Caserta - An open-air drug supermarket, run by a criminal network composed entirely of African citizens.
The State Police have dismantled a hashish trafficking organization that had controlled the "Largo Rotonda" in San Nicola La Strada for months, transforming a public park into a 24-hour drug dealing hub.
The operation: 22 precautionary custody orders
This morning, the Caserta Flying Squad executed a precautionary custody order issued by the preliminary investigations judge of the Court of Naples at the request of the District Anti-Mafia Prosecutor's Office. A total of 22 individuals, all of Central African ethnicity, were arrested on charges of conspiracy to traffic narcotics.
The base of operations: the Largo Rotonda of San Nicola La Strada
The heart of the criminal operations was Largo Rotonda, a green space bordering a major road on the outskirts of Caserta. According to investigators, this location had become a veritable "drug dealing hub" specializing in hashish, run exclusively by non-EU citizens who operated at all hours of the day and night.
The control system: cameras and horizontal structure
The investigation, coordinated by the Naples Public Prosecutor's Office, revealed a criminal organization with a horizontal structure, where roles were swapped among members to evade controls. This sophisticated system, however, did not survive the installation of dozens of surveillance cameras by the police.
The footage documented countless hashish deals, allowing officers not only to seize the drugs but also to identify and report numerous individuals involved to the administrative authorities.
The profiles of those arrested: all already known to law enforcement
All 22 arrested, as revealed by the Caserta Flying Squad's investigation, had extensive criminal records for drug possession and trafficking. This confirms that they were professional criminals, specializing in the retail drug trade.
The operation represents a significant blow to drug trafficking in the Caserta province, but it also highlights the entrenched control of the drug market by criminal organizations composed of non-EU citizens, who manage drug dealing hubs with increasingly organized and unscrupulous methods.
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