Ischia - Football is passion, of course. But sometimes money is even more so. In Forio d'Ischia, on a quiet night early this week, a home burglary rocked the local amateur football community. The thieves—or rather, the thief—targeted the home of a manager of ASD Real Forio, a team that plays in the Eccellenza league.
The manager was sleeping with his wife when, upon awakening, he made the grim discovery: unknown assailants had broken in during the night, stealing €2 in cash, divided into €50 bills. There were no signs of forced entry, no noise was heard. A swift, silent, and calculated heist.
I police The local station immediately launched an investigation, combing through video surveillance footage in the area. One detail in particular struck investigators: the thief's movements, captured on camera. A hood pulled down over his face, recognizable clothing, and a familiar build to the officers, who had often spotted him hanging around the bars frequented by the island's youth.
The investigations thus focused on a specific name. And within hours, the suspicion solidified: the possible perpetrator of the theft was a very young soccer player from Lacco Ameno, just turned twenty-one.
The young man had already spent 600 euros of the 2 stolen on clothing.
The young man was tracked down by the Carabinieri in the shopping streets of the Chiaia area of Forio. He was still wearing the same clothes he'd worn during the robbery. He had with him a bag containing recently purchased clothing and, most importantly, €1.400 in cash—28 €50 bills, to be precise—consistent with part of the money stolen during the night.
The young man has been charged. The recovered money will be returned to the Real Forio manager.
An episode that shook not only amateur football on the island, but the entire community of Forio, incredulous at the thoughtlessness with which a young footballer and local talent would choose the quickest and most inappropriate route to chase a few extra banknotes.
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