He was also accused, then acquitted, of involvement in the Bologna massacre. Ortolani had been a Brazilian citizen since 1978 and thus, when he fled to São Paulo, the Brazilian government refused to either arrest him or deport him to Italy for trial. On 21 June 1989, Ortolani decided to return to Italy and was arrested by the "Guardia di Finanza" at the Malpensa Airport. After being locked up in a Milanese prison, he paid a 600 million lire bail fee and after a week was released. On 28 January 1994, Ortolani was sentenced to four years imprisonment for bankruptcy in the context of the management of Rizzoli, of which he had been a director.