Italian police officer's widow 'totally shocked' as US tourist convicted of his murder is given house arrest

[Prairie Gates]

Source: The Independent

An Italian court has granted house arrest for an American tourist convicted of murdering a plainclothes police officer, shocking the victim’s widow.

Gabriel Christian Natale-Hjorth and his friend Finnegan Lee Elder were initially given life sentences for killing Mario Cerciello Rega, 35, a Carabinieri police officer following a botched drug deal in 2019.

After a series of appeals, an Italian court reduced Natale-Hjorth’s sentence to 11 years and four months. His lawyers argued he should be allowed to serve the rest of his sentence at his grandmother’s home near Rome.




Read more: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/gabriel-natale-hjorth-rome-mario-cerciello-rega-murder-b2580347.html

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These are the two American students who stabbed an Italian undercover police officer to death during a botched drug sting. They were initially given life sentences, but had their sentences reduced to 15 years and 11 years earlier this month. Yesterday, the Italian court allowed the one with an 11 year sentence (Natale-Hjorth) to serve it out under "domiciliari" (house arrest) at his grandmother's apartment in Fregene, a tony beach town near Rome.

[Traurigkeit]

1. both not black

[Prairie Gates]

2. It's Italy, so the correct order of racist nonsense would be 1) Both not North African/ Tunisian

2) Both not Romani/ Roma; 3) Both not black; 4) Both not Albanian.

[SKKY]

3. I've spent a good amount of time in Italy (Naples), and this checks out.

[oasis]

4. Selective Italian "justice". Amanda Knox

was hounded as if she was the serial killer of the century.

[Prairie Gates]

5. She was released at the same appeals stage that reduced these guys' sentences

These two were also widely reviled in Italy, and especially in Rome. It was harder to defend them in the American press, however, since they obviously killed a police officer, and admitted it.

[maxsolomon]

6. I can't recall the specifics, but I remember the 2 were convinced they were about to be killed.

They had no clue the undercover officer was Carabinieri.

The court of Cassation thought that should mitigate the sentence, I guess.

[Prairie Gates]

7. That was their claim, anyway

With an 11 year sentence and already having been in for 6 years, the guy has probably 2 more years, maybe 18 months left on it. Hence the house arrest. None of this is uncommon. Even the actual killer will be out in probably 3 or 4 years with the 15 years sentence. Even "ergastolo" is never really ergastolo.