Another horrific incident, another young victim of sexual violence. Catania is shocked by what happened to a 13-year-old girl who was raped by a group of seven Egyptian boys in the communal gardens of Villa Bellini, one of the two oldest gardens in the Sicilian city. According to information, the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Juvenile Prosecutor’s Office have already ordered the arrest of the seven suspects, three of whom are minors, and enforced it by the Carabinieri. The seventh wanted man, who had initially evaded arrest, was tracked down at 1.30pm in Piazza Dante as he was collecting his personal belongings and then fled while the police were trying to track him down in the municipality where he was staying.
The violence against the 13-year-old girl dates back to the evening of January 30: according to a very first reconstruction of the facts provided by the Carabinieri of the Catania provincial command, the young girl and her 17-year-old boyfriend were approached by the gang near the toilets of the Villa Bellini municipal garden, which was almost deserted at that time. Later, the foreigners allegedly threatened the couple: while the boy was beaten, restrained and kept away, the 13-year-old girl was raped by two of the suspects under the eyes of the other five. Panic-stricken and in pain, the young girl after the second abuse found the strength to free herself from her tormentor and escape together with her boyfriend.
According to the newspaper Repubblica, the victims screamed, but no one came to their aid. After the violence, the two were rescued by passers-by in the nearby Via Etnea. It was the two friends who reported the violence, triggering the investigation by the Catania Carabinieri. Thanks to the testimonies of the rape victim and the boyfriend and the officers’ enquiries – starting with the images from the CCTV cameras installed in Villa Bellini – the police managed to identify the seven suspects. The carabinieri of the Investigation Unit and colleagues from the Scientific Investigations Department also collected several genetic samples. Arrest warrants were issued for the seven young men. Three of them were taken to the Catania prison in Piazza Lanza, one was placed under house arrest and the other three were taken to the initial reception centre in Catania.
The crime has also affected politics, as the recent cases in Caivano and Palermo show. Today, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed her solidarity with the young victim during a visit to Gigafactory 3Sun in the Etnian capital: “It strikes me that on the day we celebrate a very young martyr of the Christian tradition, we are witnessing another very young victim of sexual violence. With these words, I would like to express my solidarity with her and her family. The state will be there to ensure justice”. Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini was extremely harsh: “Don’t come and talk to me about ‘tolerance’ or ‘mistakes’. In the face of such atrocities, there can be no mercy, but only one remedy: chemical castration. I expect the proposal put forward by the League to be voted on as soon as possible”. Annalisa Tardino, regional commissioner and Lega Salvini Premier MEP, called for exemplary punishments: “We stick to the idea that chemical castration for rapists and paedophiles, life imprisonment for similar cases and more security in our cities are necessary. For foreigners: immediate repatriation! They would never have allowed themselves such behaviour in Egypt. The safety of our children must be a priority throughout Italy.”
Up-to-date information on the ongoing investigation is expected shortly: Deputy Public Prosecutor Sebastiano Ardita and Deputy Public Prosecutor Anna Trinchillo are coordinating the investigation at the Public Prosecutor’s Office, while Public Prosecutor Carla Santocono is coordinating the investigation at the Juvenile Prosecutor’s Office. The news of the gang rape of the young girl comes in the days when Catania is celebrating the city’s patron saint, St Agatha, whom Proconsul Quinziano had martyred by even having her breasts ripped off with pliers because she refused to marry him.
Catania, 13enne violentata da 7 egiziani: lo stupro choc davanti al fidanzato – ilGiornale.it