Today 20 June 2024, in the morning, in the central Piazza Cairoli of Messina, the dedication ceremony of the Carabinieri Barracks of the Messina Archbishop’s Station to the Ordinary Marshal Francesco Bonanno took place, decorated with the Silver Medal for Military Valor “Alla Memoria” .
The ceremony, organized by the Provincial Carabinieri Command of Messina in agreement with the Municipal Administration, took place in the presence of the Interregional Carabinieri Commander “Culqualber”, General of the Army Corps Giovanni Truglio, as the highest military office and Top Authority of the Carabinieri, accompanied by the Commander of the Carabinieri Legion “Sicilia”, General of Division Giuseppe Spina, as well as the Prefect Cosima Di Stani, the Metropolitan Mayor, Dr. Federico Basile, and the other civil, military and religious authorities of the province . Also taking part in the event, with their respective Labari, were representatives of the fighting and military associations of the province, as well as of the National Carabinieri Association, custodian of the memory and military traditions that inspire the force, as evidence of the relationship inseparable that binds it to the territory and to the institutions. Present at the important event were his daughter, as godmother of the ceremony, as well as the wife of the soldier after whom the Barracks was named, Ordinary Marshal MAVM Francesco Bonanno, who joined the Army in 1953 and fell into service on 17 July 1974, at at the age of 40, when he held the position of Commander of the Santo Stefano Medio station, during a firefight with a criminal which occurred in the Messina hamlet of Mili San Pietro.
During the ceremony, in the square in front of the Carabinieri Station of Messina Arcivescovado, an Honor Unit was deployed, composed of the Fanfare of the 12th Carabinieri Regiment “Sicilia”, a Carabinieri Honor Guard in Special Large Uniform, with the traditional lamp with plume, and by a Platoon of Station Commanders, an essential garrison of the Army present throughout the province and throughout the national territory. The Banner of the Municipality of Messina, decorated with the Gold Medal for Military and Civil Valour, and that of the Metropolitan City, will also participate. Among the solemn phases that marked the ceremony, of particular significance was the moment in which the Mayor of Messina Federico Basile donated the National Flag to the Carabinieri Station which, after the blessing imparted by Don Rosario Scibilia, Military Chaplain of the Carabinieri of Sicily Eastern, was delivered to the Commander of the Station Lieutenant CS Gaetano Ilacqua who hoisted it during the flag-raising ceremony. Subsequently, the plaque in honor of the MAVM Ordinary Marshal Francesco Bonanno was unveiled by the daughter of the decorated soldier, accompanied by the authorities of the Carabinieri, the Prefect Cosima Di Stani and the Mayor.
The motivation with which the honor was granted, engraved on the commemorative plaque, was then read:
“Detached Station Commander, during an operation aimed at capturing a dangerous wanted man who had barricaded himself in his house and was threatening to kill his wife, broke down the door to allow the officer next to him to throw a tear gas canister inside. Finding himself facing the prisoner in the act of firing a hunting rifle, he pushed his superior aside to protect his safety, and was fatally shot. Luminous example of chosen virtues and generous altruism.”
