'Gang Targetted Us, Stole Bag With Money': Mumbai Journalist Recalls Horrifying Experience At Italy Airport

One would think that international airports at popular tourist cities in Europe would be the last place where one can be a target of theft. But this sense of airport security was shattered for an Indian media executive who became a target of thieves inside Milan airport. Anant Goenka, the executive director of The Indian Express Group, recalled in an X post that a “gang of 3” managed to distract them and steal his mother’s hand purse that had their passports and money. To make matters worse, the police at the airport failed to help them. They told Anand Goenka that they could be of little help because they were short staffed.

The police also told him that this was the “4th such incident in 6 hours”. Anant Goenka added, “Police said to protect “passenger privacy” they don’t have CCTV around the area passengers fill out VAT refund forms, which is exactly where the robbery took place.” Thankfully, the Indian consulate came to his assistance with promptly issuing emergency temporary passports. This post got over two lakh views since it was shared on June 29.

This post prompted many people to share similar instances while they were vacationing in Europe. An X user recalled, “This is really a big issue in Italy and Spain. Many such cases every day. One of my family members went through the exact same situation in Barcelona. It’s crazy how rampant pickpocketing has become in the touristy areas in both these countries.”

Another person wrote, “In the early 70s my uncle, my dad’s brother, lost his suitcase in the same airport. Cut to 2024, same story and same pattern of stealing spree.”

Someone else opined, “Petty crime in Europe is out of control. 4 of our 10 visiting colleagues in London for JLF, had their phones stolen, credit cards scammed, etc. You can see the distress on the streets. They work in gangs of 2 and many of them are girls or women.”

In September 2023, Euronews cited data from Quotezone’s European Pickpocket Index and listed Italy as the “destination with the highest likelihood of being pickpocketed”. There were almost 463 instances of pickpocketing for every million visitors in Italy’s top tourist attractions like the Colosseum and Trevi Fountain. This was the highest proportion for any other European country.