Leonardo Bertulazzi, one of the world's most wanted terrorists, is on the run after escaping house arrest in Argentina during Pope Leo XIV's visit to the country. The 74-year-old, a former member of the far-left Red Brigades, was hours away from being flown to Italy to serve a 27-year prison sentence for his involvement with the group.
The Red Brigades terrorised Italy throughout the 1970s and 1980s with kidnappings and killings, including the abduction and murder of former prime minister Aldo Moro. Bertulazzi was under house arrest in a fifth-floor apartment when he launched his escape, taking advantage of the distraction caused by the millions of people lining the streets to greet the Pope.
Elaborate Escape Plan
Bertulazzi cut off his electronic ankle monitor, greased it, and placed it inside a thermal blanket to mimic his body temperature and moisture. He then used ropes and a harness to lower himself from his fifth-floor apartment to a neighbour's second-floor terrace.
From there, he climbed down to a first-floor terrace, made his way to a vacant lot, and escaped onto the street by climbing over a gate. One investigator told the Argentine daily La Nación: “To think that he was under house arrest because, supposedly, he had suffered a stroke.”
Background and Extradition Efforts
Argentine authorities have said Bertulazzi was involved in the Genoa branch of the Red Brigades and helped plan Moro's kidnapping. The Security Ministry offered a reward of 20 million pesos (about £10,000) for information leading to his capture.
On Tuesday, Wanda Ferro, an undersecretary in Italy's Interior Ministry, said Argentine police were responsible for ensuring Bertulazzi was handed over to Italian authorities. “I am certain that every effort will be made and that there will be appropriate dialogue to ensure — we hope — that he is brought back into custody and, above all, that extradition can take place very quickly if he is recaptured,” she told private broadcaster Tgcom24.
Arrest History and Refugee Status
Argentine authorities first arrested Bertulazzi in November 2002 on an arrest warrant issued by Italian authorities. Italy formally requested his extradition the following month, but an Argentine federal judge rejected the request in June 2003, ruling that Italian law did not guarantee Bertulazzi a new trial after he had been convicted in absentia.
Bertulazzi was granted refugee status in October 2004. In 2024, when right-wing President Javier Milei took office, Argentine authorities revoked that status and re-arrested him in August. At the time, then-Security Minister Patricia Bullrich celebrated his capture. “This dangerous criminal's years of impunity are over. In this Argentina led by President Milei, those who commit crimes pay the price,” she wrote on social media.
