Dozens of meticulous thefts on a remote island; all the residents are potential suspects. In an investigation that would be appropriate for Agatha Christie, Hercule Poirot, the three police officers on Capraia, an island off Tuscany, must carefully tread while searching for the culprits among the population of about 400.
The mayor of the island, Marida Bessi, told the Corriere della Sera newspaper that cracks had already begun to appear in the otherwise close-knit community, with friends and neighbors looking at each other suspiciously.
Most of the robberies, houses and shops, took place during the winter when visitors were absent from the island, which is closer to Corsica than to the mainland of Italy and accessible only by boat, weather permitting. In the most recent incident, the thieves deactivated the CCTV camera in a tobacco shop before taking € 60,000 (£ 52,000) out of the safe.
They also broke into the home of Deputy Mayor Fabio Mazzei in November and made up for it with a safe containing cash and jewelery hidden in some furniture. “It is very sad because there is the feeling that there is a thief in the family,” Mazzei told the newspaper. “They struck on the right day because they knew I was going to Pisa for a visit. They knew the house very well. ”
Most residents keep their money at home since the island’s only bank was closed last year. That the CCTV camera on the square is broken seems to be another obstacle in the investigation.
The investigation has so far yielded many theories, but no clues, Bessi said. “The island’s three police officers are very good, they do everything they can,” she told Corriere. “But they need more investigative tools, because otherwise it’s an unsolvable crime story.”
Two-thirds of the 19-square-kilometer island was occupied by a penal colony until 1986, and residents lived peacefully until the recent thefts. The population grows to about 4,000 during the summer.
“The risk now is that the sense of community we’ve always had will be damaged,” Bessi said.