The wife of an Italian jeweler sentenced to 17 years in prison when he killed two robbers has revealed they face financial ruin after being ordered to pay €300,000 in damages.
Mario Roggero, 68, shot the gang after they raided his store, tied up his daughter in a terrifying robbery and threatened to kill his wife Mariangela in April 2021.
Roggero chased the three-man gang after they fled with watches and jewelery and shot dead Andrea Spinelli and Giuseppe Mazzarino, while the third was injured and later arrested.
Mariangela told an Italian television following the outrage over Judge Alberto Giannone's harsh sentence for defending his family: 'This sentence is absurd. It's incomprehensible.
'But now we have to think about the financial impact of this sentence, because in addition to being found guilty, we are also faced with bankruptcy.
Footage from inside the store shows his daughter with her hands tied behind her back
Mario Roggero shot three thieves outside his shop in Grinzane Cavour on April 28, 2021
During his trial, Ruggero said he feared the men had kidnapped his wife
Mario Roggero, (photo) shot two robbers dead in Grinzane Cavour on April 28, 2021
'We need to find €300,000 in compensation for the families of the victims. We had to sell an apartment that Mario inherited from his mother and get a loan from the bank.
'We have to get as many people behind us as possible. I just don't know how to move forward.'
Roggero was sentenced earlier this week by a court in Asti near Turin after being convicted of the murder of the two robbers in the town of Grinzane Cavour. Prosecutors had actually asked for fourteen years, but the judge gave him more.
CCTV captured the dramatic moment he charged after them armed with the gun and shot them – and the verdict sparked outrage from Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini, who expressed his “full solidarity”.
Mariangela added: “People have shown us so much support. I'm not on social media, but I don't understand how so many people found us and showed their support.
'So far we have raised €11,000 to pay for Mario's damages, but I live in fear of seeing years of hard work go up in smoke.
'This sentence is not just for Mario, but for all of us. The ones who will pay are our children and grandchildren.'
The robbers threatened the jeweler and his family with death and tied up his daughter
“I'm sorry something like this happened, it's very bad, but it's me or them,” Roggero said after the attempted robbery
Mr. Ruggero was seen in the parking lot after shooting at three thieves
But Mariangela rejected the help of politicians, adding: “Frankly, I do not believe in them, nor in any of the institutions and especially in the justice that is on the side of criminals and not on honest citizens.
'I always voted, encouraged by Mario, but now that chapter is closed. I thank those who support us, but I still feel helpless and disappointed.'
She continued, “I try to maintain balance, as I always have in our family.
“The kids always say, 'Mommy, if you weren't here, everything would collapse.'
“But it's a heavy burden to bear, and it's not the only time we've been robbed. It first happened in 2015 and we have been living a nightmare ever since.
“I think about the two people who died, about the fate that dragged them into this sad story, and maybe it's all part of a bigger design.”
When asked what she would like to tell the judge, 67-year-old Mariangela said: 'That they did not understand the situation, that they imposed a severe sentence that did not fit this case.
'When Mario shot, he did it because he was forced to, and that was not his intention. In his mind he was just defending us. It was instincts that made him behave this way.
“Maybe he was thinking back to the other times we've been robbed, maybe it was a little over-the-top self-defense, but he didn't intend to do that.”
The family plans to appeal the sentence and sentence.