I’m aware that this scam is hardly the preserve of Genoa, I’ve seen it in Rome, Florence, Athens and Milan, but it still feels sub-optimal. I’ve blurred out the two ‘victims’ in this photo but I saw numerous people being upset by this and so it appears they weren’t aware of how it worked despite it being such a common scam.
But, in short, they offer to put a free bracelet or some other rubbish on the wrist whilst trying to be engaging and welcoming. The aim is that the tourists, who are looking to enjoy their day, are pleased to be offered something for free and they make conversation. They are then asked for a donation and it’s hard to remove the bracelet now it’s firmly attached to the wrist of the victim.
I did ignore four different people trying it on me, although it’s never going to work on me as I don’t want a free bracelet. Indeed, I don’t want any adornments of any kind even if they were complimentary. Now, if they tried giving me a decadent can of craft beer, then they might be in business.
The whole arrangement here saddens me as it causes distress, from minor annoyance to general upset, to those targeted, brings the area into disrepute and I can see a relatively large number of negative online reviews about the area because of it. Although this certainly isn’t a new thing, there’s a review from 15 years from someone who felt intimidated by it happening in the Genoa Waterfront Marina area.
I’m not sure if it’s a criminal offence or not, but some of the behaviour I saw today from victims who pushed back was certainly verging on harassment and threats of violence. There were a fair few Carabinieri nearby, so perhaps those involved know just how far to push their little scam without getting into trouble.