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Crime in Italy


Crime in Italy

Petty crime can be a problem for unwary travelers. Travelers should note that pickpockets often work in pairs or teams, occasionally in conjunction with street vendors; the usual precautions against pickpockets The rate of violent crimes in Italy is considered "moderate" and while some violent crimes are committed against travelers, but this is normally not a problem. Instances of rape and robbery are increasing slightly. You should exercise the usual caution when going out at night alone, although it remains reasonably safe even for single women to walk alone at night. Prostitution is rife in the night streets around mid and large towns. Prostitution in Italy is legal though authorities are taking a firmer stance against it than before. Brothels are illegal and pimping is a serious offense, considered by the law similar to slavery. In some areas, it is an offence even to stop your car in front of a prostitute although the rows of prostitutes at the side of many roads, particularly in the suburbs, suggest that the law is not enforced. Due to the ambivalent situation regarding prostitution, a lot of prostitutes fall victim to human trafficking. In general, being the client of a prostitute falls in an area of questionable legality and is inadvisable. Being the client of a prostitute under 18 is a criminal offence. There are four types of police forces a tourist might encounter in Italy. The Polizia di Stato (State Police) is the national police force; they wear blue shirts and grey pants and drive light-blue-painted cars with "POLIZIA" written on the side. The Carabinieri are the national gendarmerie; they wear very dark blue uniforms with fiery red vertical stripes on their pants and drive similarly colored cars. The Guardia di Finanza is a police force charged with border controls and fiscal matters; they dress fully in light grey and drive blue or gray cars with yellow markings. Finally, municipalities have local police, with names such as "Polizia municipale" or "Vigili Urbani". Their style of dressing varies among the cities, but they will always wear some type of uniform and drive marked cars, which should be easy to spot. After leaving a restaurant or other commercial facility, it is possible, though unlikely, that you are asked to show your bill and your documents by Guardia di Finanza agents. This is perfectly legitimate (they are checking to see if the facility has printed a proper reciept and will thus pay taxes on what was sold). For all practical matters, including reporting a crime or asking for information, you may ask any of the aforementioned kinds of police. Recently, the military has been directly tasked with protecting key locations, including some city highlights you may want to visit; in case of emergency you can, by all means, ask them for help, but understand that these are not policemen and will very likely have to call actual police for you to report a crime and so on. Policemen in Italy are not authorized to collect fines of any kind and have no authority to ask you for money for any reason. Possession of drugs is always illegal, but it is a criminal offence only above a certain amount. The main emergency number, handled by the State Police, is 113. The medical emergency number is 118, but personnel of the 113 call centre are trained to handle mistakes and will immediately hook you up with actual medical emergency services. There are many bars in Italy that cater to tourists and foreigners with "home country" themes, calling themselves such things as "American bars" or "Irish pubs". In addition to travelers, these bars attract a large number of Italians who, among other reasons, go there specifically to meet travelers and other foreigners. While the motivation for the vast majority of these Italians is simply to have a good time with new friends, there can be one or two petty criminals who loiter in and out of these establishments hoping to take advantage of travelers who are disoriented or drunk. Traveling to these places in groups is a simple solution to this problem. Alternatively, if you are alone, avoid getting drunk! When entering with a car into a city, avoid restricted, pedestrian-only areas (ZTL ) or you could be fined about €100. As in other countries, there are gangs known for tampering with ATMs by placing "skimmers" in front of the card slot and get a clone of your card. Check carefully the machine and, if unsure, use a different one.

The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Italy


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Italy Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.

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