A barman has been found dead after he took part in a shamanic ceremony.
Alex Marangon, 26, was one of 20 people who attended the two-day spiritual gathering at the Abbey of Santa Bona in Vidor, north Italy, on June 29 to June 30.
Other people at the event reported Alex ran off at 3am on June 30 leaving his car, phone and documents behind.
He ran into some gardens barefoot next to the abbey where the ceremony was held on the banks of the Piave river.
Before this he drank a hallucinogenic tea made from a South American plant which is illegal in Italy and he was reported missing at 6am.
His body was eventually found on July 3 from a helicopter a few kilometres downstream of the Piave river.
Italian prosecutors say he was ‘beaten’ to death before his body was dumped in the river.
This is because his autopsy found he had injuries to his skull and ribs which caused internal bleeding after being beaten with a blunt object, according to Il Messaggero.
It has left investigators concluding that Alex was killed by more than one person and then thrown into the river.
Death from a fall into the river or suicide has been ruled out because of the distribution of wounds and bruises across his body and internal bleeding in the chest.
A forensic pathologist said: ‘The young man was severely beaten – with several blows, some even to the head, with a blunt object.’
Lawyer Nicodemo Gentile who is assisting the Marangon family told L’Unione Sarda that the examination of Alex’s body ‘renders a disturbing picture, that of a powerful, elusive attack during a struggle which does not fit well with the case.
‘There is no reason – or reasons to believe in suicide or anything else.’
Toxicological tests are yet to be released so it is not yet known whether Alex was under the influence of drugs when he died.
Everybody who was at the ceremony will now be questioned by police because everything is known except for Alex’s whereabouts between 3am and 6am.
His family said in a statement to the people who attended the ceremony to ‘speak up’ because ‘more people know what happened’.
His mum Sabrina said: ‘He was a brilliant young man, a lover of life. He would never have left like this.
‘My son would not have disappeared into thin air, he was full of dreams and desires.
‘And above all, he wouldn’t have left without his mobile phone.’
Alex was from Macron close by to Venice and police will also investigate if he was involved in satanic cults.
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