A car of the Italian Carabinieri, paramilitary police, is parked near a blood stain, the site where Carabiniere Vice Brigadier Mario Cerciello Rega was stabbed to death by a thief in Rome, Friday, July 26, 2019.From San Francisco, Elder's parents said they have not yet spoken to their son.
"We write as a family to express our deepest condolences to the grieving family and community that loved Brigadier Cerciello Rega," the Elder family said in a statement to ABC News. "We are shocked and dismayed at the events that have been reported, but have very little independent information about these events. We have not been able to have any communication with our son. We ask that you respect our privacy during this difficult time. Our thoughts are with all of those who have been impacted by this tragedy."
ABC News was not immediately able to reach representatives of Hjorth.
Police allege that Elder and Hjorth were trying to buy drugs before the alleged murder, but were sold a fake substance, a police spokesman told ABC News.
They then allegedly robbed a man of his backpack, police said.
When Elder and Hjorth allegedly demanded that the man pay them to have his backpack returned, the man agreed, but he also reported the alleged extortion attempt to police, a police spokesman said. Rega, who worked for the Carabinieri, Italy's paramilitary police corps, in Rome, was dispatched to the scene.
Italian police say that a scuffle broke out and that Rega was stabbed and killed.
According to the Italian state news agency ANSA, the two Americans were able to escape briefly, but investigators tracked them to their luxury hotel room as they were preparing to leave.
(MORE: Amanda Knox returns to Italy for 1st time since her acquittal) Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini posted a photo of Rega from his wedding last month on his Twitter account.
Salvini had said before the official announcement of the teens' arrests and confessions that they would make the culprits "pay dearly," according to The Associated Press.
ABC News' Kirit Radia contributed to this report.
Kaynak:Abcnews
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