Woman attacked at gas station, man had knife

Knife seized by the Carabinieri of Naples

SOMMA VESUVIANA - Hands banging on the door, windows closed, heart racing. A 46-year-old woman experienced moments of terror on Via Circumvallazione in Somma Vesuviana (Naples) when her ex-partner—a 49-year-old man already reported for abuse—surprised her while she was filling up at the gas station. It was a sudden, violent scene, played out in just a few minutes but leaving its mark. The man, driving a white Jeep, slammed on the brakes as soon as he saw her. He got out and lunged at the woman's car, a small black hatchback. First he attempted to open the passenger door, then, failing, he began pounding on the driver's door, screaming that he just wanted to talk to her. The screams, the punches, the rage: it all came together in a moment when fear took over.

The owner of the petrol station was the one to stop the violence between the various people present

Moments of terror that lasted three minutes but seemed endless. "He was screaming at me not to be afraid, but he was banging against the car with such force that I was shaking," the woman told the police, still in shock. Inside the car, the victim tried not to look at him, not to lower her gaze, not to make the mistake of opening the door. When she tried to drive away, the man grabbed onto the car, forcing it to stop. He pulled out the handle and turned the mirror backward, as if the car had become a barrier between him and what he couldn't accept: the end. The owner of the gas station interrupted the violence between those present, noticing the scene and confronting the man, forcing him to move away. The frightened woman managed to escape, stopping shortly after in front of a store to ask her family for help. A call to 911 was made a few minutes later, calling the couple's son, who told the police what was happening.

The woman had already reported her ex-partner twice

Carabinieri patrols from Somma Vesuviana arrived on Via Circumvallazione while fear was still palpable. Meanwhile, the attacker had returned to the scene. "I didn't do anything," he told officers. But surveillance camera footage told a different story, clear and unmistakable: that of a man who had chased, threatened, and attacked a woman who simply wanted to live in peace. The Carabinieri searched the 49-year-old and found a 17-centimeter-long switchblade in his purse. Arrested for domestic violence , the man was transferred to prison. The woman, taken to the station to file a complaint, tearfully explained that it wasn't the first time. She had already reported incidents of violence, and had already reported her ex twice. But the fear, the kind that makes you dizzy every time you hear a noise behind you, today threatened to become something much worse. Once again, the prompt action of a citizen and the intervention of the Carabinieri prevented a story of gender-based violence from turning into tragedy. The woman's determination and that door that remained closed.

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