Fire Damage and Theft at Bar Sirena Raise Alarm in Garda Area
Fire at Bar Sirena and a Nighttime Theft
Smoke and flames at Bar Sirena. During the night between Tuesday and Wednesday, unknown individuals targeted Lorenzo Boni’s establishment, located on the Rivalunga promenade at the border with Garda. The criminals left empty-handed but caused significant damage in their wake.
The incident, coming just a week after another attempted arson, raises the level of alert in the town and among bar and restaurant owners, with concerns high. The facts are these: for still-uncertain reasons, fire broke out inside the Bar Sirena last night, heavily damaging the bar area, with an initial estimate of damages around one hundred thousand euros.
Intervention and Damages
Fortunately, the criminals’ operation could have been much more serious if, just before two o’clock and during a routine patrol, a Adige surveillance officer had not noticed the smell of smoke emanating from the venue. The bar owners and firefighters were immediately alerted, and the fire was contained before spreading to other rooms.
All this happened without a single witness, despite the presence of the La Rocca campsite just a few dozen meters away. The late hour and the darkness of the area undoubtedly favored the culprits, who entered the premises after breaking with their hands – leaves evident blood traces scattered everywhere – a corner of the large glass window overlooking the terrace.
Theft and Vandalism Inside the Venue
Once inside, the thieves attacked the cash register (even removing the keys one by one) in the hope, which proved unfounded, of finding the day’s cash. Possibly driven by anger over a failed theft, they began tearing out the wires of the computer used for customer orders, then emptied the drawers and freezers of ice cream.
They then moved into the kitchen, but apart from some brioche, they did not touch anything else. It appears they did not even go up the stairs leading below, to the storage room and the adjacent bedroom, which during summer is used by the managers. The owners, given the late closing hour during the season, prefer to stay overnight rather than return home to Bardolino hill.
