Italy appeals court upholds conviction of 2 Americans in death of policeman but reduces sentences

Associated Press

ROME (AP) — An Italian appeals court has upheld the convictions of two American men in the killing of an Italian plainclothes police officer during a botched sting operation but reduced their sentences. The new trial was ordered after Italy’s highest court threw out their original convictions. The court on Wednesday convicted Lee Elder Finnegan and sentenced him to 15 years and 2 months in prison. It gave a sentence of 11 years and four months, along with a fine, to Gabriele Natale-Hjorth. They were found guilty in the July 2019 killing of Carabinieri Vice Brigadier Mario Cerciello Rega. The new verdict drew acceptance from the men’s families and disappointment from the officer’s widow.