Mystery of actor’s missing cat leads to claims of defamation in Italian town

Rome: An Italian actor is being investigated by prosecutors for defamation, stalking and incitement to criminal activity after allegedly implicating his neighbours in the disappearance of his cat, amid a widespread search for the feline which has caused “turbulence” among the people of a small hilltop town.

The curious case of the missing cat began in September, when Nino Frassica, who lives in the Umbrian town of Spoleto when filming Don Matteo, a Rai TV series, announced the disappearance of Hiro in a post on Instagram.

The actor offered a €5,000 (£4,300) reward for the safe return of the white male cat, leading people from across Italy to descend on the town. Some came accompanied with search dogs and drones.

The bounty was doubled in October after the search failed to yield any results, shortly before Frassica’s family and the film crew returned to Rome.

But with Hiro’s disappearance casting a shadow over the town, solidarity soon gave way to animosity, especially after two local families claimed they were accused by Frassica, his wife and her daughter of being involved in the cat’s disappearance.

Residents were also unsettled when huge posters with a photo of Hiro were mounted across Spoleto by an animal rights activist, alongside the message: “As long as a human life is worth less than a smartphone, an animal will never be considered special. Solidarity with the Frassica family.”

The investigation by local prosecutors was triggered after Frassica cited the address of one of the complainants in a video shared on social media, claiming that Hiro was being kept there.

Fabrizio Gentili, the lawyer representing the complainants, claimed the initial accusations against his clients came from Frassica’s wife and daughter, who are being investigated for the same charges. He said the women went to the complainants’ homes on suspicion the cat was inside, and got the police involved.

He claimed the campaign against his clients was then ramped up on social media after the Frassica family returned to Rome. “The video, especially, generated thousands of threatening messages,” he said.

A lawyer for the Frassica family said: “An investigation is under way, the family is not making any declarations.”

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“The situation has caused some turbulence in the town and my clients are feeling nervous – the main thing is that his wife and her daughter don’t return with him,” said Gentili.

Frassica, who has been filming Don Matteo in Spoleto for several years, is due to be given the keys of the town during a ceremony in February – a symbolic gesture bestowed to trusted friends of a place. “This is now causing controversy too; some politicians are asking for the honour to be revoked,” said Gentili.