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CRIME

Two arrested for sending poo-stained toilet paper to thousands of celebrities

Two people have been arrested in northern Italy for allegedly sending thousands of threatening letters - often including toilet paper stained with faeces - to public figures.

Published: 27 January 2017 09:35 CET
Updated: 27 January 2017 10:42 CET
Two arrested for sending poo-stained toilet paper to thousands of celebrities
File photo: Pexels

The bizarre scheme had been going on for two years, with the letters sent to high profile figures from the worlds of sport, TV, business and politics.

The Milan branch of Digos, Italy's anti-terrorism squad, tracked down the pair and arrested them on Wednesday for threats and defamation. The senders were a 71-year-old former police officer and his partner, aged 51, Ansa reported.

“The man followed the news closely and was very up-to-date on things,” Digos officer Carmine Mele told the news agency. “He had sent the letters practically everywhere.”

They sent threatening messages to the directors of Copenhagen Zoo, teachers accused of child abuse, football clubs and politicians, and many others. Many of the envelopes included toilet paper soiled with their pet dog's faeces.

A notebook found in the couple's home contained names and addresses of the unlucky recipients – along with the reason for targeting them.

As shown in a photo of the book shared by police, names were divided into categories, including “murderer” “paedophile” and “corruption”. A raid on the couple's house reportedly revealed 110 more letters, all addressed, stamped and ready to be sent.

A page from the notebook found in the couple's home. Photo: Italian police

Digos officers were able to track down the pair after observing the letters all shared some similar characteristics: black ink, cursive writing, and stamps from foreign countries (most often Azerbaijan, Bhuta and Zaire). The letters were then traced to Milan.

Oolice caught the two in the act, posting yet another letter in a letterbox in the Basiglio district of the northern city – as shown in the police video below. 

 

 

POLITICS

Italy’s Liguria regional president arrested in corruption probe

The president of Italy's northwest Liguria region and the ex-head of Genoa's port were among 10 arrested on Tuesday in a sweeping anti-corruption investigation which also targeted officials for alleged mafia ties.

Published: 7 May 2024 12:52 CEST
Italy's Liguria regional president arrested in corruption probe

Liguria President Giovanni Toti, a right-wing former MEP who was close to late prime minister Silvio Berlusconi but is no longer party aligned, was placed under house arrest, Genoa prosecutors said in a statement.

The 55-year-old is accused of having accepted 74,100 euros in funds for his election campaign between December 2021 and March 2023 from prominent local businessmen, Aldo Spinelli and his son Roberto Spinelli, in return for various favours.

These allegedly included seeking to privatise a public beach and speeding up the renewal for 30 years of the lease of a Genoa port terminal to a Spinelli family-controlled company, which was approved in December 2021.

A total of 10 people were targeted in the probe, also including Paolo Emilio Signorini, who stepped down last year as head of the Genoa Port Authority, one of the largest in Italy. He was being held in jail on Tuesday.

He is accused of having accepted from Aldo Spinelli benefits including cash, 22 stays in a luxury hotel in Monte Carlo – complete with casino chips, massages and beauty treatments – and luxury items including a 7,200-euro Cartier bracelet.

The ex-port boss, who went on to lead energy group Iren, was also promised a 300,000-euro-a-year job when his tenure expires, prosecutors said.

In return, Signorini was said to have granted Aldo Spinelli favours including also working to speed up the renewal of the family’s port concession.

The Spinellis are themselves accused of corruption, with Aldo – an ex-president of the Genoa and Livorno football clubs – placed under house arrest and his son Roberto temporarily banned from conducting business dealings.

In a separate strand of the investigation, Toti’s chief of staff, Matteo Cozzani, was placed under house arrest accused of “electoral corruption” which facilitated the activities of Sicily’s Cosa Nostra Mafia.

As regional coordinator during local elections in 2020, he was accused of promising jobs and public housing in return for the votes of at least 400 Sicilian residents of Genoa.

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