London is not the only place where vigilantes are destroying traffic cameras, with Italian counter-terrorism police being deployed in the north of the country to arrest those behind camera vandalism.
Anti-terrorism and anti-mafia police teams are working to track down people who destroyed speed cameras in several regions of Italy, which were sawed off, shot at and even exploded. The elite police force finally received its first attack this week. report Il Giornalereports that security cameras at the scene of one strike against traffic cameras captured a man participating in the act, who were subsequently able to identify and arrest him.
The man, who called himself “Fleximan,” a play on the Italian name of a popular brand of battery-powered angle grinders, was arrested two months later, but police say more perpetrators, all using the same name, are on the run. I understand that.
Surprisingly, in some parts of Italy, fleximan seems to be winning. AFP news agency reported this week that some mayors have denounced vigilante groups as a dangerous threat, while in others local governors have tacitly supported their actions. According to the news agency, Marco Ciesaro, the mayor of Cadenegue in Veneto region, decided not to simply replace the camera after it was destroyed in his town because he was “already unconvinced” that the camera was a good idea. said.
Days before Mr Khan's car crackdown began in earnest, 90 per cent of cameras were destroyed in one area of London. https://t.co/JYY5p2t0qR
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) August 24, 2023
report of times of london Note One of the fleximen leaves a note taunting the police. “Fleximan is coming” was written on the camera left behind on Monday.
italian newspaper Libero write The story of Fleximan is told from the perspective of the battle between ordinary working Italians trying to make a living and keep their money, and the city bureaucrats who try to prevent citizens from driving cars. ing. The story will be familiar to London's camera destroyers. The issue has become a major issue for Mayor Sadiq Khan over the past year. Libero I have written:
Why does the driver have to pay this fee in full? How much does it cost to own a car and use it for commuting today? …taxes, insurance, gas on a car…Fleximan is a desperate hero, a small everyday hero. He is a citizen who is not being listened to… Mayors, how much money do you think we can make by using cars? Do you still have the right and freedom to enter the city, or is entering the city like joining a very expensive club?
As previously reported, London's equivalent of Fleximan, the “Blade Runner”, has hundreds of “ULEZ” cameras enforcing Mayor Khan's environmental policies destroyed, and his Italian counterpart in number of kills. It may be slightly better than its cousin. The fate of London's cameras was much the same: they were stolen, they were cut, the cables were cut, and in at least one case he was, shockingly, blown up.
When the new anti-car ULEZ policy came into effect, parts of London were effectively taken over by Blade Runner, with 90 per cent of nearby cameras taken offline. Khan's London has deployed truck-based mobile cameras and resorted to police enforcement to discuss the issue.
There are also signs that the meme is spreading. Just last month, an expensive $100,000 speed camera was installed in Berlin, Germany. blown up. Despite this being the second attack on the same camera in recent weeks, police said they would not abandon the investigation.
Berlin, December 12, 2023: A destroyed speed camera column can be seen on Berlin's Kurfürstendamm. Someone blew up a speed camera column on Kurfürstendamm in Wilmersdorf, Berlin. The explosion early Tuesday threw parts of the facility up to 60 meters, police said. Initial findings indicate that the perpetrators used explosives. Photo: Paul Zinken/dpa (Photo by Paul Zinken/picture Alliance via Getty Images)
