A 58-year-old homemaker, Lucia Salemme, has been arrested for the fatal stabbing of her 59-year-old husband, Ciro Rapuano, following a violent argument in their Naples home in the early hours of the morning.
The homicide occurred in the couple’s bedroom in the Forcella district. Their adult daughter, in her thirties, and her seven-year-old granddaughter were asleep in the home at the time. The daughter was awakened by screams and discovered her mother armed with a knife, attacking her father—a scene thankfully missed by the young child, who was sleeping in another room.
Lucia Salemme called State Police around 3 a.m. and stated she had repeatedly been a victim of threats and aggression from her violent husband but had never previously filed a police report. This claim is supported by investigations which found no prior reports concerning the couple.
According to her statement, for which she now faces charges of voluntary homicide, the murder unfolded during a physical altercation. Salemme reported that her husband, who worked at a garage, attempted to strike her with a knife. While defending herself, she sustained a deep wound to her arm that later required over 30 stitches at a hospital. She told police that during the struggle, she discovered a second knife hidden under her husband’s pillow. She seized it and stabbed him repeatedly, including in the back, ultimately killing him. In her emergency call to the 113 line, she reportedly said, “Hurry, my husband has stabbed me.”
Following questioning by officers from the Naples Mobile Squad and prosecutor Giuliana Giuliano from the “vulnerable groups” unit, coordinated by deputy prosecutor Raffaello Falcone, Salemme was arrested on charges of voluntary homicide.
The community in Forcella has been left in shock by the event. A friend of the woman, Lina, expressed disbelief, stating, “Lucia is a very good girl, I don’t understand how this could have happened… She always dedicated herself to her family.” The couple’s home, purchased with a mortgage, was described as well-kept and orderly. Both individuals had no criminal history, with Rapuano having only a prior driving license suspension.
Investigations are ongoing. Authorities have indicated there are points that need clarification, and it is not excluded that further details may emerge during the suspect’s formal questioning before a judge.
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