The attempted robbery at a house in Rome's "Prati" district on August 20th was reported by the Italian press with the headline "Intellectual Thief."
It was stated that a person, who broke into the house, became fixated on a book he saw in the homeowner's bedroom and began reading it on the bed.
The 71-year-old homeowner noticed the intruder shortly after and alerted the authorities, who then arrested the thief.
The book that led to the thief's capture was Giovanni Nucci's "Gli Dei Alle Sei," which focuses on Homer's Iliad.
The 38-year-old thief denied committing theft in his police statement, claiming, "I had an appointment and went to the apartment terrace to look at the view while waiting. Then I fell onto the veranda below, which I thought was a guesthouse. While waiting to recover from the shock of falling, I noticed the book and was deeply affected by it."
Despite this claim, it was reported that some designer clothes found in the thief's bag at the time of his arrest were identified as stolen from elsewhere, proving the theft.
