373. #Italy, The Gunman, his Wife, his Son
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| Luigi Preiti held in custody |
The main protagonist of last Sunday’s events, which through the gunning
down of two Carabinieri shifted the attention from that vital moment when, at
the Quirinale (President’s Residence) the members of a new, innovative
government were being sworn in. The TV cameras suddenly swooped on people
shouting, police clearing the area, and a gunman face down on the pavement in
front of Palazzo Chigi (the Prime Minister’s quarters).
Luigi Preiti, the gunman said that his aim was to have someone notice
him. But was it really necessary to stand a few feet away from the Carabinieri
and aim, not at the officer’s chest since that would be protected by a gun
proof jacket, but shoot to kill, aiming directly at the Carabinieri’s face, as
one unique photo clearly shows.
Luigi Preiti arrived in Rome from Calabria on the 3.15 train on Saturday
afternoon. After booking in at the hotel near the station he went out till
about 7.00 in the evening. Next morning he left about eight with a small bag.
In this small bag, later, the Carabinieri found a screw which they suspect was
used to scratch out the serial number on the gun.
However, no protagonist springs out from nowhere, from isolation- there
is always a background of friends, family, places where such people are
embedded.
He has lived many years in the North of Italy though he is originally
from Calabria, in the South where, after being separated from his wife and losing
his job, he returned to live with his parents.
His wife says they separated, mainly because he was addicted to betting
and had drained the family of their resources including his wife’s wages as a
farm worker. She says he had never hurt anyone in his whole life and had never
shown the least sign of violence. Even though what he has done is terribly
wrong and cannot be justified, she will nevertheless stand by him because he is
in desperate need of support.
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| His wife |
His eleven years old son says that although his dad did wrong, he will
still love his dad- and that he is sorry for the Carabinieri whom his dad had
injured.
Could this heartbreak on all sides have been avoided in any way?
It is my belief that if there was a better climate in today’s society,
moments of desperation would not reach such peaks. However as long as there are
groups of people, who go into restaurants and shout at a Member of Parliament (Dario Franceschini) eating
piazza, “Hope that it chokes you!” and “Traitor! Traitor”, as the as the Five Star Movement have done recently, simply
because this parliamentary had adhered to coalition government- then the
violence will not stop so easily.
More next time…
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