Who stole the 'iconic' Costa Concordia bell?

Updated


Who stole the 'iconic' Cost Concordia bell?
Who stole the 'iconic' Cost Concordia bell?

Rex


An investigation has been launched in Italy into the disappearance of the bell from the sunken Costa Concordia cruise ship.

It is currently thought that "souvenir hunters" dived eight metres under water to retrieve the bell as trophy.

According to the Huffington Post, Franco Gabrielli, of Italy's national office for search and salvage efforts, said the bell disappeared several days ago.

The bell weighs 10kg and is engraved with the name of the Concordia as well as the year it was launched, 2006.

The leader of the investigation, prosecutor Francesco Verusio, told the Daily Mail: "I can confirm we are looking into the theft of the Concordia's bell. It disappeared around two weeks ago and we had tried to keep the news quiet.

"The area is under surveillance, but the depth the bell was at was only eight metres so it's not very deep and at night it's very possible someone went down there when it was dark.

"The bell was secured with heavy duty bolts, so the theory we are looking at is that it would have taken more than one person to take it. Only authorised divers and boats are allowed near the site as well as the team involved in removing the fuel from the Concordia's tankers."

The Costa Concordia, which had more than 4,000 passengers and crew on board, sunk after it crashed onto rocks when the captain, Francesco Schettino, carried out a sail-by salute of Giglio in Italy.

He is currently under investigation for causing a shipwreck, multiple manslaughter, abandoning ship ,and damaging a protected natural environment.

Work continues daily in searching for the seven remaining missing people,who are now presumed dead, as well as removing fuel from the wreckage.

Twenty five people have been confirmed dead following in the disaster.


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