco Schiavoneowner of ‘Il Mio Bar by Fra’ in Anzola, retraces the stages of his relationship with Sofia Stefani, the traffic warden killed by officer Giampiero Gualandi, who shot her in the face.
Sofia Stefani and Francesco Schiavone
Schiavone, when did you meet Sofia?
“It’s a long-standing friendship, you think we met twenty-five years ago.”
Where?
“Before, I worked in a bar in Zola Predosa, Sofia’s town. And that’s where we met, because she came to have breakfast where I worked together with her mother.”
What was the security guard like?
“She was a cheerful girl, always with a smile on her face; a sweet and helpful person.”
When did you last see her?
“I saw her about twenty days ago, for the last time. She was normal, I didn’t notice anything strange or different: Sofia was always the same.”
Meaning what?
“She was a person who was always on the run, a girl who never stopped, always on the move.”
Did he love his job?
“She absolutely loved him. She always followed her dream, even managing to achieve it. Joining the local police force has always been a passion of hers. She had made it, Sofia. And then…”.
Then it was precisely that uniform that took her life away.
“Yes, a terrible thing.”
What idea did he have?
“I don’t know how it happened, nor what the truth is behind this tragedy. I only know that Sofia was a very good, transparent girl.”
Had you ever heard of Gualandi, the agent who killed her?
“Never. I’ve never heard of him, not even as a colleague or superior. And this is in fact what shocks us the most, that is, the fact that we know nothing at all.”
Have you heard from the family?
“I only heard from the mother, we only exchanged two messages. I only know her boyfriend Stefano by sight. I know they were together for a long time.”
Do you have any particular memories stuck in your mind?
“There isn’t one scene in particular, you could see that she loved me. She was a girl who gave her all to friendships and to life.”
