Rome, serial robber undone by glue on fingertips: arrested
A fifty-three-year-old Roman has been arrested in flagrante delicto for robbery at a post office on Via di Boccea. The same tactic he used to avoid leaving fingerprints — covering his fingertips with glue — betrayed him.
Serial robber exposed by his own technique
According to questure.poliziadistato.it, a fifty-three-year-old Roman was arrested in flagrante delicto for aggravated robbery as he fled from a post office on Via di Boccea. The very method he had devised to avoid fingerprint analysis — covering his fingertips with glue — proved to be the distinctive element that led State Police investigators to his trail.
The man, already arrested in 2023 for a robbery at a post office in the Magliana area and for further incidents against commercial premises, had attempted to maintain anonymity by acting with bare hands but with his face disguised. Officers from the XIII Aurelio District recognised this unusual choice as the common thread connecting a series of robberies: the method remained consistent despite the various targets.
The investigation began with a robbery committed the previous month against a supermarket on Via Baldo degli Ubaldi. Reconstructing the sequence of events, investigators identified significant similarities with previous incidents, all attributable to the same pattern. The detail of glue on the fingertips — the same stratagem used in previous arrests — guided the law enforcement agencies' targeted surveillance.
During observation operations, officers identified the same scooter captured by surveillance cameras during the October robbery, the vehicle used by the fifty-three-year-old to ensure his escape. The vehicle was monitored until the suspect parked it near the post office on Via di Boccea, concealing its number plate.
Investigators also documented the preparatory phases of the action. The man conducted an initial reconnaissance inside the branch, left and returned to his residence. Several hours later he returned to the location and, after committing the robbery, was intercepted as he attempted to leave the office with a neck scarf pulled up over his face.
The proceeds from the latest robbery amounted to 1,000 euros. Officers recovered the masking tape used to hide the scooter's number plate and, a crucial element in the reconstruction, the layer of glue on the suspect's fingertips. All this evidence, together with statements from post office staff, enabled investigators to complete the investigative picture.
The Judicial Authority upheld the State Police operation, issuing a custodial precautionary measure against the arrested person. It is clarified that the evidence described pertains to the preliminary investigation phase and that the presumption of innocence applies to the suspect until final determination by an irrevocable sentence.
Source: Google News IT — Crime (it)