A fifth explosion in a week prompts protests and calls for tougher policing against organised crime in Rome suburbs.Another pipe bomb exploded in Rome’s eastern suburbs shortly before midnight on Thursday 8 October. It was the fifth in a week and the eighth attack in just over a month.The device went off in Via dei Platani in Centocelle, outside a car dealership near Mirti subway station on the Metro C line. Several cars were wrecked and the shutter was torn off. No one was hurt. Residents said the blast was louder than previous ones and was heard in neighbouring districts. The dealership was also damaged by a bomb a year ago. The attack came on the day residents’ groups, associations and political parties had chosen to protest against the spate of bombings, with a rally followed by a torchlight procession on Via Calpurnio Fiamma. The attacks so far Two bombs went off at the end of August in Via Casilina, outside a car rental business. Two more hit a bakery in Torre Maura and a business in Due Leoni the same night. In the latest series, a bomb damaged a rental car business on Via Casilina in the early hours of Saturday 3 October. Another hit a betting shop in Via Bottini, and a blast destroyed a wine shop in Via Calpurnio Fiamma. A device then went off in the entrance hall of a block of flats in San Basilio. Police say there have been at least 10 similar incidents in the area in recent months, and also point to attacks that date back to January 2025. Probe Investigators have seized footage from surveillance cameras in the area. They are checking whether the attacks are linked and whether a single mastermind is behind them. The anti-mafia prosecutors’ office has been looking at possible connections since the August attacks. The targets appear to be linked to figures with criminal records or past violence, including links to the Senese clan, according to local media reports. Others hit include businesses with no known links to crime, which makes the pattern harder to read. One theory is a turf war over the drug trade between established groups with links to mafia clans and a new generation of dealers. Another line of inquiry concerns why car rental firms are being targeted, with a possible link to drug dealers using hired vehicles. The weapon of choice is usually a home-made pipe bomb, which is cheap to make and hard to trace. Political reaction Roberto Morassut of the centre-left Partito Democratico (PD) has tabled a question to interior minister Matteo Piantedosi. He told news outlet Fanpage the area is one where first the Casamonica clan and then the Senese clan took root. He said the task now is to establish whether the big criminal networks are competing or clashing. Nicola Franco, the right-wing Fratelli d'Italia head of the Municipio VI borough, said “explosive materials circulate easily” in eastern Rome. He renewed his request to the prefect for two “red zones”, one between Tor Bella Monaca and Villaggio Falcone and another covering Borghesiana, Due Leoni and Grotte Celoni. He also called for more resources for the carabinieri stations at Tor Bella Monaca and Tor Vergata, and for the Casilino police station. Photo credit: Bratu Laurentiu / Shutterstock.com

Another pipe bomb exploded in Rome’s eastern suburbs shortly before midnight on Thursday 8 October. It was the fifth in a week and the eighth attack in just over a month. The device went off in Via dei Platani in Centocelle, outside a car dealership near Mirti subway station on the Metro C line. Several cars were wrecked and the shutter was torn off. No one was hurt. Residents said the blast was louder than previous ones and was heard in neighbouring districts. The dealership was also damaged by a bomb a year ago. The attack came on the day residents’ groups, associations and political parties had chosen to protest against the spate of bombings, with a rally followed by a torchlight procession on Via Calpurnio Fiamma. Two bombs went off at the end of August in Via Casilina, outside a car rental business. Two more hit a bakery in Torre Maura and a business in Due Leoni the same night. In the latest series, a bomb damaged a rental car business on Via Casilina in the early hours of Saturday 3 October. Another hit a betting shop in Via Bottini, and a blast destroyed a wine shop in Via Calpurnio Fiamma. A device then went off in the entrance hall of a block of flats in San Basilio. Police say there have been at least 10 similar incidents in the area in recent months, and also point to attacks that date back to January 2025. Investigators have seized footage from surveillance cameras in the area. They are checking whether the attacks are linked and whether a single mastermind is behind them. The anti-mafia prosecutors’ office has been looking at possible connections since the August attacks. The targets appear to be linked to figures with criminal records or past violence, including links to the Senese clan, according to local media reports. Others hit include businesses with no known links to crime, which makes the pattern harder to read. One theory is a turf war over the drug trade between established groups with links to mafia clans and a new generation of dealers. Another line of inquiry concerns why car rental firms are being targeted, with a possible link to drug dealers using hired vehicles. The weapon of choice is usually a home-made pipe bomb, which is cheap to make and hard to trace. Roberto Morassut of the centre-left Partito Democratico (PD) has tabled a question to interior minister Matteo Piantedosi. He told news outlet Fanpage the area is one where first the Casamonica clan and then the Senese clan took root. He said the task now is to establish whether the big criminal networks are competing or clashing. Nicola Franco, the right-wing Fratelli d'Italia head of the Municipio VI borough, said “explosive materials circulate easily” in eastern Rome. He renewed his request to the prefect for two “red zones”, one between Tor Bella Monaca and Villaggio Falcone and another covering Borghesiana, Due Leoni and Grotte Celoni. He also called for more resources for the carabinieri stations at Tor Bella Monaca and Tor Vergata, and for the Casilino police station. Photo credit: Bratu Laurentiu / Shutterstock.com