Two French tourists have been detained by police in Venice, Italy, after stealing a gondola. According to the newspaper Corriere del Venetothe local declension of Corriere della Sera, two twentysomethings were seen trying to row a gondola, as if it were a canoe, during the night from Wednesday to Thursday. The victim’s attorney confirmed this information to BFMTV.com.
This particular behavior caught the attention of hotel employees, who called the police. The owner of the gondola, Giorgio Bognolo, told the US media CNN that he was called by the police at 3:10 a.m.
“Three guys immediately saw that it had been stolen, arrested them and called the police. They saved my gondola, otherwise who knows where I would have ended up in the morning,” she told CNN.
The angry owner
When the French were confronted by the owner, “they seemed happy, really happy. They didn’t apologize, they didn’t apologize. They were cold, it was ugly, that’s what really bothered me. They were injured. They were laughing like it was a game,” describes the owner of the gondola.
“Gondolas are really delicate and beautiful and it takes a lot of money to maintain one,” he adds.
According to him, the tourists threw the contents of the boat (cushions, decorations) into the water. The gondolier’s attorney told BFMTV.com that his client was going to file a complaint to initiate criminal proceedings against the two men. He will ask for between 10,000 and 15,000 euros in damages.
Therefore, it will seek compensation for lost items, damage to the ship, loss of income caused by days spent restoring the ship, as well as “non-pecuniary damage”. According to Giorgio Bognolo, his hand-carved gondola cost him €60,000 and he spends around €3,000 a year to repaint it.
bad tourist behavior
“If people do harm, they have to pay, but it’s also because of our image,” the lawyer told CNN.
“Many times people think that they come here to Disneyland, or to a theme park. In fact, a gondola is something that someone needs to live and work. That way they can’t steal it”, denounces Augusto Palese.
According to him, damaging a gondola “is like throwing stones at the Eiffel Tower.”
The UNESCO World Heritage site regularly faces problems related to tourism. In August, the city’s mayor denounced the behavior of two people, filmed electric surfing on the city’s famous canals.
Source: BFM TV
