Padua, gang of very young people held responsible for assaults and robberies busted
At the end of the activity, the two arrested in execution of the precautionary custody order were associated with the Padua District Prison, at the disposal of the Judicial Authority.
Padua, gang of very young people held responsible for assaults and robberies busted
The Carabinieri of the Investigative Unit of the Operational Department of the Provincial Command of Padua, in collaboration with colleagues from the Piove di Sacco Company (Padua), following a complex investigation coordinated by the Public Prosecutor's Office of Padua and the Juvenile Prosecutor's Office of Venice, they executed a custodial order issued by the investigating judge of the Padua Tribunal against two 23-year-old Moroccan citizens residents in Fossò (VE), following a serious circumstantial evidence relating to a series of robberies against private citizens, committed in the industrial area of Padua, between the months of June and July, for which 7 other people are also under investigation in various capacities, 6 of whom are minors, whose position is being examined by the respective Judicial Authorities.
In particular, the investigative elements acquired by the military of the Arma through the identifications made by the injured parties, the analysis of video surveillance systems and the examination of license plate detection devices, have found confirmation in the restrictive measure adopted by the investigating judge, who has the two arrested were charged with 4 crimes of aggravated robbery, one of aggravated extortion and one of illegal possession of weapons, committed against as many victims, while, overall, the 9 people investigated are also under investigation, to varying degrees, for another 6 crimes of robbery, as well as for other crimes of aggravated personal injury, kidnapping, threats, private violence, illegal possession of weapons and objects capable of causing offence, improper use of payment cards and damage to the cars of some of the injured parties.
The investigations began following a serious episode that occurred at 01.15 on 11 June, in the industrial area of Padua, via Polonia, when a pensioner was violently attacked with punches, kicks and blows with a baseball bat, by 4 disguised criminals, who also stole a gold ring, two mobile phones and 150,00 euros in cash.. Evidently not satisfied with the damage caused to the victim, who suffered personal injuries to various parts of his body, the robbers, using a sharp tool, scratched phrases of unmistakable homophobic content onto the bodywork of his car, before the unfortunate man managed to walk away and ask a passerby for help.
At that point, having found that the place where the reckless attack had taken place was notoriously a meeting place for homosexuals, from the investigations carried out, the Carabinieri of the Provincial Command of Padua then ascertained that, in addition to the robbery of the pensioner, 5 other episodes of similar violence were committed in the period between 31 June and 2024 July 9, always at night and with similar methods, in the same area of the industrial zone, by a gang composed at times of 4 or 5 young people, disguised with balaclavas and masks.
In particular, the now consolidated modus operandi involved one of the attackers, with his face uncovered, approaching the victims on foot on the public Via Polonia under an excuse, allowing his accomplices, depending on the circumstances armed with a gun, taser, knives, sticks and baseball bats, to immobilize the victims, who were then savagely beaten and deprived of sums of money, cell phones, personal effects and ATM cards, which on a couple of occasions were then used to make withdrawals at nearby banks.
Furthermore, as also results from the precautionary order issued by the investigating judge, the investigation has highlighted that the 10 robberies in total have in common the fact that the perpetrators used violence even more than that necessary to carry out the crime to the detriment of the victims who, in addition to the personal injuries, even serious ones, and the financial damage caused by the stolen money and objects, were made the object of ridicule for the sole fact of having been caught in that specific place.
Furthermore, at the same time as the investigation activity carried out by the Carabinieri of the Investigative Unit, assisted by colleagues from the Piove di Sacco Company (Padua), which then led to the identification of the alleged perpetrators, having assessed the dangerousness of those reckless attacks, the Provincial Command of Padua has arranged daily preventive services in the area concerned, through the use of uniformed personnel for preventive purposes and which, starting from the beginning of last August, has effectively prevented the occurrence of further similar episodes.
In the early hours of Tuesday 10 December 2024, over 60 Carabinieri from the Provincial Command of Padua, with the assistance of personnel from the Provincial Command of Venice and the Dog Unit of Torreglia (PD), executed, in the provinces of Padua and Venice, the two precautionary measures ordered by the Padua investigating judge, as well as 10 search warrants issued by the Public Prosecutor's Office of Padua against 4 adults (one of whom is under investigation) and by the Public Prosecutor's Office for Minors of Venice against 6 minors, all under investigation. During the search activities, various materials presumably attributable to the criminal actions were found (disguise material, bladed weapons, baseball bats, airsoft weapons and stolen goods).
At the end of the activity, the two arrested in execution of the precautionary custody order were associated with the Padua District Prison, at the disposal of the Judicial Authority.
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