Italian police: 7 arrested in club stampede tied to theft gang

ROME — Italian authorities have detained seven men in connection with a deadly nightclub stampede last year, prosecutors said Saturday, accusing them of belonging to a gang that frequented music venues and pepper-sprayed clubgoers before robbing them.

The arrests were the first in an investigation that began after the Dec. 8 stampede at the Lanterna Azzurra club in the central Italian town of Corinaldo, where a popular Italian rapper was scheduled to perform. Five teenagers and a parent were crushed to death and 197 people were injured.

“The distraction of the pepper spray was meant to make the theft easier or to make it easier for them to get away,” said Monica Garulli, chief prosecutor of the city of Ancona, whose office coordinated the investigation. Traces of pepper spray had been found inside the club, close to the exit where the stampede occurred.

“It was their modus operandi — they often used the spray,” Garulli said in a televised news conference.

One man is accused of wielding the pepper spray during the stampede, while five men are accused of committing the robberies. All six are suspected of manslaughter and other crimes. The seventh man was detained on suspicion of fencing the stolen items. None of the men have been charged yet.

There were reports at the time of pepper spray being squirted into the crowd, but until now no official confirmation or explanation had emerged. Officials said most of the arrested men lived in or near the city of Modena.

The suspects have not been named. They are scheduled to be interrogated on Monday.

Lawyers for the suspects could not be immediately reached for comment.

The gang raided dozens of musical events in central and northern Italy, favoring those where rap artists would perform, according to the Ancona military police command, which carried out the investigation. The thieves habitually snatched purses, wallets and other valuables, including watches and necklaces, at clubs and shows in central and northern Italy.

The Italian military police said the gang was suspected of thefts as far afield as Disneyland Paris and was estimated to have been looting an average of about 15,000 euros, or $16,600, a month.

Since December, prosecutors have also been examining the roles of the owners of the nightclub building, the managers of the club, those responsible for its security, and local officials and consultants.