Italian authorities announced on Wednesday a vast operation against the notorious Calabrian mafia, the ‘Ndrangheta. So far 200 individuals are under investigation, including 97 for whom arrest warrants have been issued.
A singular structure overseeing mafia families in Calabria was responsible for importing large quantities of cocaine concealed in containers shipped from abroad, specifically Colombia, Brazil, and Panama, according to a statement from the Carabinieri.
Port operators bribed by the mafia managed the removal of drugs from the Calabrian port of Gioia Tauro, distributing them across the country through a well-established network orchestrated by the mafia families.
These families also extorted local business owners and had the capacity to infiltrate public administrations to obtain information on “tender procedures,” and to embed themselves in economic activities.
Out of the 97 perons under arrest warrants, 16 were placed under house arrest while 81 were to be incarcerated, although it was unclear how many were already in prison for other prior charges.
The operation took place not only in Calabria but also in Rome, Milan, Bologna, Rimini, Verona, and Turin.
The ‘Ndrangheta is Italy’s most powerful and wealthiest mafia, primarily due to its near-monopoly on cocaine trafficking in Europe.
Active in about 40 countries, it exerts a suffocating grip on its native region, infiltrating and corrupting local administrations while imposing its brutal rule on the population.
