American Teens in Rome: New Trial for Conviction in Officer's Murder

Two American men face a new trial in Italy after convictions for the 2019 murder of officer Mario Cerciello Rega were quashed. Prosecutors recommend lengthy prison sentences for the pair, who were teenagers and vacationing in Rome at the time of the incident, which involved a botched sting operation.

Two American men, previously convicted for the murder of an Italian plainclothes officer during a botched sting operation, are now undergoing a new trial. This comes after Italy's highest court overturned their initial convictions.

The morning saw closing arguments before deliberations began, with the tribunal president predicting a verdict later in the day. Prosecutors are pushing for guilty verdicts in the 2019 murder of Carabinieri Vice Brigadier Mario Cerciello Rega, seeking prison sentences of 23 years and nine months for Lee Elder Finnegan, and 23 years for Gabriele Natale-Hjorth.

Then teenagers from the San Francisco Bay area, the accused were vacationing in Rome when the tragic encounter occurred. They had arranged to meet a drug dealer, actually a police informant, to recover money from a bad deal, only to be confronted by officers in what led to a fatal stabbing incident.

The defense claims that the men were unaware they were facing police officers during the attack. The highest court has instructed the appeals court to re-examine the cases, particularly focusing on Elder's resisting an officer charge and Natale-Hjorth's complicity in murder charge.

The killing of the 35-year-old Cerciello Rega, a member of the esteemed Carabinieri paramilitary police corps, shook Italy, where he was honored as a national hero. Prosecutors argue that Elder stabbed the officer with a knife brought from their hotel, and Natale-Hjorth assisted in hiding the weapon. Under Italian law, an accomplice can be charged with murder irrespective of direct involvement in the act.

Prosecutors allege that the young Americans concocted a scheme involving a stolen bag and cellphone following their failed attempt to purchase cocaine. Natale-Hjorth and Elder maintain they paid for the cocaine without receiving it.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)