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Fed-up Italian leader threatens to send flamethrower-armed police officers to storm parties during lockdown
March 26, 2020
Quite a step to take
Italian leaders, both local and regional, are taking interesting routes in attempting to crack down on people who aren't social distancing amid the COVID-19 outbreak.
One mayor even decided to go "Robocop" on his citizens, and threatened to send police officers armed with flamethrowers to kids' graduation parties if they refused to lock down and engage in social distancing, the Jerusalem Post reported.
What are the details?
Vincenzo De Luca, president of Italy's Campania region, issued a threat against citizens who refuse to follow the country's lockdown protocols. De Luca even went as far as to threaten teens who are insistent on partying for graduation.
In a video that's since gone viral on the internet, De Luca can be heard issuing the directive.
"I'm getting news that some [people] would like to throw graduation parties," De Luca says in the video. "We will send the police over. With flamethrowers."
Cateno De Luca, mayor of Messina, Sicily, issued a similar promise.
"I'm going to catch you," he warned, the Post reported. "Tomorrow, not in a year. Tomorrow! I'm the mayor. You won't stroll in my town. I can't formally ban you from leaving your house? Nice. I will ban you from stepping on public soil, if not for proven necessities."
Giuseppe Falcomatà, mayor of Reggio, Calabria, was also on video claiming that he had a friendly interaction with a citizen, whom he politely told off.
"Look, this isn't a movie," he said. "You are not Will Smith in 'I Am Legend'. You have to go home."
Perhaps in one of the more colorful public offerings, Massimiliano Presciutti, mayor of Gualdo Tadino, Perugia, blasted citizens in a profane video. In Gualdo Tadino, citizens have reportedly been using their dogs as excuses to leave the house on an incessant basis.
"Where the f*** are you all going?" he shouted. "You and your dogs ... which must have an inflamed prostate."
Antonio Tutolo, mayor of Lucera, Foggio, implored the public on a more personal level to stay home.
"Getting in mobile hairdressers? What the f*** is that for?," Tutolo ranted. "Do you understand that the casket will be closed? Who the f*** is supposed to even see you? With your hair all done in the casket?"
At the time of this writing, there has been 80,539 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country. At least 8,165 people in Italy have died because of the deadly pandemic.
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Sarah Taylor
Sarah is a former staff writer for TheBlaze, and a former managing editor and producer at TMZ. She resides in Delaware with her family. You can reach her via Twitter at @thesarahdtaylor.
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