“What happened while you were all there in a group on the beach?”

“After a while, about the time it was getting dark, I’d say, there was a sudden commotion. Lots of yelling, people running … I couldn’t tell you the details because I’d gone for a walk and saw it all from a distance.”

“And what did you do?”

“I went back to the group, that is, towards the fracas. A friend of ours was running away and two guys I’d never seen before were following him. It was a nasty scene and I thought they were fascists.”

“Why did you think they were fascists?”207

“Many of us, especially in the previous few years, had been politically active. And there had been attacks by fascists, various clashes with them. Although to tell the truth it hadn’t happened for a while. But in that frantic situation it was the only thing I could think of. I had no idea what was happening. Don’t forget, we’re talking about seconds.”

“Go on.”

“One of the two reached our friend and started hitting him.”

“How far away were you?”

“By now I was quite near. About ten yards, maybe.”

“And what did you do?”

“I joined them and pulled the guy I didn’t know by the shirt … or the T-shirt, I’m not sure. Anyway, I pulled him from behind, to make him stop. He lost his balance and our friend started running again.”

“And then?”

“Then the other one arrived, stopped me and handcuffed me, while the one I’d caused to fall started following our friend again. To cut a long story short, he caught up with him and stopped him. They arrested him for possession of drugs and me for resisting an officer of the law.”

“Were they carabinieri, State Police, Treasury Police?”

“They were Treasury Police.”

“When did you find out they were Treasury Police?”

“When I was already handcuffed.”

“You mean they hadn’t identified themselves before that?”

“I don’t know. Like I said, I was a long way away and all I heard was shouting. It was only after they handcuffed me that they told me they were Treasury Police and that I was in big trouble.”

“Did they take you to their station?”208

“Yes, I was there for a couple of hours and then I was released. Our friend, on the other hand, was transferred to prison.”

“So first they handcuffed you, then they let you go. Do you know why?”

“They told me I was lucky, that they’d called the duty magistrate to tell him what had happened and he’d told them not to arrest me.”

“Were you ever put on trial?”