Two comic book fans were arrested in the street at gunpoint because one of them was dressed as Deadpool for a film premiere.
Alessandro Botta and his friend Christian planned to attend a screening of the new superhero film in Locarno, Switzerland, on Monday.
The pair met at a bus stop in nearby Lugano with Christian already in full costume, which amused Mr Botta as he was wearing his under his clothes.
Two comic book fans were arrested in the street at gunpoint because one of them was dressed as Deadpool for a film premiere
As they walked to Mr Botta’s house to drive to the cinema, they were surrounded by armed police with their guns drawn.
Photos shared on social media showed at least five officers handcuffing the pair after forcing them to lie face-down on the footpath.
Mr Botta, 28, said he was surprised by the police reaction, especially that he was arrested while wearing normal clothes.
‘Neither of us thought it would be problem. I did not understand why and my attempt to tell him that it was a misunderstanding was useless,’ he told Tio.
As they walked to Mr Botta’s house to drive to the cinema, they were surrounded by armed police with their guns drawn
Photos shared on social media showed at least five officers handcuffing the pair after forcing them to lie face-down on the footpath
‘After the initial tension the police also realised what we were doing. The officers had a good laugh about it.’
After about an hour at the police station the friends were released, but Christian was fined under a Swiss ‘burqa ban’ prohibiting face coverings in public.
Lugano police said they responded immediately to a report of someone carrying two guns, which were part of Christian’s costume of the masked bounty hunter.
‘The procedure was part of operational tactics. [Police] have to intervene as quickly as possible when they receive this type of information,’ they said.
Security levels are heightened after terrorist attacks across Europe and the arrest of a 19-year-old who was planning a school massacre in the same area last Thursday.
Mr Botta said it was reassuring that the police responded to the report so quickly, even if this time it was a false alarm.
Lugano police said they responded immediately to a report of someone carrying two guns (pictured), which were part of Christian’s costume of the masked bounty hunter
The friends still made it to the movie and entertained other Deadpool fans with their costumes, posing for several photos at the cinema
The friends still made it to the movie and entertained other Deadpool fans with their costumes, posing for several photos at the cinema.
They then watched the movie in full costume while somehow eating popcorn through their red and black masks.
‘People were amused. And we sat in the audience, dressed as Deadpool, watching the movie. Despite everything, it was a great evening,’ Mr Botta said.
Swiss supermarket giant Migros mocked the police response on social media while advertising a peel-off mask saying ‘with this you won’t get arrested’.