Posted on 08/09/2006 7:09:03 PM PDT by SmithL
An American tourist was beaten by an angry mob in the streets of Naples after he chased down two men who had just stolen his camera, police said Wednesday.
The tourist, identified by Italian police as 25-year-old Matthew Thomas Godfrey of Utah, was taking pictures of a church in central Naples Monday night, when two men snatched his camera and fled on a scooter.
The American chased the thieves into a narrow alley when a group of local residents attacked him with punches and kicks, allowing the muggers to escape, Naples police said in a statement.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
A Frenchman would have let them just take the camera and would have also handed over film. The American would give chase and try to kick their asses and get it back.
Like we don't mug european tourists who stray off the French Quarter in New Orleans....
Now why can't this happen to an ACLU photographer here in the USA.
Not smart. Brave but not smart.
Never try to chase someone on their home territory. They have allies, you don't. People know them, they don't know you. And any group will close ranks around one of their own against an outsider even if the outsider is in the right. It is just human nature.
No, it was the guy taking the picture.
I witnessed an American grabbing some 'Roma' youths on a train in Italy, who were trying to pickpocket him, and some eldery Italians who saw it in action also got into it and grabbed those little kids and started to wallop the living daylights out of them, yelling "Chiamo la politzia", that kind of thing...the American guy had to try to cool them down. As it was, the kids got hauled off to the carabinieri at the next station. I think a lot of Romans are also fed up with petty crimes like that.
Our muggers are fair and balanced; they don't care where you come from!
I dunno. We've helped hapless foreigners here in Seattle. If Italians prefer their own thieves to tourists... I'm quite happy to leave the Italians to their thieves and go somewhere else.
Damn. You beat me to it. Tourist guy has been working a lot the last few years. I guess he just took a vacation in Naples. Eh?
Yeah, but in America, if the facts were known, the crowd might stomp the perp themselves.
Naples is where the world gets an enema.
One heck of a liberty port!
On a marginally related note, I use a simple trick when going into areas (e.g. foreign ports) where I can't pack heat.
I simply carry two wallets.
One wallet is real. The other wallet is a decoy, packed with a few $1 bills and an expired credit card.
No mugger will ever ask for 2 wallets. So since you can't always shoot the SOB's, be sure to at least out-think them.
I would guess that the locals thought the victim was the attacker. This happens a lot where the public are willing to intervene in a crime. Even the police sometimes assume the wrong person is the perp.
As far as Naples goes, however, the locals have been known to try and brutally feed you to death. One couple I knew there had his-and-hers kitchens. I had to take a 3-day fast afterwards just to get hungry again.
Oh yes, and you cannot escape overland, because every tiny town is especially proud of some dish and some wine and it will take you 10 days to get 20 miles@about 2 pounds a mile. You'll never make it to the Rome airport alive.
What do you mean we, paleface?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
