Tackling an International Mafia
Tackling An International Mafia
It can be argued that the Italian mafia may be the most infamous in the world. However, this only means that the government is equally as persistent to keep them from expanding.
As mentioned in our article “From Crypto to Cannoli," the Italian government is no stranger to organized crime. Earlier in January, Italy ordered the arrest of 33 people on suspicion of running a Chinese mafia group involved in gambling, prostitution and drugs - which dominated the transport of Chinese goods across Europe.
The group’s base was in Prato, near Florence which is a central hub for the textile industry where various factories are Chinese owned. The network also had members in other parts of Italy and across Europe. The suspected mob boss, Naizhong Zhang, was based in Rome and used profits from illegal activities to build a massive transport company that dominated the trucking of goods for thousands of Chinese companies, police stated. He ran a near-monopoly in distribution across much of Europe through extortion against Chinese companies. According to Italian Interior Minister, Marco Minniti, the operation broke up “a dangerous organization that had used force and was financed by its illegal activities.” Federico Cafiero De Raho, Italy’s chief anti-mafia prosecutor stated that “It’s quite unusual to be able to identify a complex Chinese mafia organization” and that "Being able to shed light on mafia character of this group is almost incredible.”
It is estimated that Zhang’s business activities were worth “hundreds of millions of euros.”
While issues of breaking up crime groups can be stopped, the fight is far from over in Italy.
We hope you enjoyed learning how the Italian government is currently Tackling An International Mafia! How do you think Italy could continue battling the ever-present threat of the mafia? Leave a comment below!
