The Wonderful Story of Amerigo Dumini

The following story is not something I invented. It is just the (very funny) story of a man who actually existed during the fascist era, someone who might be the perfect representation of a (substantial?) part of my country. I first heard about him in a lecture by Barbero, in which the professor masterfully tells the events surrounding the murder of Matteotti

Amerigo Dumini, the man who heroically took full responsibility for the murder of Giacomo Matteotti in 1924. The Fascist Party applauded his “noble sacrifice” with praise and he became the perfect scapegoat to wash Mussolini’s hands clean.

Convicted of involuntary manslaughter (yes, somehow involuntary), he walked out of prison in 1925 almost before the ink was dry on the sentence. Reward? A mountain of cash and a cozy monthly pension of 5,000 lire. Not bad for a murder.

But Amerigo wasn’t satisfied. He started shopping around his memoirs to an American publisher and whispering that while he got 5 years (never served), Mussolini deserved 30! Oops, arrested again. This time for illegal possession of a firearm. One year and two months. But no worries, the King (yes, the King too) pardoned him.

Off he went to Somalia, where he was arrested again and sent into exile. From there, he wrote to General De Bono, hinting that his memoir contained “certain compromising details.” Magically, he was freed and sent to Libya, where state contracts and money poured in. A true entrepreneur of silence.

Then WWII broke out. The British invaded. Dumini, staying behind, was mistaken for a spy and sentenced to death. He survived 17 gunshots (seventeen!). Like a fascist Rasputin, he escaped, returned to Italy, and was welcomed back as a hero.

In 1947, post-fascism, the republic gave the Matteotti case another look. Life sentence for his murders? No problem. Thanks to Togliatti’s amnesty, it became 30 years. And thanks to Pella’s amnesty in 1953, he was free after only 6 years! Then jailed again when the pardon was revoked. And then freed again in 1956 (wtf??).

Amerigo Dumini finally died in 1967 at age 73, not from bullets, trials, or exile, but from tripping in his house while playing with his dog.

For anyone interested… Unlike Germany, Italy never had its own Nuremberg Trials. In Italy, the fascists simply claimed they were no longer fascists and went on to hold new government positions (not all of them but too many).

Dal paese del Barocco al paese dei balocchi è un attimo (it doesn’t work very well in English).