Three years ago, two young Bay Area men were charged with stabbing a police officer to death while on vacation in Rome, and last year, they were sentenced to life in prison in Italy.
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But on Thursday, those sentences were reduced to 24 years for Finnegan Lee Elder, 22, and 22 years for Gabriel Natale-Hjorth, 21, according to reporting by the Associated Press as published by the U.S. News and World Report.
Life in prison is the country's harshest penalty, and was handed down on the two men in May of 2021, convicting them with "homicide, attempted extortion, assault, resisting a public official and carrying an attack-style knife without just cause," according to previous reporting by the Associated Press.
On July 26, 2019, the two men murdered Carabinieri Vice Brigadier Mario Cerciello Rega outside of their hotel while on vacation, when Rega approached them with his partner Officer Andrea Varriale, in plainclothes and without firearms, the outlet reported.
In their 14-month long trial last year, the two young men claimed they believed the officers were criminals sent to attack them after a cocaine deal went wrong that same day, but Varriale, who survived the attack, stated that the officers had clearly identified themselves, according to the outlet.
Elder's defense team refuted Varriale's claim among others the officer made in her testimony, the outlet reported.
Elder claimed the stabbing was in self-defense as he "feared the heavyset officer was trying to strangle him," according to the outlet. Rega was stabbed 11 times while Varriale suffered a back injury.
Although Natale-Hjorth didn't commit the murder himself, Italian law stipulates that an accomplice can be charged with murder even if they didn't participate.
The prosecutor for the case argued for Elder's life sentence to remain intact, while reducing Natale-Hjorth's to 24 years, according to the outlet.
"Elder doesn't deserve forgiveness," said Saveriano on Thursday, according to the outlet.
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