Milan crash pilot 'a desperate man'

Reports say the building may open in the next few days

Italian detectives are investigating the financial affairs of an elderly Swiss pilot who crashed his light aircraft into Milan's largest skyscraper, killing three people.

Police said that the pilot, Luigi Fasulo, may have deliberately aimed his plane at the Pirelli building because he was "desperate" after apparently being cheated out of 1.75 million euros ($1.55m) by an associate.

The hypothesis of an accident and that of a suicide are now equally valid

Giuseppe De Angelis

Two other possible causes for the crash are being considered- illness on the part of the 68-year-old pilot, or technical problems with the plane - but the suicide theory is gathering pace.

Fasulo was among three people killed on Thursday when his plane crashed into the skyscraper, sparking fears of another terror attack similar to 11 September.

Italian authorities have since ruled out terrorism.

But they say they cannot exclude the possibility that the crash was deliberate as Fasulo was an experienced pilot and the plane smashed into the centre of the building.

Mr Fasulo may have had financial problems

In nationally televised comments on Saturday, Giuseppe De Angelis, a deputy chief of the Milan police, said: "We don't exclude the hypothesis that he committed suicide over the scam of his economic ups and downs, which we are trying to shed light on."

He said Fasulo was "a desperate man" and that the hypothesis of an accident and that of a suicide were now "equally valid".

The suicide theory was apparently first raised by the pilot's son, who was quoted by the Rome daily newspaper La Repubblica as saying his father may have killed himself because he had been defrauded.

But reports say that the son, Marco, has denied making these comments.

'Fraud'

According to Saturday's edition of La Repubblica, Milan police have confirmed that until last year, they had been trailing an international organisation specialising in circulating forged and stolen bank cheques.

	Pilot Luigi Fasulo reports problem with landing gear Plane hits Pirelli tower starting fire in top floors Building evacuated, fires quickly controlled  Crash timeline

Fasulo was part of this investigation as one of the victims of the fraud, in which he was allegedly swindled by a business associate, police said.

La Repubblica said investigators had confirmed that Fasulo and one of his sons had tried to contact the police on the day of the crash in connection with the fraud.

Adding to the mystery, the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera reported that Marco Fasulo had contacted the police later that afternoon saying that he had been threatened and followed.

Two floors of the building in the heart of Milan's financial district were badly damaged when the single-engine Commander 112 aircraft smashed into it.

But reports say parts of the building could reopen in the next few days.

	The Pirelli tower: 123 metres (403 ft) high 30 stories Chief architect Gio Ponti Built 1955-59 One of the world's highest concrete buildings

The first 11 floors of the building, which houses offices for the Lombardy regional government, could re-open on Monday, Roberto Formigoni, head of the local government, was quoted by Reuters news agency as saying.

After the impact, the top floors of the 30-storey Pirelli building caught fire, but the blaze was quickly brought under control.

The plane, which Swiss air traffic controllers said was a single-engine Rockwell Commander 112, took off from Locarno at 1715 (1515GMT) on Thursday.

It was bound for Milan's Linate airport, but as the pilot neared the city, he told air traffic controllers he was having problems with his landing gear.

Fasulo was told to head west, but for unknown reasons veered north, telling the airport that he was fixing the problem.

He lost contact and did not send a distress call before hitting the skyscraper.