"Hey, we're all here!" A cry that remained etched in the investigation and bounced via social media to thousands of Italian cell phones, uttered during the attack on the armored vehicles on the Variante Aurelia, which would have allowed investigators to immediately focus on the Sardinian lead .
A robbery carried out virtually live thanks to footage from drivers' smartphones and today landed before Livorno preliminary investigations judge Francesca Mannini.
The twelve defendants—eleven in prison and one at large—chose today to be tried entirely under the summary procedure . The proceedings, which will continue on May 15 with prosecutor Ezia Mancusi's closing statement, concern the robbery of March 28, 2025, in San Vincenzo, in the Livorno area. The target was the €4.6 million transported by the armored vehicles, with the gang actually stealing €3,082,754.
According to the prosecution, the commando, after months of planning the robbery and constructing alibis, blocked the armored vehicles with stolen vehicles, threatened the security guards, and blew up one of the vans to gain access to the money. Wiretaps and the stub were crucial, allowing them to reconstruct the roles and dynamics of the operation.
During the raids on May 19th of last year, when the arrests were made, the Carabinieri of Livorno and Nuoro seized an arsenal: five rifles, a pistol, approximately 1,500 rounds of ammunition of various calibers, over 200 grams of military explosives, 1.5 kilograms of quarry explosives, fuses, and primers. Also recovered were bulletproof vests, balaclavas, "burner" cell phones, and €20,000 in cash.
The defendants are: Antonio Moni (Castelnuovo Val di Cecina), defended by Marco Talini; Franco Piras (Bari Sardo) and Francesco Palmas (Lanusei), defended by Marcello Caddori; Salvatore Campus (Olzai), defended by Antonio Mereu and Andrea Nieddu; Nicola Fois (Girasole), defended by Marcello Caddori; Marco Sulis (Villagrande Strisaili), defended by Giuseppe Talanas and Potito Flagella; Renzo Cherchi (Irgoli), defended by Angelo Magliocchetti; Francesco Rocca (Orotelli), defended by Giuseppe Talanas and Carlo Ambrosini; Alberto Mura (Ottana), defended by Lorenzo Soro; Giovanni Columbu (Ollolai), defended by Pasquale Ramazzotti; Salvatore Giovanni Antonio Tilocca (Bottidda), defended by Lorenzo Soro; Antonio Stochino (Lanusei), defended by Francesco Marongiu.
According to the Livorno Public Prosecutor's Office and the Florence DDA, the group acted as an organised commando , with defined roles and structured operational capabilities.