A man from Slovakia, who had been on the run from Italian authorities for 16 years, was apprehended upon his return to the country to support his national ice hockey team at the Winter Olympics. Despite his efforts to attend the event, the 44-year-old, whose identity remains undisclosed, was intercepted by police before reaching the arena due to an outstanding arrest warrant issued in 2010 for multiple shop thefts he allegedly committed.
The Carabinieri police confirmed that the man has been sentenced to serve 11 months and seven days for his past crimes. Authorities located him after he checked into a guesthouse on the outskirts of Milan, willingly returning to Italy despite being a wanted fugitive.
The Winter Games’ ice hockey competitions are taking place at two different arenas in Milan, the Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena and the Rho Ice Hockey Arena. The man planned to attend the former on a Wednesday evening, but he was taken into custody before his arrival and subsequently transferred to the central San Vittore Prison.
Meanwhile, Slovakia’s men’s ice hockey team achieved a surprising victory over Finland with a score of 4-1 in their Olympics opener. Their upcoming matches include facing Italy on Friday and Sweden on Saturday to conclude the preliminary round.
Noteworthy events at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics include Lindsey Vonn’s unfortunate injury during a race without an ACL, and Jutta Leerdam’s thrilling triumph in speed skating, upgrading her silver medal to gold. Team GB is still striving for their first medal, with high hopes resting on skeleton world champion Matt Weston’s pursuit of gold in the upcoming final.
For those following the Winter Olympic action, the games run from February 6 to 22, and fans can catch over 850 hours of live coverage on discovery+ via Prime Video. Subscribing to the £3.99 discovery+ Entertainment package grants access to TNT Sports 2 for continuous Olympic content.
To stay informed on the latest news, consider selecting Daily Mirror as a “Preferred Source” on Google News for immediate updates.