The State Police, in Milan, carried out a series of searches delegated by the Milan Public Prosecutor's Office - District Anti-Mafia Directorate, against well-known drug traffickers resident in Lombardy and other subjects related to them, believed to participate in various capacities of a large international hashish traffic managed in the Milan area and throughout Central / Northern Italy.
The judicial police operation was the continuation, in investigative terms, of the investigation activity that ended the month of October 2019 with the execution of an order for pre-trial detention (4 pre-trial detention in prison, 1 arrest domiciliary and 1 residence requirement) issued by the investigating judge at the Court of Milan, at the request of the local DDA, against the drug trafficker and other 5 people of Italian nationality investigated for international hashish traffic.
The investigation began on September 24, 2018, when the staff of the anti-drug section arrested a person for the detention of 1.100 kg of hashish and 589 gr. of cocaine, found inside a box, located in an underground garage. The amazing substance had been hidden in a hollow space built ad hoc close to the wall located in the bottom of the box. In this circumstance, a radar satellite device for boats still new and packed was also found.
The investigation that resulted from the kidnapping reconstructed the structure of the criminal organization of traffickers, which had its operating base in the Milan hinterland, had organized and financed the import of hashish from Morocco, using a courier for maritime transport and other subjects assigned to land transport from the Ligurian coasts to the Milanese territory and storage inside boxes with artifact spaces created between the wall and an artificial wall.
The drug trafficker had also emerged in an investigation conducted by the policemen of the Bologna Mobile Squad, coordinated by the DDA of the Bologna Prosecutor's Office, between 2012 and 2014, which culminated precisely towards the end of September 2018 with the execution of an order for pre-trial detention in prison as it is believed to belong to a criminal association aimed at international drug trafficking, with the same procedures as those reconstructed for the import of the cargo seized on September 24, 2018.
The continuation of the investigations against the subject has revealed the belief that, over the years of activity in the drug trafficking business, he has accumulated a huge economic wealth.
The policemen of the Anti-Drug Section of the Mobile Squad carried out a series of searches at some places in the availability of the drug trafficker, a woman linked to him, his father and another subject, identified as the one who carried out the artificial masonry works, necessary to conceal drugs and money.
Inside the abode of the drug trafficker, the agents, comparing the plan of the apartment with the actual condition of the same, noticed a discrepancy in terms of distances of a wall placed behind the wardrobe of the bedroom: there were about 40 centimeters of difference between the paper document and the actual condition. Moved the wardrobe and ascertained, touching the wall, that there were probably empty parts inside, the policemen proceeded to demolish it. The discovery was striking: the wall was artificial and had created a cavity with the perimeter wall, inside which 28 boxes were found containing numerous wads of cash for a value of approximately 15.000.000 (fifteen million) of € uro , divided into banknotes of various denominations from € 500 to € 10.
Also inside the apartment, in a safe, other wads of banknotes for a total value of 140.000 (one hundred and forty thousand) € uro were found, while a further 27.000 € uro were found hidden in a mezzanine of a garage always in the availability of one of the suspects.
The entire sum of money was deposited at the local headquarters of the BANCA D'ITALIA.
Following the seizure, the investigating judge at the Court of Milan, at the request of the local DDA, issued a measure aggravating the ongoing precautionary measure against the drug trafficker, which went from house arrest to pre-trial detention in prison, as well as a further precautionary measure to house arrest against the father, for money laundering, and another person, for competition in the criminal association.
The preventive seizure of the money was also ordered by the proceeding MA. The three precautionary measures were carried out over the weekend by the policemen of the Anti-Drug section of the Milan Mobile Squad.