Rome, 30 April (LaPresse) – A double kidnapping for ransom has been resolved by the police in Rome. According to LaPresse, two men have been freed and four people arrested following a raid carried out by detectives from the Mobile Squad and the VI Casilino District. Among those arrested was a 16-year-old girl, found armed with a 7.65-calibre semi-automatic pistol with the serial number filed off, which she attempted to draw from her waistband upon the arrival of the officers. The operation, coordinated by Carlo Villani, Deputy Prosecutor of the District Anti-Mafia Directorate, began on Tuesday afternoon in a flat on Via Veturia, in the Ponte Lungo district, where the two victims were living in a rented room. At around 3.10 pm, an armed man burst into the flat, forcing those present to follow him at gunpoint. A car driven by a woman was waiting for them in the street. The two hostages were forced into the car and taken to Via della Tenuta di Torrenova. There, they were beaten and locked in a cellar, left in the dark. Shortly afterwards, the kidnappers contacted the brother of one of the victims, demanding a ransom of €4,000 for their release. The man contacted the police, triggering the investigation. Officers organised a controlled operation, following the relative to a meeting with one of the captors for negotiations. The raid took place shortly afterwards, enabling the two hostages to be freed and the perpetrators apprehended. During the frantic stages of the operation, an investigator managed to stop the minor before she could grab the weapon. Those arrested were Armando Rizzardi, born in 1971, Cristian Rizzardi, born in 2006, Alessandro Fitahiana Biagi, born in 2005, and the 16-year-old girl. Investigations are still ongoing to clarify the motive behind the kidnapping: among the hypotheses being examined, on which the investigators are maintaining strict confidentiality, is a possible link to drug trafficking in the Tor Bella Monaca area, particularly in the Via dell’Archeologia area.
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