Torre del Greco, illegal shopfronts on market sidewalks: four shops seized.

A decade-long occupation of a public sidewalk has become the subject of a judicial investigation in Torre del Greco. On the afternoon of September 21, officers from the Municipal Police's Anti-Illegal Building Unit executed a precautionary seizure order issued by the Preliminary Investigations Judge of the Torre Annunziata Court, at the request of the local Public Prosecutor's Office.

The measure affects the display structures of four commercial establishments located in the heart of the city market, between Traversa Avezzana and Largo Santissimo. The charges relate to the arbitrary invasion of public land or buildings for profit (Articles 633 and 639-bis of the Criminal Code).

A decade of unauthorized artifacts

Investigations conducted by the White Helmets and coordinated by the Oplonti magistrates documented that the obstruction of public land had been ongoing for over ten years. The merchants had permanently installed shop windows and products on the pedestrian walkway, operating in the complete absence of planning permission and the necessary administrative authorizations.

During the notification and enforcement of the measure, it emerged that one of the four owners had already spontaneously dismantled their displays before the arrival of the police.

Immediate seals and warning to evict

For the other three businesses, the Municipal Police immediately blocked the displays: the goods were removed, the spaces were closed and marked with seals and warning signs, and the owners were simultaneously appointed as judicial custodians of the structures.

The defendants were given a mandatory 30-day deadline to remove all illegal works at their own expense, with the warning that failure to comply would result in official eviction.

The measure aims to interrupt the continuation of a continuing offense. The precautionary measure remains appealable before the Review Court, and all parties involved are presumed innocent until a final conviction is reached.