Case of rgnr 283/16, gip 936/16
- 2015 - 2016
- Italy ,
- Syrian Arab Republic
Identification of the Source
RGNR 283/16 - GIP 936/16
Description
All the involved people were accused of participating within the organization of the “Islamic State” in order to commit violent actions, finalized to terrorism, in both Italy and third countries (mainly Syria and Iraq).
All the people involved were either Italians (XX) or had the residency permits.
Regarding XX and XX there are no legal implications since they left the Italian ground on the 25th of February 2015 and didn’t come back so far. We don’t have any sentences related to them or to their children.
Thanks to the interceptions of phone calls and messages we know that they were convincing their friends to leave Italy and go to Syria, fighting for the Islamic State. They organized their own trip to Syria and tried to organize it also for the others. XX also tried to convert her mother to Islam in order to let her go to Syria with her. All the people had different roles within the case.
The investigations started when the Swiss authorities reported to the Italian authorities that the kickboxer XX was fighting on the ring with a t-shirt depicting the flag of the Islamic States. It came up later that it wasn’t the Islamic State, but just a quotation from the Coran.
21/02/2015 XX and XX left Italy. From that day they were not traceable by Italian authorities. They left the small Italian town Bulciago by car, without letting anyone know about their departure. They contacted their families months later using unknown or foreign phone numbers. They just communicated they were alive, and they didn’t want to go back to Italy.
04/09/2015 - Italian authorities know that they were under the caliphate’s territories for two reasons: 1. thanks to telematics interceptions between Alice Brignoli and her mother, where Alice explained her, they were in a place where they “could totally live in line with the true Islam”
2. thanks to the bank statement of XX – In fact Italian authorities could “follow” him from his departure on the 21/02/2015 form Bulciago until Turkey - precisely in Adana, around 211km away from the border – passing through Bulgaria, Ihtiman. All their financial movements are reported within the sentence.
03/03/2016 - XX and XX started systematically to call and try to recruit their families and their friends. They tried to convince them travelling to Syria, proposing financial support, contacts for the tazkia, showing pictures of the children wearing uniforms
The numbers used for the communication were from Indonesia – GMPCS “Global Mobile Personal Communications by Satellite”, associated with a WhatsApp number created on the 7/6/2015.
From 06/03/2016 – the conversations between XX and her brother XX are very frequent. XX is legally considered one the main recruiter within this case. She makes often very clear via VOIP that she embraces ideologically the IS cause. She convinced XX and his wife to leave the Italian territory and she played a role of mediator between XX and XX.
Social Impact:
The media impact for this case was big and was analyzed by different newspaper both in Italy and Switzerland.
Mostly for the family of the suspects/accused/convicted since they are living in a small village in the northern part of Italy and the Muslim community is small and closed. As the lawyer said, having potential terrorists on the ground, close to our families and houses is destabilizing and the mother and father of XX but also the parents of XX and XX couldn’t go to the grocery anymore without feeling badly judged from both the Italian and the Muslim community.
Type of Crime
Participation in the supranational terrorist organization known as the Islamic State to commit acts of violence with terrorism purposes within the territory of the Italian State.
• Article 270bis comma 2 of the Criminal Code "Associations for the purposes of terrorism, including international or subversion of the democratic order".
Anyone who promotes, establishes, organizes, directs or finances associations aimed at carrying out acts of violence with the purpose of terrorism or subversion of the democratic order is punished with imprisonment from seven to fifteen years.
Anyone participating in such associations is punished with imprisonment from five to ten years.
For the purposes of the criminal law, terrorism also occurs when acts of violence are directed against a foreign state, an institution or an international body.
The confiscation of the goods that served or was destined to commit the crime and of the things that are the proceed, the product, the profit or that constitute its use is always mandatory towards the convicted person.
Accessory security measure: Art.235 c.p. & 15 D.Lvo nr. 286/98 declares: since XX, XX and XX are originally from Morocco, but resident in Italy with residency permit, they will be expelled from the country after their detention and their property will be confiscated.
XX, as owner of Italian citizenship, cannot be expelled.
Right now, in Italy there are different preventive and/or security measures:
1. expulsion from the country can be an administrative preventive measures against third country nationals; in this case only XX cannot be expulsed from Italy;
2. or a security measures when adopted by judges as part of a legal proceeding
Modus Operandi
People involved
Convicted:
Under the art. 270-bis comma 2 c.p.p. the following people were convicted, since they with others were associating within the terrorist organizations “ISIS” in order to commit violent acts with purpose of terrorism.
(a) XX, born in Morocco on XX (unemployed), together with his wife, XX (unemployed), born in Italy on the XX organized the travel to Syria together with their minor children – XX (6 years old), XX (4 years old) and XX /2 years old) – where they arrived on the 25th of February 2015. They recruited and radicalized other people. No further sentences related to them.
(b) XX, born in Morocco on the XX together with his wife XX, born in Morocco on the 15th of March 1990 organized the travel to Syria with their minor children – XX (born in 2012) and XX (born in XX) and helped his friend XX to reach the ISIS’ territories and made recruitment actions for other close people. He supported the Islamic ideology and was willing to perpetrate terrorist actions within both Italy and Syria. Salma made also the financial assessments in order to leave the country and go to Syria. XX is in Sassari High Security Prison A2 for 6 years conviction, while his wife Salma is detected in XX, Rome for 5 years conviction.
(c) XX, born in Morocco on the XX, for recruitment and proselytism. She helped by organizing the travels to Syria and furthermore she sustained Islamic ideology, endorsing the propagation of its beliefs. She is under house arrest, but she was convicted for 3 years and 7 months conviction, since she played a marginal role within the case.
(d) XX, born in Morocco on the XX, brother of XX, who passed away in Syria while fighting together with DAESH. He was also organizing his travel together with XX and XX Salma. He tried to facilitate their and his own travel. He openly wanted to follow the example of his brother.
He is detected by the Casa Circondariale of Nuoro for 6 years convictions.
The difference between the two men – XX and XX – and the two women – XX and XX– is that the first two were strongly motivated to carry out terrorist attacks within the Italian territory and kill the “Westerns”, while the two women were just supporting them
Criminal History
No past criminal history documented. The possible remarkable signs are: (1) change of wearing; (2) conversion to Islam by XX; (3) isolation from the community.
Influential and/or vulnerable Groups
EU/Directive 2016/800 There are different minors involved within this case. The Juvenile Court of Milan firstly decided to withdraw the parental care from Salma and XX and in a second stage of the process to withdraw the decision and the children are now under the mother’s responsibility. In any case, within this case a first group of vulnerable are the minors.