Violent robberies involving minors on trains and stations: young gang busted

They approached peers at train stations and on board trains, always operating in pairs and with their faces covered, pinning their victims by the neck or shoulders and robbing them at knifepoint. This is the modus operandi of the juvenile gang busted by the Carabinieri in the Sondrio area, responsible for a series of violent robberies committed between October and November 2025.

On January 12, at the direction of the investigating judge of the Milan Juvenile Court, Carabinieri officers from Chiavenna and Sondrio, with the support of their colleagues from Pesaro, executed a precautionary custody order against five minors: three were taken to prison, two placed in residential care. A sixth juvenile was ordered to remain at the family home.

An adult accomplice, a 19-year-old who was initially untraceable, was also arrested in Naples, where he was arrested by the railway police on the morning of January 17. In addition to the crimes committed in conjunction with the minors, he also faces charges of attempted extortion.

According to investigations conducted by Carabinieri officers from the Chiavenna and Morbegno stations, the group—composed of four males and two females—is believed responsible for at least four robberies and attempted robberies that occurred near train stations and, in one case, aboard a train. The victims were mostly minors, intercepted while waiting for friends or about to board a train.

The boys were threatened with knives

The attackers forcibly restrained the boys, telling them not to fight back and threatening to use knives. The most serious incident occurred on November 9th in Chiavenna. A sixteen-year-old was approached under the pretext of selling a piece of clothing and lured into the station restrooms.

There, he was repeatedly punched in the face, breaking his nose, and injured in the earlobe after an earring was ripped off. The robbers stole his cash and a sweatshirt, then ordered him to remain locked in the bathroom for at least ten minutes.

To prevent him from calling for help, they took his cell phone, removed the SIM card, and threw it on the ground. The next day, the victim was contacted again on WhatsApp, demanding more money and making renewed threats of violence.

During a check, some of the young people subject to precautionary measures even physically resisted the Carabinieri at the Chiavenna station, further aggravating their situation.