The scam was foiled by the fortuitous yet timely arrival of the victim's son , an 86-year-old woman who was about to hand over her belongings to a man identifying himself as a Carabinieri officer. The perpetrators, two men from Campania aged 25 and 27, were arrested thanks to police investigations and the cooperation of an accomplice from Cagliari, who provided useful information after being found in possession of over a kilo of jewelry. Officers also discovered that two similar robberies had been carried out in the preceding hours: one targeting a 68-year-old the day before, and the other targeting an 89-year-old.
The events that led to the arrest occurred in Cagliari on April 23. The criminals, posing as Carabinieri, showed up at the eighty-six-year-old's home, claiming that a relative was involved in a robbery and that they needed to acquire all the jewelry in the house to verify its provenance. Upon seeing the uniform, the elderly woman was about to hand it over to a fake soldier. But at that moment, her son arrived at the house. The scammer, seeing him, fled after stealing the woman's cell phone.
The police were alerted immediately thereafter. The Mobile Squad, through analysis of video surveillance systems and database consultations, identified the alleged perpetrator: a Neapolitan-born criminal who had arrived in Cagliari on April 21st with a fellow Neapolitan.
After checking the boarding lists, a check was organized at the port. A third man, a man from Cagliari, was arrested and found in possession of approximately 1.2 kg of gold jewelry: the loot from the other two successful heists. The man from Cagliari decided to talk and helped locate the two accomplices in the port area.
The evidence gathered, including photographic identification, identification of assets, and statements from the suspects, allowed for the creation of a circumstantial framework that led to the charges of aggravated extortion, attempted extortion, residential burglary, and receiving stolen goods. The two Neapolitans were taken to prison in Uta, while the Sardinian accomplice was charged with receiving stolen goods.
Enrico Fresu