How Does a 74-Year-Old in Argentina Escape House Arrest on the Fifth Floor?

What the report says

Leonardo Bertulazzi, a 74-year-old Italian former Red Brigades member, escaped house arrest in Buenos Aires this week while Argentina was preparing to extradite him to Italy, according to the New York Times. He had been confined to a fifth-floor apartment and was awaiting transfer on terrorism-related charges tied to his role in the 1978 kidnapping and killing of Italian Prime Minister Aldo Moro. Argentine officials said he had been under police watch and wore an ankle monitor because of the pending extradition and his reported health problems.

Investigators believe Bertulazzi fled on Tuesday morning, during a period when police attention in Buenos Aires was stretched by Pope Leo’s visit. The Times reported that officers found signs of a planned escape inside the apartment, including a damaged monitoring setup and equipment that suggested he had tried to make the ankle device appear still attached to a leg. Authorities also found climbing gear at the window. Local footage reviewed by investigators showed a man in dark clothes falling over a fence, getting up and limping away.

His lawyer said Bertulazzi’s age and medical condition made flight understandable, while Argentine authorities launched a search and offered a reward for information leading to his arrest. If recaptured, he could face additional charges for evading justice. The case highlights the long legal and political afterlife of Europe’s 1970s extremist violence, as well as President Javier Milei’s tougher approach to extradition and public security.