Rome, May 26 - The parents of Roma former ultra Daniele De Santis, who was sentenced on Tuesday to 26 years for killing Napoli fan Ciro Esposito, said Thursday their son's conviction was a sham. "It was a solely media and symbolic conviction, which had been decided on long before the trial began," the De Santis family said in an open letter ANSA has seen. De Santis shot Esposito during a melee before the 2014 Italian Cup final between Napoli and Fiorentina. Esposito died 53 days later. De Santis was wounded in the melee and one of his legs is still immobilized in a steel contraption two years after the fact. Doctors amputated 15 centimeters of necrotic bone three months ago, and he may lose the entire leg, his parents wrote. He has argued he acted in self-defence while being chased by a mob of Napoli supporters.