S.F. pair arrested in Italy slaying

ROME — Two San Francisco men on holiday in Rome have been arrested in connection with the fatal stabbing of a police officer, a crime that has shocked Italy.

Italy’s paramilitary Carabinieri police said Lee Elder Finnegan, 19, and Gabriel Christian Natale Hjorth, 18, confessed to the killing after the weapon was found in their hotel room.

“In the face of overwhelming evidence they confessed to the charges,” a police statement said Saturday.

A Carabinieri spokesman said the men had been looking to buy drugs in Rome’s Trastevere district about 2 a.m. Friday when they asked a bystander where they could find a dealer.

“The man pointed them to a supplier, who reportedly sold them crushed medicine instead of cocaine,” he said.

The Americans returned to find the dealer when they realized they had been defrauded, but only found the bystander.

“Thinking he was an accomplice of the dealer, they stole his bag and returned to their hotel,” the spokesman said.

The owner of the bag rang his phone, which was in the bag, and agreed to pay the Americans 100 euros and a gram of cocaine to get his bag back. But instead of going to the rendezvous near the hotel, he called the police, who sent two plainclothes officers.

“The officers met the Americans at about 3 a.m., announced they were Carabinieri, but Elder Finnegan stabbed one of the officers,” the spokesman said.

As the surviving officer tried to save his colleague, the Americans fled back to their hotel, authorities said.

Mario Cerciello Rega, 35, who had just returned from his honeymoon, was stabbed eight times and died of his wounds.

Police said they tracked the Americans to their hotel and found the knife hidden behind ceiling tiles in their room. Police said the two were about to fly back to the U.S.

The Americans were placed in custody for aggravated homicide and attempted extortion but were not immediately formally charged.

During an initial court hearing Saturday, both men invoked their right to remain silent.