Reggio Emilia, July 16, 2026 – The singer Paolo Belli is under investigation for vehicular manslaughter. A necessary act by the Reggio Emilia Prosecutor’s Office, which opened an investigation file after the death of 41-year-old Alessandro Magnani, one day after the accident that occurred Monday afternoon in Cognento di Campagnola, in the Bassa Reggiana, hit by the artist’s bicycle. “Paolo is devastated and in shock”, his entourage reports.
The hypotheses: cranial trauma after the fall or illness before the accident
The judiciary has ordered an autopsy to be performed in the coming days to clarify the causes of death. At the moment, no hypothesis is excluded, from cranial trauma after the fall to the illness that may have struck the 41-year-old shortly before being hit. According to local police reconstructions, Magnani was working for a service company in Reggio Emilia and had just delivered some notices to some homes in the area on behalf of a company that manages electricity. While he was returning to his car, the fatal event: Paolo Belli arrived, riding his racing bike, hitting him.
The alarm was immediately raised to 118, which sent an ambulance and the air ambulance that transported the 41-year-old to the Maggiore Hospital in Parma in already critical condition. The TV host known for the Rai show ‘Ballando con le Stelle’ told investigators he did not see him. Belli fell after the impact and sustained minor injuries. During the rescue operations, he sat on the ground, shocked by what happened. “How is he, how is he?” he kept repeating. Then he was taken for checks to the hospital in Guastalla where he was also subjected to routine toxicological tests, as is standard after accidents. A tragic outcome. Magnani died after a day of agony, on Tuesday afternoon. Belli’s registration in the register of suspects by the Prosecutor’s Office was inevitable.
Who is the victim, Alessandro Magnani: great sports enthusiast and volleyball coach
The 41-year-old lived alone in Canolo di Correggio, not far from the area where the accident occurred. He had no children and leaves behind his mother Pasqualina, with whom he lived until a few years ago in Reggio city. He was well known between the Bassa Reggiana and Modenese areas. He was a great sports enthusiast and was a volleyball coach. Touching are the memories from ‘Gios Volley Carpi’, that is the Goldoni women’s volleyball, later merged into Mondial Quartirolo.
“Even if you were our coach for only one year, you left us a memory that we will always carry with us. You were a kind, helpful person always ready to help us. You accompanied us with patience and a smile, making us feel like a real team,” say managers and players. He had also coached at Volley Correggio, Virtus Correggio, and now at Progetto Intesa in Cadelbosco, who remember him like this: “His energy, kindness, and professionalism will remain forever with us and in the memories of all those who had the fortune to know him and share a part of the journey with him.”
His energy, kindness, and professionalism will remain forever with us
“He was always available and with a smile”
Magnani also followed football and was a fan of Reggiana, but also of Napoli. So much so that his former athletes from the 3rd Division of Gios Carpi reveal an anecdote: “He was always available and with a smile. We want to remember him joyful on the day he came to the gym with his hair dyed blue for Napoli’s scudetto victory, his favorite team.” The funeral now awaits the clearance from the judiciary after the medical examiner’s examination to be performed at the Modena Polyclinic. But it could already take place on Saturday.
