Salvo D'Acquisto

Salvo D'Acquisto was a member of the Italian Carabinieri during the Second World War.

After Italy switched sides in September 1943, joining the Allies, the Germans occupied the northern part of the country. On 22 September two German soldiers were killed and two others wounded when some boxes of abandoned munitions they were inspecting exploded. The Germans insisted it was sabotage, and the next day they rounded up 22 civilians to try to get them to name the saboteurs. The soldiers made the prisoners dig their own graves when they continued to protest their innocence. D'Acquisto, in charge of the local Carabinieri post, was taken to the prisoners. When it became clear that the Germans intended to kill them, D'Acquisto "confessed" to being solely responsible. He was executed by firing squad, but the civilians were released unharmed.