Prosecutors in Turin have reportedly opened an investigation after the lead singer of rock band Placebo insulted Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni during a concert.
The LaPresse and ANSA news agencies said the investigation into alleged “vilification” stemmed from a report by police about the comments by British singer Brian Molko during a performance at the Sonic Park Festival in Stupinigi, near Turin on July 11.
LaPresse reported that as of Monday, Molko had not been placed under investigation.
According to a mobile phone video circulating on social media, Moko said in Italian: “Giorgia Meloni: piece of (expletive); fascist, racist (expletive).”
Emails and calls to Turin prosecutors seeking confirmation were not immediately returned. Facebook and Instagram messages left on Placebo’s official accounts went unanswered on Wednesday.
Members of Ms Meloni’s Brothers of Italy party, which has its roots in Italy’s neo-fascist movement, denounced the insults and demanded an apology.
“We cannot let an international event that attracts so many people (to Italy) be ruined by filthy words which, amidst a general silence, aim to attack the institutions of the republic,” LaPresse quoted Brothers of Italy politician Augusta Montaruli as saying.
