Palermo man found dead in Zen street after confronting suspected thieves in storage boxes

Death on via Costante Girardengo

Vito Genovese, a 45-year-old with no criminal record, was found dead in the street on via Costante Girardengo in the Zen public housing district of Palermo during the night of Friday, 14 August 2026. His wife alerted emergency services, making the body's discovery possible. When carabinieri and 118 medics arrived at the scene, Genovese was already lying on the ground. Rescuers attempted to assist him, but there was nothing more to be done. The body was discovered around 3 AM. The alarm was triggered on Friday night after a phone call reporting a fight, and both carabinieri and medical personnel responded to via Costante Girardengo. A medical examiner was also dispatched to the location to begin establishing the causes of death, which remain unclear.

What investigators believe happened

Carabinieri are working on a preliminary hypothesis that Genovese surprised thieves rummaging through storage boxes belonging to the public housing apartments along via Costante Girardengo. A fight broke out, during which he was struck in several parts of the body by a blunt object. According to a first reconstruction still under review, Genovese was first struck with a helmet and then in the face with a screwdriver, probably after catching thieves stealing from the boxes of a residential building. The blow to the face may have been fatal, leaving the victim no escape. The dynamics remain to be clarified in detail, and medical-legal examinations will establish precisely what caused the death of the 45-year-old. The weapon, described as possibly a screwdriver, has not yet been recovered, and carabinieri are actively searching for it.

A possible witness at the hospital

A 47-year-old Zen resident, Domenico D'Anna, presented at the emergency room of the Cervello hospital with a shoulder wound and a broken rib. He told medical staff he had been injured during a fight. He may have been one of the people who intervened to help Genovese after the attack. Carabinieri have summoned several people for questioning at the barracks, and their accounts could help establish what happened inside the boxes and, above all, what occurred during the fight. Genovese's wife has also been questioned by carabinieri along with other witnesses. It remains unclear whether she was at the window and witnessed the aggression that followed the fight, or whether she was with her husband at the time she called for help.

Investigation underway

Carabinieri are working to reconstruct the few minutes that preceded Genovese's death. Surveillance cameras in the area are being checked for footage of the alleged break-in, the fight, and the moments that followed. The images could allow investigators to put a face to those involved and establish a precise order of events. The medical examiner will examine the wound and Genovese's overall condition to determine whether death was caused directly by the blow received or whether other factors intervened. The reconstruction remains an investigative hypothesis at this stage. Several people have been brought to the barracks to be questioned about what they saw or heard during the night, and their testimony could prove decisive in clarifying the sequence of events that led to Genovese's death.