Two Italian citizens on board a smaller vessel were killed in the incident in June 2021.
ADVERTISEMENTTwo German tourists have been convicted of manslaughter over a fatal boat crash on Lake Garda in Italy.
Patrick Kassen and Christian Teismann were both found guilty of causing the nighttime accident in June last year and leaving the scene.
The crash killed an Italian couple, who were on board a smaller vessel after spending part of the evening earlier with friends at the lake's shore.
Umberto Garzarella, 37, was found dead in the wooden boat while the body of 25-year-old Greta Nedrotti was found two days later by divers.
Prosecutors alleged that the two tourists from Munich were drunk and had been speeding in the boat.
Before the trial, Kassen had claimed that he didn’t realise there had been a collision. He had been put under house arrest since July.
Kassen, who was allegedly at the helm of the Germans’ motorboat, was sentenced to 4 years and 6 months in prison. Teismann, who had insisted he was asleep during the incident, was also sentenced to 2 years and 11 months. Both men have indicated they will appeal the Brescia court decision.
The Germans’ insurers have paid the families nearly €3 million but Garzarella’s father has said no amount of money can bring his son back.
“Only the two Germans know what happened that night, drunk or not, I cannot judge,″ Enzo Garzarella told Italian reporters after the verdict on Monday.
"They’ll have their conscience all their life. This sorrow will remain with them as it will remain with me.”