Kansas Tourist Murdered 74-Year-Old Shopkeeper In Italy, Stole Clothes, Wallet, Police Say

An American citizen was arrested Saturday in connection with the murder of a shopkeeper in Viterbo, a city near Rome.

Lt. Col. Guglielmo Trombetta of Italy's paramilitary police told CNN that 22-year-old Michael Aaron Pang from Overland Park, Kansas, allegedly beat 74-year-old Norveo Fedeli to death with an iron stool after he was unable to pay for the clothes he had ordered. The victim’s body was found inside the shop Friday.

Pang, who was born in South Korea, arrived in Italy about two months ago and rented a bed in the village of Capodimonte. Investigators said Pang had ordered clothes worth $673 from the shop and had been to the store on April 30 and May 3 to purchase it. However, his credit card was declined. Investigators believe on the day of the murder, the two got into a scuffle before Pang killed the shopkeeper.

Trombetta said, the payments were blocked and so “when the boy returned and the shopkeeper refused to sell him the merchandise, they started fighting,"

After killing Fedeli, Pang changed his clothes and stole the victim’s wallet before fleeing from the scene. Trombetta said Pang was identified using CCTV footage after the murder which showed him walking out of the shop with a plastic bag. He was also seen covering one of his feet as it had blood stains.

Investigators searched Pang’s room and found the victim’s wallet along with other evidence linked to the killing. He was taken into custody and charged with murder and robbery. He was scheduled to appear in court Monday.

Speaking to the Associated Press, Pang’s lawyer, Remigio Sicilia, said his client came to Italy on a tourist visa in mid-February and was keen on learning Italian. He also showed interest in living in Italy. Sicilia also added that Pang did not have a criminal history.

"He's 22, but he is like a child. He's a well-behaved boy from a good American family,” the lawyer said.

Describing Pang as “gentle,” Trombetta said, "He was gentle with everyone and always greeted everyone.” He added that Pang did not know the local language and used mobile phone translator to communicate with the locals.