Ferrara, 28 April 2024 – Two gunshots fired right in the center, in the comings and goings of Saturday afternoon. The screams, the escape escape and the sirens of the police. When it turns out that it wasn’t a real gun that was shot but one dog swatterby now terror had already spread among passers-by and residents of Sacrati square. The exact dynamics of what happened yesterday afternoon a few hundred meters from the cathedral is still being reconstructed. What is certain is that they come from the words of the witnesses stories worthy of an action film.
“A scene hallucinating – says a girl who lives in an apartment whose windows overlook Piazza Sacrati –. At first I thought they were firecrackers, then I heard people screaming. I looked out and saw two people chasing each other. One was holding a gun. He yelled ‘come here’ and then shot.” Testimonies not different from those of others present who, as soon as they heard the bangs, ran away or took refuge in the shops in the area. “I was going to throw away the rubbish – says one of them –. Suddenly I heard someone yell ‘he’s got a gun’ and then I saw the stampede. Everything happened in a flash. When I understood, it was all over.” The Carabinieri are working on the incident, listening to testimonies throughout the afternoon in order to accurately reconstruct the facts. No one was injured, but there was a lot of fear.
The chronicle of those excited moments begins shortly after 3.30pm. We are at the point where Via Garibaldi enters Piazza Sacrati. Four young people start arguing. Among the various versions circulating there is also one that sees one of them as the victim of attempted theft of a scooterwhich then resulted in a brawl (detail, however, still being verified by the police). The discussion degenerates quickly and we move on to the facts. Someone throws a street sign (or a chair taken from the expanse of a room, the versions differ). Tensions are high when the gun appears. A first shot was fired at the beginning of Piazza Sacrati. The group of litigants disperses through the surrounding streets while the young man holding the weapon chases one of his rivals. At the end of the small square, shortly after the corner with via Croce Bianca, he pulls the trigger again. Meanwhile, the alarm goes off. Carabinieri patrols rush to the scene and begin to listen to those present. Among these, there is also the young man who shot. It was he who came forward and handed over the gun to the soldiers. Now he will have to explain the reasons for the crazy gesture, for which he could then be called to answer.
Despite the scare, there are those who say they are not exactly surprised by what happened in broad daylight in the heart of the city. “Everything happens in this area now – says an operator who requests anonymity –. There is dealing, there are fights. We see all the colors. Now he’s becoming the new Gad.”
