2 Italian police suspended after alleged rape of US students

ROME – Italy’s Carabinieri paramilitary police corps has suspended on a precautionary basis two policemen who allegedly raped two American students in Florence while on duty.

The Carabinieri provincial office’s command in Florence said the two were notified Saturday of the measure.

It stressed the suspension reflects alleged conduct while on duty and is separate from Florence prosecutors’ criminal investigation of the alleged rapes. The women told authorities that the police, in uniform, drove them home from a disco early Thursday morning because they couldn’t find a taxi, then raped them inside their apartment building.

Investigators are awaiting DNA test results to see if they confirm the women’s account.

Besides the rape allegations, the policemen risk disciplinary charges for driving the women home without informing their superiors.

The students are studying Italian in Florence.