A widespread network involving drug trafficking, kidnappings for ransom, prostitution, and counterfeit currency was busted this morning by the Carabinieri of Agropoli, acting on orders from the Salerno District Anti-Mafia Directorate. Eighteen men were placed under precautionary measures, eleven of whom were transferred to prison, while the other seven were placed under house arrest. The investigation has reconstructed a criminal network capable of creating a veritable drug market between Capaccio-Paestum and the rest of the Salerno area, fueled by suppliers from Naples and protected by the systematic use of violence.
At the heart of the investigation is the kidnapping of one of the suspects, abducted at gunpoint for running up a debt of between twenty and forty-four thousand euros related to previous drug supplies. The group punished those who didn't pay and stored the "goods" inside a tourist facility that also served as a logistical base for the prostitution ring. It was there, according to the magistrates, that several women were employed, forced to hand over their earnings and threatened when they attempted to evade their duties. One of them, after refusing to continue, was forced to pay three hundred euros for a bed and deprived of her phone, which was returned only after she handed over the money.
The investigations also uncovered a trade in counterfeit banknotes, circulating in the Capaccio-Paestum area. During today's searches, the Carabinieri seized another 270 grams of hashish and cocaine, as well as €245,000 in cash, believed to be the proceeds of the illicit activity. The DDA's picture depicts a fluid, organized network capable of moving both money and violence with equal speed, until law enforcement intervened and stopped the flow.
Source EDITORIAL TEAM
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