Relics Making News

Relics Making News: San Gennaro Relic Theft Swiftly Thwarted

Laura Ruberto

18 Jul 2026 • 5 min read

Relics displayed on bust of San Gennaro in Naples, Italy Cathedral. The miter recently was stolen and recovered. Image Credit: Laura Ruberto.

A City and Its Saint

Naples, Italy has a reputation of being beautiful (think Naples Bay, churches, Mount Vesuvius), chaotic (think crowds, red tape, and stretched public services), and vibrant (think festival culture, street life, and pizza). Neapolitans are also deeply religious and devoted to San Gennaro, their fairly obscure patron saint. But on July 8^th, when a man went to the Naples cathedral and nabbed San Gennaro’s miter, this saint was suddenly worldwide news! Fortunately, the Carabinieri were able to apprehend the perpetrator. While this attempted theft is definitely an “all’s well that ends well” tale, it invites us to take a deeper look into San Gennaro.

Naples Bay with Mount Vesuvius in the background. Image credit: Creative Commons.

This beloved martyred bishop is called the protector--and with good reason. Devotion to San Gennaro's relics brought about miracles since at least the early 6^th century and grew ever after. An extraordinary example of these miracles happened over a thousand years later on December 16,1631 when Mount Vesuvius’ violent eruption threatened to destroy Naples. The faithful carried the relics in procession, begged for the saint's intercession, and the looming lava flows stopped in their tracks. Is it any wonder he is still remembered and so loved there?

More than a protector, this holy man is also known for another unusual miracle--his blood liquification. Yes, you read that right. An ampule of his blood is taken out on special days and turns from solid to liquid. Quite a phenomenon in itself, and it comes with all the requisite processions and festivities Neapolitans are known for. My husband and I wrote about and videoed our experience of the blood miracle (spoiler alert: it liquified!) and what we learned while celebrating there.

Waiting on a (blood) miracle. Image Credit: John Ruberto.

Below is more information on San Gennaro, followed by details of the relic theft.

Who Was San Gennaro/St. Januarius?

Birth and death: unknown - 305 AD (beheaded during the Diocletian Persecution)
Feast day: September 19 (primary feast day, especially observed in Naples with the blood miracle and processions; also, December 16 and early May)
Country of origin: Italy (Benevento area in the Campania region).
Country of service: Italy (he served as Bishop of Benevento).
Known for: His martyrdom and, above all, the long-attested miraculous liquefaction of his blood, preserved in sealed glass vials in Naples Cathedral. When the reliquary containing the blood is taken out during designated expositions, the dark solid mass becomes liquid, bubbles, froths, and sometimes changes in volume — a phenomenon recorded for centuries.
Virtues exhibited: Steadfast faith and courage in the face of persecution and martyrdom; pastoral charity in his willingness to visit and support imprisoned Christians though he was arrested there and ultimately beheaded for not renouncing the faith.
You might not know: A group of devout local women known as the parenti/zie di San Gennaro (“relatives/aunts of San Gennaro”) have a longstanding tradition of gathering during the public expositions of the relics. They offer particularly fervent prayers and supplications for the liquefaction to occur, sometimes with great emotion when there is any delay. Their role highlights the deeply familial and popular devotion of the Neapolitan people to their patron saint, treating him almost as a beloved family member who continues to watch over and protect the city.
Patron of: Naples, Italy; blood banks and blood donors; widely invoked for protection against volcanic eruptions and in times of calamity.

Taking the saint to the streets on December 15, 2024, the eve of the Vesuvius miracle anniversary. Image Credit: Laura Ruberto.

Heist Highlights

The popular patron has a fittingly beautiful chapel in the cathedral. His miter is kept on a silver reliquary bust. The thief went in and boldly made his move. Here’s how it happened.

· When: Morning of July 8, 2026.

· Where: Naples Cathedral (Duomo di Napoli), in the Chapel of San Gennaro, at an altar displaying a silver bust reliquary.

· What: Attempted theft of the bishop’s miter from the silver bust of the saint. This was a devotional silver piece of historical and religious significance on display.

· Who: Allegedly a 43-year-old foreign national (extracomunitario). No name given.

· Why/How: The man entered blending with tourists and worshippers, approached the bust, removed the miter, and left with it. Reports describe a quick action without devotional gesture, though one account notes he had bought a flower shortly beforehand and may have left it as a gift. The motive appears opportunistic (or possibly personal/delusional factors); there is no sign of an attempt on the blood relics themselves or targeting of the multi-million-dollar jeweled pieces in the nearby Treasury museum.

This brilliant miter—valued at more than the Crown Jewels and weighing in at 40 pounds!—is kept in a museum and was not the object of the theft. Image credit: Creative Commons.

I Spy a Coordinated Capture

A cathedral custodian noticed the theft at once and called 112 (Naples equivalent of 911). Police operations reviewed live CCTV, tracked the suspect, and alerted a nearby Italian Army patrol on security duty. Soldiers quickly pursued and intercepted the perpetrator a short distance away from the duomo while he still had the relic. The Carabinieri arrived shortly after and made the formal arrest. The miter was recovered on the spot and returned to the chapel. The man faces charges of aggravated attempted theft and is in custody.

San Gennaro’s historic headpiece is a relic making news. Who knows why the accused man was motivated to try to make off with the miter that morning? In the end, the smooth coordination between the cathedral staff, the Naples Provincial Command Operations Center, the Army, and the Mobile Carabinieri Unit prevented any loss. Perhaps this remarkable collaboration in a city known for its embedded bureaucracy is yet another miracle of the wonder-working saint of Naples.

San Gennaro, pray for us!