Eventually the ‘gift’ arrived. Cesare Battisti was arrested on Saturday in Santa Cruz de La Sierra, Bolivia, after a month on the run . And in less than 24 hours, Italy has got back the former Pac terrorist who has been chasing, between judicial battles, arrests and escapes, for almost 40 years. “Now our prisons await him”, said Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, while Interior Minister Matteo Salvini exulted: “The godsend is over”, he deserves to “end his days in jail”.
He, the red primrose of the Proletarians armed for communism, at least judging by the video released by Interpol, did not seem to expect arrest at all. He walked quietly, with sunglasses and beard, through the streets of the city. While on the run, he even used social media without evidently imagining that an Italian, Brazilian and Bolivian Interpol team was on his trail. After years of stalemate, therefore, the sudden acceleration desired by Jair Bolsonaro, who already in the election campaign had promised Italy a ‘gift’ as soon as he was elected, seems to have paid off. Even if, paradoxically, he cut off the Brazilian president himself.
After the decision of a judge of the Federal Supreme Court to give the green light to the arrest, the flight of Battisti and, the day after, the long-awaited signing of the consent to the extraction, placed by the then expiring president Michel Temer, the ex terrorist was arrested in another country, which announced his delivery directly to Italy. This didn’t actually stop Bolsonaro from exchanging triumphant tweets with Salvini: “he is always counting on us,” he wrote. Reciprocated by the thanks of the Deputy Prime Minister. And in fact Brazil would have appreciated a passage of Battisti on its territory, in order to be able to officially deliver that ‘gift’ to Italy. But the risks were too high.
In Brazil, his lawyers, without any authority in another country, could have studied a new appeal and risked blocking the whole procedure again. Not only that: in Brazil there is no life sentence and Italy made a commitment in 2017 to guarantee that it would not be inflicted on Battisti in exchange for extradition. Coming to Italy directly from Santa Cruz, however, things change. “Sara expelled from Bolivia and will serve a life sentence”, explained the Minister of Justice Bonafede, while Salvini continued to post tweets in which he wished to see him in handcuffs “until the last of his days”.
But above all it would have been Bolivia, the country that arrested the man that Italy has been trying to catch for almost 40 years, also suspected in the past of having favored his inaction, to push to deliver him directly to Rome, at the international airport. Viru Viru, in Santa Cruz, where the Falcon was waiting for him, brought by the government with the Aise and Police men on board. Battisti has not set foot in Italy since he escaped from Frosinone prison in 1981 and began his hiding between France (where he became a famous writer), Mexico and Brazil.
Now he will have to “serve his sentence for the serious crimes he has committed”, as the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella said, hoping that the same will happen for all the fugitives who have fled abroad “. in the wake of the arrest of the former CAP, the League will present a motion in the Chamber “to urge with determination the extradition of the more than 50 terrorists definitively convicted and fugitives” in various countries.
Meanwhile, the relatives of the victims of Battisti, convicted of four murders, two materially committed, two in competition, are also exulting. “And done, I think it’s the right time”, said Alberto Torregiani, son of the jeweler killed in 1979 by the Pac in a shooting in which he himself was injured and lost the use of his legs. Torregiani also met Salvini. For Adriano Sabbadin, son of Lino killed by Cesare Battisti in Santa Maria di Sala (Venice) on February 16, 1979, “it is a moment of satisfaction after 40 years of waiting. There is no mention of forgiveness”. Also happy Maurizio Campagna, brother of Andrea, the agent killed by Cesare Battisti on April 19, 1979 in Milan. Now the investigations continue, to understand who favored his escape and his inaction in Bolivia.
And done: the plane bound for Rome with #CesareBattisti
– GiuseppeConte (@GiuseppeConteIT) on board has just taken off from Santa Cruz 13 January 2019 Battisti was stopped in the street, he did not attempt to escape Here is the video before the capture, walk in strada
#CesareBattisti filmed shortly before the capture
Team of policemen #Criminalpol #Antiterrorismo and #Digos Milano with Italian intelligence collaboration followed him until arrest by the Bolivian police @INTERPOL_HQ pic.twitter.com/adBu9iRvX2
– State Police (@ policedistato) January 13, 2019 Who is Cesare Battisti and what he did –
VIDEOGRAPHIC # 13 January #Bolivia team of Italian policemen with Bolivian police identified and captured #CesareBattisti
The activity of the Italian anti-terrorism policemen #Dcpp and of the International Police Cooperation Service #Scip #Criminalpol pic.twitter.com/CdAVZKpEY4
– State Police (@poliziadistato) 13 January 2019 COMMENTS AND REACTIONS
