The "split" gang stopped by the State Police

The alleged perpetrators of numerous splits in the slot rooms on the Piedmont motorway network have been identified and arrested by the State Police.

The investigators of the Judicial Police Squad of the "Piedmont and Valle d'Aosta" Traffic Police Department of Turin, coordinated by the local Public Prosecutor's Office at the Court, carried out thorough investigations in order to identify three men who are believed to have constituted a criminal group of real "split professionals".

In many cases, the targets of the group's predatory behaviors were video poker machines and money changers; the perpetrators of the thefts did not limit themselves to stealing goods and money, but, in many cases, they devastated the premises, destroyed the shop windows, so as to cause considerable damage to the injured people. At least thirty blows have been attributed to the "group" in the hypothesis of accusation.

It should be noted that the perpetrators of the predatory behaviors, when they found themselves in front of third persons, did not hesitate to engage in violent and threatening behaviors towards them, in order to score the blows; therefore, two robberies perpetrated one on 23.05.2022 at the slot room located in the Beinasco Sud Service Area - on the TORINO - PINEROLO motorway junction are also contested (subject to "split" three times in a month) , the other, on 09.06.2022, in the town of Genola (CN).

Many of the thefts noted were particularly serious for the damage caused; for example, on the night of 25.05.2022, to carry out the theft against the Sisal MatchPoint slot room in Santena, the authors used a school bus and a van that had just been stolen as "rams" to break through the shop windows.

Following an accurate info-investigative activity that made use of the use of wiretapping, numerous stalking, shadowing services and a careful and meticulous analysis of the images recorded by the video surveillance systems installed at the various commercial establishments, Three Romanian men were identified.

The activity, which lasted a few months, was complex because the perpetrators of the crimes always operated misrepresented and were careful not to leave any trace useful for their identification.

Against the three Romanian men, following the elements collected by the investigators during the preliminary investigations and given the evident danger of escape, the Turin Public Prosecutor's Office deemed it necessary to intervene by issuing a detention order that the policemen carried out in the early morning of the June 21 after returning from yet another theft made during the night.

Various material of illegal origin was also seized and, in the homes of those arrested, clothes, clothing and personal effects worn during the splits were found.

In addition, various vehicles were also found and seized, all proceeds of theft, used for night raids, including the "FORD KUGA" stolen about a year ago from a car showroom in Bra (CN), along with 2 others cars and 2 pairs of license plates.

After the validation of the arrests, for all members of the gang, the GIP ordered the precautionary measure of custody in prison at the “Lo Russo e Cutugno” prison in Turin.

The criminal proceedings are currently in the preliminary investigation phase. Therefore, the presumption of innocence of the suspects is in force, up to the final sentence.

The "split" gang stopped by the State Police