Robbery at gunpoint in South Italy

catmandoo

catmandoo

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Have heard that an English sailor in
Saline Ioniche on the toe of Italy near Reggio was robbed at gunpoint
by three men who came aboard his boat in the middle of the night and held a pistol to his head whilst searching the boat.

The local police were sympathetic, but confessed that they were unlikely
to find the culprits.


Saline reported a bad place - molto Mafioso!
 
Mafia

Boat in Gela for summer recess - didn't know it was the most strongly mafiosi town in Sicily until one of a trio at the next table at the Aurore addressed me. His English was perfect and it turned out he'd either done a year or an MBA at Wharton.
It also turned out that he was the local Capo...
 
Hardly Mafia stuff; they have better (as in 'more profitable') things to do than rob english sailors at gunpoint!!
You're talking petty crime, same as what you'll find anywhere in the world.
I was mugged once in Philadelpia. Didn't stop me from re-visiting the States.
My wife had her designer purse stolen in the London Metro before she even got to the hotel. Lawyer friend of mine had his bag snatched in broad daylight on a London sidewalk. Someone had evidently been tipped that he had just withdrawn a five-figure amount from a bank.
So, should people stop going to Philly or to London? Or are these also "molto mafiosi"?
I regularly sail to sicily (east coast) and there is much that sicily can offer. Unfortunately art, architecture, archaeology and cuisine do not make for good headlines /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

Fair Winds!
 
Well Whatever the situation every Italian I met in Sicily seemed obsessed with security . Regardles of what you experienced it is wise for others to be alert to the problem .In Naples for instance one does not walk around with your camera or hand bag on your shoulder .

Anyway mafia crime ranges from petty to huge controlled from afar by the organisation . You only have to see the effect it had on South Africa when they let them in at the end of apartheit and where you can be killed for a few bucks , a TV set or a car .

Police stations in Italy are deemed military zones and protected with high steel fences .
Theft seemed a national pastime . Carabineiri in Tropea on the mainland had a mobile unit stopping every second car . and pointing a machinegun at the occupant as he produced his papers . Would you walk through the back streets of Palermo without care ?
Coast guard also told me that port of Termine Immerse not secure and took me to securer location

Not what one would call a normal situation .Never had this problem in Sardinia Only police stations with fences in Uk were in Belfast
So regardles of what you say would suggest that people take more care about their security and posessions than they would at home
 
This is not to argue with you; just some thoughts on what you have written:

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.In Naples for instance one does not walk around with your camera or hand bag on your shoulder .

[/ QUOTE ]

Nor anywhere else for that matter, especially in poor areas or places known to have a drug addiction problem. Never be ostentatious with clothing, possessions or money.

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You only have to see the effect it had on South Africa when they let them in at the end of apartheit and where you can be killed for a few bucks , a TV set or a car .

[/ QUOTE ]

Don't know about the Italian Mafia being in South Africa. Russian mafia perhaps? Where is the connection with Mafia? In Nigeria you can be killed not for the shoulder bag itself but just for the curiosity of knowing what is in it. Again, zone with acute poverty just off the main streets.

[ QUOTE ]
Police stations in Italy are deemed military zones and protected with high steel fences .

[/ QUOTE ]

Italian police are military. Each country has its own logic when it comes to which ministry is paying for a service or in the administration of justice. Here for example, if arrested, you are either charged within 48 hours or must be released; no such requirement in Italy. Northern Ireland?

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Would you walk through the back streets of Palermo without care ?

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Wouldn't walk through any back street without care; nor would I walk close to the wall, even on a main street for that matter!
Interesting that you should cite Palermo. Some years back I attended a EuroMed conference there and, since this was an EU affair, we had an armed escort to and from wherever there was a function. Road up to the castle-like conference centre (at the top of the hill overlooking the bay) had armed, manned, road-blocks preventing unauthorised access. The centre itself was crawling with armed plain clothes security men.
Yet, after being taken back to the hotel, there was no security to be seen! Good thing too as it was becoming oppressive. We then went for walks wherever fancy took us with no problems. Perhaps speaking the language fluently helps.

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Never had this problem in Sardinia

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Sardegna does not have a problem with 'clandestini' (illegal immigrants) e.g. Albanians or North Africans. Poverty / petty crime connection?

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would suggest that people take more care about their security and posessions than they would at home

[/ QUOTE ]
Agree with you 100 percent!
Common sense really.

The basic rules are:
1. Be discreet - in appearance and in attitude.
2. Don't flaunt your possessions - cameras, credit cards, wallets, bags, etc.
3. Don't use ATMs unless there is someone with you. 'Shoulder surfing' is fast becoming a problem all over the civilised world.
4. Berth 'Bows-to' whenever possible; that way passers-by cannot see what is in the cabin.
4. Try not to appear too foreign!

Like I said at the start, this was not to argue with you. It is good for people to be aware of what can happen if they are not careful - wherever they may be. That way than can avoid being scared away from some of the most interesting places.

Enjoy your cruise, and,

Fair Winds!
 
Seems to me a brief note passed on to alert people about a fact results in a lecture about the merits of a place .

I am sure people can make their own minds up on the evidence presented here and by others elsewhere about the balance between security and what Sicily can give or take from them and take what sensible precautions they feel are necessary
 
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