BOLOGNA. An assault on a security carrier, with shots, explosions, car fires, but which failed and did not cause any injuries. But that has effectively cut Italy in two, with the closure, in both directions, of the section of the A1 between Modena and Bologna, which connects many of the main arteries in the center-north. The robbers are on the run. The assault took place around 20.20, at the height of San Cesario, between the Valsamoggia and south Modena toll booths. According to the first partial reconstruction of the facts, the assault would have taken place according to a scheme already put into practice on other occasions.
The gang, made up of several gunmen, first put nails on the roadway to stop the traffic and the armored car. Then, to create a diversion and prevent access to the section affected by the robbery, he threatened with weapons at least two motorists, forced to get out of their cars which were set on fire. Then they forced two truck drivers to cross their vehicles to permanently block the entrances. Witnesses heard some explosions and some shots, but despite the excitement of the moment there were no injuries. A column of smoke has risen visible from a few kilometers away, the stretch of motorway has been closed in both directions to allow rescue, reclamation and surveys by the traffic police. Traffic was diverted along the Via Emilia.
Something about the robbers’ plan, however, went wrong and the shot would essentially fail and the robbers would flee before getting their hands on the loot they had staked. The bandits fled towards Bologna and searches are underway, also on the basis of the first testimonies of those who witnessed the terrifying scenes of the assault. Immediately, also for the fear that something more serious had happened, the 118 helicopter was also taken off, with the support ambulances, but none of the people involved were injured during the assault. The findings of the traffic police and the testimonies of both the security guards who were on board the van, and the motorists and truck drivers who were threatened by the gang, will be crucial to reconstruct in detail the dynamics of the assault and to collect elements to identify the culprits .