ROME – Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has branded the blindfolding by police of one of the two American teenagers accused of killing a Carabiniere paramilitary policeman last week a “crime.” The photo is the subject of an internal investigation and the officer responsible has been moved to a non-operational department, according to police sources.

 Christian Gabriel Natale-Hjorth, 18, is shown blindfolded and handcuffed in the photo, which was posted on internal chat lines Friday before being leaked to social media. His traveling partner Elder Finnegan Lee, 19, has confessed to the killing of Mario Cerciello Rega.

 Pointing out that the victim in all this is still Rega, Conte nevertheless said that the blindfolding would constitute a crime and the diffusion of the photo online another. “Italy is a state of law,” he said, with “concrete principles and values.”

 The photo has the potential to raise doubts over Lee’s confession and may be used in their defence. A “shocking image” was how CNN described the photo and many other American media outlets expressed similar sentiments. From the Washington Post to the Los Angeles Times, commentators spoke of an “illegal act.”  

 Interior Minister Matteo Salvini though was quick to downplay the photo. “To those who complain about the blindfolding of an arrested man, I remember that the only victim to cry for is a man, a 35-year-old husband,” he said on Twitter.

 Democratic Party senator Andrea Marcucci strongly condemned the incident, taking to Twitter to express his “horror at the photo of the blindfolded suspect. Horror for [the fact that] the Interior Minister’s party is using it. Salvini won’t take us to South America.”

 Both teenagers are from California and were on holiday in Rome.

 Natale-Hjorth and Lee were arrested Friday at their upmarket hotel, Le Meridien Visconti near the Piazza Cavour and questioned at the police headquarters in Via In Salci. Police discovered the knife used in the attack hidden behind a ceiling panel in their hotel room, as well as the clothes they had worn on the night.

 Rega was stabbed to death Thursday night in Prati, smart district of Rome. He died in hospital from a serious haemorrhage, according to the autopsy carried out Saturday. He had been stabbed 11 times (rather than 8, as was initially reported). His funeral takes place Monday.

 The Americans had been looking for drugs in Trastevere but were sold aspirin, according to reconstructions by investigators. To recover their money, they stole a bag from the supposed drug dealer, who rang the police when the American teenagers tried to sell the bag back to him for 100 euros.

 Two plainclothes officers responded, attempting to arrest the pair in Via Pietro Cossa, but a brawl broke out in which Rega was stabbed. There are still many elements of the story which remain unclear.

 Rega’s police partner, who was involved in the altercation, had described the men involved: one was “probably north African, about 1.8 metres, wearing jeans and a checkered shirt. The other has a tattoo on his right arm.” Media sources reported that the suspects were North Africans, leading some like Brothers of Italy leader Giorgia Meloni to brand the “Maghrebis” as “beasts” and “animals.”

 They were also initially reported to be students at John Cabot University, but the university has denied this.

 Deputy sergeant Rega was from Somma Vesuviana. He had been married for a little over a month.

 “They have killed me,” said his wife outside the Santo Spirito mortuary in Rome Friday. Over 100 members of his family and friends from Campania arrived at the capital to pay their respects.

 Politicians from all parties paid tribute to the policeman and condemned the violence. Italian President Sergio Mattarella wrote of his “profound sadness” on hearing the news, and expressed his support for the Carabinieri.

 “I hug his wife, his family and his loved ones in a strong embrace,” said Italian Defence Minister Elizabetta Trenta. “I am close to the Carabinieri and to all the men and women who daily risk their lives to guaranty our safety. I ask for zero tolerance for the criminals who committed this vile act.”

 Interior Minister Matteo Salvini was forthright in the immediate aftermath: “Manhunt in Rome to capture the bastard who tonight stabbed a Carabiniere to death…forced labour in prison for as long as he lives.”

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