Homeowner who shot and injured an intruder not under investigation thanks to new rules on self-defence.Italian premier Giorgia Meloni on Wednesday said that self-defence is "always legitimate", commenting on the case of a man who shot and injured an intruder during an attempted robbery at his home near Rovigo in northern Italy.The 68-year-old owner of the property was cleared after shooting and wounding the would-be burglar inside his villa in Grignano Polesine on Monday evening, under a new legitimate self-defence law passed by Meloni's government. In previous such cases, home and business owners who have shot intruders have often been placed under investigation on suspicion of excessive self-defence. Investigation Rovigo police have been investigating the attempted robbery by two or three individuals, one of whom was injured by a gunshot fired by the homeowner. Police alerted local hospitals to see if anyone had sought medical treatment for gunshot wounds however so far the search has been unsuccessful. La difesa è sempre legittima pic.twitter.com/HdTRNhjmj2— Giorgia Meloni (@GiorgiaMeloni) November 5, 2025 It was the second time that the man's house had been broken into, according to local newspaper La Voce di Rovigo, which reported that "given the modest amount of blood found at the scene, the feeling is that it may have been a graze wound and that the person who sustained it is not in serious condition". Prosecutor Rovigo public prosecutor Manuela Fasolato in a statement reiterated that the investigation is not focused on excessive self-defence, but only for the attempted aggravated robbery by the injured and still-wanted suspect. "The victim fired, aiming at non-vital areas, with a properly registered weapon, to defend himself from a man wearing a balaclava who was inside his home in the dark and who was attempting to attack him with a screwdriver despite the alarm having been triggered and despite the victim having already loudly warned that he was armed and had also asked those inside his home to leave", Fasolato stated. Salvini Italy's deputy prime minister Matteo Salvini echoed the comments by Meloni, stressing that the new rules were pushed through by his right-wing Lega party to "protect decent citizens", adding: "As we have maintained for years, self-defence is always legitimate." Photo Tgcom24

Italian premier Giorgia Meloni on Wednesday said that self-defence is "always legitimate", commenting on the case of a man who shot and injured an intruder during an attempted robbery at his home near Rovigo in northern Italy. The 68-year-old owner of the property was cleared after shooting and wounding the would-be burglar inside his villa in Grignano Polesine on Monday evening, under a new legitimate self-defence law passed by Meloni's government. In previous such cases, home and business owners who have shot intruders have often been placed under investigation on suspicion of excessive self-defence. Investigation Rovigo police have been investigating the attempted robbery by two or three individuals, one of whom was injured by a gunshot fired by the homeowner. Police alerted local hospitals to see if anyone had sought medical treatment for gunshot wounds however so far the search has been unsuccessful. La difesa è sempre legittima — Giorgia Meloni (@GiorgiaMeloni) It was the second time that the man's house had been broken into, according to local newspaper La Voce di Rovigo, which reported that "given the modest amount of blood found at the scene, the feeling is that it may have been a graze wound and that the person who sustained it is not in serious condition". Prosecutor Rovigo public prosecutor Manuela Fasolato in a statement reiterated that the investigation is not focused on excessive self-defence, but only for the attempted aggravated robbery by the injured and still-wanted suspect. "The victim fired, aiming at non-vital areas, with a properly registered weapon, to defend himself from a man wearing a balaclava who was inside his home in the dark and who was attempting to attack him with a screwdriver despite the alarm having been triggered and despite the victim having already loudly warned that he was armed and had also asked those inside his home to leave", Fasolato stated. Salvini Italy's deputy prime minister Matteo Salvini echoed the comments by Meloni, stressing that the new rules were pushed through by his right-wing Lega party to "protect decent citizens", adding: "As we have maintained for years, self-defence is always legitimate."