Italian thieves return watch to victim after realizing it was fake

Hospitality in Naples is said to be second to none, and one tourist had a unique experience of the Italian city when thieves stole his watch at gunpoint – and brought it back when they realized it was fake.

Two Swiss tourists sitting for a drink just before midnight on Sunday in Piazza Trieste e Trento, one of the city’s main squares, were approached by a young man, who pulled out a gun and pointed it at one of the men’s head before to take your watch and walk away.

Seven minutes later, another young man walked across the cafe’s outdoor area, raising his hands in an apologetic gesture, apologizing, and then returning the watch to the owner.

The footage was captured by the security camera of the bar where they were sitting, the Monidee Café.

Piazza Trieste e Trento is in the heart of Naples, with the Royal Palace and opera house, Teatro San Carlo, in the spotlight. Leading to the famous colonnaded Piazza del Plebiscito and bordering the elegant Chiaia district, the bustling square is known for its cafes and bars, with tourists flocking to the historic Gran Caffe Gambrinus.

Naples has long struggled with its reputation, and while tourism is booming, a series of watch thefts this summer prompted a head of tourism to suggest that hotels hand out plastic watches for visitors to wear.

In CCTV footage, two Swiss tourists are seated in the bar’s busy area outside, as people pass on the busy sidewalk, including a young man in a T-shirt and shorts.

As the waiter brings the menu to the visitors and goes back inside, the young man is seen walking around the side of the secluded area and then entering the square towards the tourists.

He pulls out a gun and points it at the head of one of them, while ripping the watch from his wrist. The incident ends in seconds, and the Swiss try to explain what happened to the waiter.

But subsequent images, taken just seven minutes later, show the tourists – who decided to stay – being approached by another young man in a white T-shirt, waving his arms to show that he is unarmed and then handing them back their watch.

The reason? It was a counterfeit watch, rather than the priceless Richard Mille it appeared to be.

But rather than a gesture of goodwill, the bar owner said it was more likely an attempt to avoid legal reprisals.

“They brought it back saying ‘Sorry, sorry’, maybe as an attempt to get him not to report it,” Antonio Visconti told CNN .

Prey ad a tourist svizzero ad a caffè di Piazza Trieste and Trento: pistol alla forehead per portargli via l’orologio and po glielo riconsegnano perché vale poco. La denunciation of the local title: “Tutto questo in centro città. It serves a constant prison of the forze dell’ordine” pic.twitter.com/aKRU1yKg39

— Francesco Borrelli (@NotizieFrance) July 19, 2022

Violence after dark

The watch, if real, would have been a good prize for thieves.

“They thought it was worth 300,000 euros,” said Francesco Emilio Borrelli, a councilor for the Campania region for the Europa Verde party, which campaigns against crime in Naples, on Wednesday. CNN .

Borrelli pointed out that the square has been a hub of criminal activity for some time.

“In 2019, there was a ‘stesa’ [técnica de intimidação da máfia] with children shooting to the sky. Another time, in 2018, there were delinquents circling the crowd, armed, to shoot another criminal. We had videos of people running away in the middle of the square,” he added.

“A few weeks ago I shared a video of someone filming a Tiktok swimming in the fountain. In the evening, [a praça] becomes illegal parking. I have been reporting problems in that square for some time, but there is no surveillance. It is a few meters from the city hall, the superintendence [histórica] and the army headquarters, and it is one of the squares most frequented by tourists, but one of the least safe areas of the city, which should not happen”, he added.

Borrelli said there are “groups of young delinquents on scooters” committing crimes in the area at night, who have been so emboldened that they don’t even bother disguising their identities.

“They do not care. They’re using a pistol at 13, 14 – the guy who did it knew how to use it, he even aimed it at the Swiss tourist’s head.”

“They take the watches to be resold immediately, but [as pessoas para quem os levam] are good and immediately realized that it was not genuine. So, knowing the law, they sent another boy to return it. Because they know that the bars there have closed circuits, and they know that the footage was recorded,” explained Borrelli.

“And under the law, bringing the watch back means a much lighter punishment. Because they committed the theft, but they brought back the property.”

‘Bad publicity for Naples’

Monidee Café co-owner Antonio Visconti – who sent Borrelli the CCTV footage of the robbery in an attempt to draw attention to what is happening in the square – told CNN that he was “repentant” for the incident.

“It’s not just about our business, it’s bad publicity for Naples. We’ve been saying the same things for years – we need a social pact, we need to restart our sector. We are not used to this type of violence, but we suffer aggression every day. We’re waging a war against this sort of thing, but we’re on our own,” he told CNN .

On Thursday morning, he and Borrelli joined a protest against “degradation and criminality” in the square. The group demanded a fixed police patrol and security cameras after 11pm and on weekends in the square.

Visconti and others also met with the mayor of Naples, who shared plans for the site with them, although he said the city council has been less receptive. The board did not respond to a request for comment.

The tourist, Visconti said, did not seem frightened by the incident. Not only did he stay for the drink, but, according to the owner, “He said, ‘What a great adventure’”.