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Italian Police Arrest Fugitive of 16 Years Who Tried to Attend Olympic Hockey Game

The Slovakian national was taken into custody Wednesday.
Patrick Andres|
A trip to Milan to attend Slovakia’s game against Finland resulted in a trip to jail for a native of the former country.
A trip to Milan to attend Slovakia’s game against Finland resulted in a trip to jail for a native of the former country. | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Police in Italy arrested a fugitive wanted for 16 years Wednesday as he attempted to attend Slovakia’s Olympic men’s hockey opener against Finland, ANSA—Italy’s equivalent of the AP—reported Wednesday via a number of English-language outlets.

Per ANSA via the RTE in Ireland, the 44-year-old Slovakian national was wanted for committing a series of shop thefts in Italy in 2010.

When he came to Milan to attend the game, police learned the location of the guesthouse where he was staying and apprehended him. He will now serve a little under a year in prison for his crimes.

Slovakia—a hockey-loving nation that won bronze in the men’s tournament in Beijing in 2022—opened its 2026 campaign by upsetting Finland 4–1 at the PalaItalia in Milan.

The country—seeking its first medal at the Milan Cortina Games—will play Italy on Friday before rounding out group play against Sweden on Saturday. Slovakia is currently second in its group behind the Swedes, who beat the Italians 5–2 Wednesday.

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Patrick Andres
PATRICK ANDRES

Patrick Andres is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He joined SI in December 2022, having worked for The Blade, Athlon Sports, Fear the Sword and Diamond Digest. Andres has covered everything from zero-attendance Big Ten basketball to a seven-overtime college football game. He is a graduate of Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism with a double major in history .

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