Leonardo Bertulazzi, a 74-year-old former member of Italy’s radical Marxist group the Red Brigades, has escaped from house arrest in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The country’s security ministry confirmed the incident on Wednesday, marking a significant disruption to the legal proceedings currently underway regarding his custody.
Bertulazzi was placed under house arrest in 2024 while awaiting extradition to Italy. His detention was part of the process to ensure he serves a 27-year prison sentence in his home country for crimes associated with his time in the Red Brigades.
According to reports, the former militant managed to flee his residence by scaling a balcony. Witnesses and authorities indicated that he used a harness to facilitate his escape from the property where he was being held under strict supervision.
The Red Brigades were a far-left militant organization active in Italy during the 1970s and 1980s, known for a campaign of kidnapping, assassinations, and bombings. Bertulazzi’s escape occurs while he remains a fugitive from Italian justice, which is expected to seek his immediate recapture.
Argentine authorities have not yet released further details on the timeline of the escape or the specific measures taken to secure the perimeter following the incident. The case highlights the challenges faced by international law enforcement in managing high-profile extradition cases involving former political militants.
<small>Source: The Guardian — read the original story there.</small>