A WhatsApp group reporting police presence on the Sorrento Coast roads has been discovered.

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WhatsApp Group Reporting Police Presence on Sorrento Coast Roads Discovered 2026 09 01

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Vico Equense - An arrest for drug dealing that, within a few hours, opens the door to a far more complex and unusual scenario. In Vico Equense, Carabinieri from the local station apprehend a twenty-year-old caught selling 40 grams of narcotics for €400.

A surgical operation, conducted on foot by uniformed and plainclothes soldiers, which ends with the dealer being handcuffed and the buyer being reported to the Prefecture. So far, the usual story of a drug bust. But it's precisely in the command post, while the soldiers are compiling reports, that the case takes a completely unexpected turn.

The continuous beeping in the smartphone

What catches the investigators' attention is the smartphone of the client they've just stopped. A barrage of notifications arrives on the screen, nonstop. These aren't ordinary conversations between friends, but a constant stream of tactical information. The screen reveals the existence of a WhatsApp group with the emblematic name: "PDB Alert." An acronym all too obvious to insiders, where "PDB" stands for Posti Di Bordo.

A network of 300 "sentinels" on the territory

Analyzing the chats, the Carabinieri discovered a veritable clandestine crowdsourcing network. Approximately 300 users, all likely residents of coastal towns, had set up a comprehensive system for monitoring the area. Hundreds of eyes scattered throughout the streets reported every single movement of law enforcement officers in real time, allowing anyone in the group to divert their route and avoid trouble.

"CC at the end of Via Bagnulo hidden," writes one user. And again: "PDB CC Piazza a Seiano," "CC wandering around Piazza Mercato," "CC Piazza Lauro." A daily war bulletin updated minute by minute.

The effectiveness of the "walking" service

If the drug dealer's arrest was successful, it was only due to one crucial detail: the officers had operated on foot and in civilian clothes, evading the chat's extensive surveillance network. However, the seriousness of the conduct remains, going beyond a simple digital prank. The Carabinieri's investigations are now aimed at identifying the group's 300 members and clarifying any criminal liability for interrupting or evading public safety checks.

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