Italian Police Arrest Members of the World's Most Dangerous 'Ndrangheta Mafia

Italian police arrested 33 men today, Wednesday, in a new initiative to tighten the noose around a Chinese network of financial intermediaries alleged to have laundered over 50 million euros (52.5 million dollars) from drug trade groups, including the 'Ndrangheta mafia. Colonel Francesco Ruisi of the Financial Crimes Police told Reuters that a distinctive aspect of the case is the established links between organizations like the 'Ndrangheta and Chinese entities providing financial services. Ruisi, who led the latest investigation in Rome, noted that an amount exceeding 50 million euros was traced in financial transfers, which does not depict the true scale of the case. "This is what we tracked from 2020 to 2022, but investigators cannot track all operations. It is like conducting surveillance; we only see about 20 percent of what is happening." The Financial Crimes Police stated in a communiqué that they arrested 33 individuals, including seven Chinese nationals, in Rome and six other Italian towns on charges of organized criminal conspiracy in drug trafficking and money laundering. The statement also mentioned that police confiscated nearly ten million euros from individuals responsible for transferring money abroad.