Not only will the city police officers involved in the stampede of 30 horses due to the setting off of fireworks during rehearsals for the June 2nd parade be barred from the festival, but they will also be banned from operational duties.
"First of all, I excluded them from the parade, and after speaking with the commander of the traffic intervention group, I decided that the people involved will be excluded from operational services. This is also for their own protection, their safety, as they could be subjected to some insults," said Mario De Sclavis, Commander of the Rome Capital Police. " I won't spare anyone," De Sclavis reiterated. "They are not registered as suspects. We are waiting for the prosecutor's office. I cannot suspend anyone" until "the judicial authorities have expressed their opinion. I am doing what I can."
The accident occurred on the night between Friday and Saturday at the Baths of Caracalla during parade rehearsals: thirty horses, waiting for the rehearsal, were startled by the explosion of firecrackers 200 meters away and galloped for kilometers between passing vehicles, injuring three young soldiers of the Montebello Lancers and a twenty-nine-year-old policewoman.
The investigators' reconstruction leaves little room for doubt. There are four traffic police officers who were present the other night around the firecrackers. In addition to the officer who actually lit the fuse (a fifty-year-old who joined the force at the last exam and who admitted to lighting the firecrackers for "fun"), there were three colleagues from the same unit. Video footage and witness statements suggest a "simultaneous occurrence" between the explosion of the fireworks and the escape of the foals. The Carabinieri of the Rome Central branch are currently investigating the case, in collaboration with the local police, and an initial report has been sent to the Prosecutor's Office.
(Unioneonline)
