He threw stones at buses, cars and passers-by. After the shooting on Saturday evening, the madman was the character who had been missing for a while in Piazza delle Provincie. The last one – a Pakistani who wandered around the aisles threatening people with a toy gun – was arrested two years ago. The other evening another one reappeared. He was unarmed, but threw rocks, bottles and cans at anything that moved. Yesterday, given the past, the entire square was patrolled for several hours by the police, carabinieri and financial police. Last weekend’s episode left its mark. No one has yet died, but the conditions don’t leave much room for hope that it won’t happen. After the shooting on Saturday evening, anxiety and fear returned to the neighborhood. And the concerns – despite the reassuring messages in recent months, due to the increased presence of the police – have returned to disturb the thoughts of residents and users of the bus terminal. The echo of the shots fired last weekend triggered yet another alarm. The sirens of the police cars arriving there shortly after 8pm, in the midst of the Saturday evening carousel, clearly conveyed the message that safety in that area is an abstract concept. No one has died yet but the climate has changed. First there were fights over control of drug dealing. Now we shoot. He was shot – according to the story of some witnesses – from a moving scooter. The target, according to an initial reconstruction, would have been a group of Africans. And although three years ago the police found a loaded gun on a pavement – a rather disturbing fact – no one had pulled the trigger until now. Saturday’s shots, therefore, represent fuel capable of rekindling the flame of fear. The calm of recent months was only apparent because, in that place, the drug market monopolized by Africans – and certified by a series of investigations by the Prosecutor’s Office – never closed its doors. It’s like a game of mirrors: the police arrive to set up checkpoints and the drug dealers and junkies leave. But then, when the men and women in uniform dismantle the garrison, everyone returns to conquer spaces and roles. The most accredited way to interpret the dynamics of the shooting is, without a doubt, drug dealing, then. Although – it is said that the investigators do not overlook any leads: the dealing of narcotic substances would remain the most credible contingency of that shooting which has all the characteristics of a punitive expedition or a warning. It will be necessary to verify whether the escalation of violence can be attributed to alleged frictions between the groups of Africans who are competing for the drug dealing between the terminal and the car park below. Or to the aims of the Bruzia criminality eager to settle in a territory that has slipped out of their hands for years.
John
John, founder of Odnako, combined his journalism degree with technical expertise to revolutionize global news consumption. Before Odnako's 2011 launch, he gained diverse experience across the media and tech fields, setting a solid foundation for his mission to provide comprehensive, unbiased news. His vision and leadership have since established Odnako as a trusted, innovative news platform worldwide.