Rome, international drug trafficking and kidnapping: nine arrests in a joint operation between the police and the Carabinieri.
Operation by the Civitavecchia Flying Squad and Carabinieri at the request of the Anti-Mafia Directorate (DDA): a suspected criminal network with transnational connections and operational bases between Rome and the Lazio coast was dismantled.
Joint operation in Rome: nine people arrested
A large-scale operation against international drug trafficking has led to the arrest of nine people in the capital. The Rome Flying Squad and the Carabinieri of the Civitavecchia Company executed a precautionary detention order issued by the Judge for Preliminary Investigations of the Court of Rome , at the request of the Capitoline District Anti-Mafia Directorate.
The suspects, of Dominican and Colombian nationality, are considered to be seriously suspected, to varying degrees, of the crimes of association aimed at the illicit trafficking of narcotics with the aggravating circumstance of transnationality, kidnapping for the purpose of extortion, robbery and personal injury.
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The operation stems from a complex investigative effort that allowed the reconstruction of a particularly violent episode that took place in Roman drug trafficking circles and, at the same time, the identification of an alleged criminal network involved in importing large quantities of cocaine from South America.
Kidnapping after the alleged ambush in Casal Bertone
At the center of the investigation is an episode that occurred on the night of June 7, 2026. According to investigators' reconstruction, a Colombian citizen was lured into a trap by an accomplice in the Roman neighborhood of Casal Bertone around 2:30 am.
The victim was then reportedly attacked, immobilized, and forcibly loaded into a car. The group then transferred the man first to a home in the Borghesiana area and then to a basement apartment in the Centocelle neighborhood , where he was held captive for approximately seven hours.
During his alleged imprisonment, the man allegedly suffered physical and psychological abuse, including threats with a firearm and injuries inflicted with knife weapons. Investigators also allege that the victim was forced to hand over €8.900 in cash, gold jewelry, a luxury watch, and the keys to his home.
Subsequently, according to investigators' reconstruction, some members of the group went to the victim's home to steal further goods and computer devices.
CCTV footage to reconstruct the raid
The investigative activity also developed through the analysis of footage from urban and condominium video surveillance systems.
The investigations would have allowed investigators to reconstruct the various phases of the operation and gather evidence to identify the alleged members of the commando involved in the kidnapping and robbery.
The alleged drug trafficking network between Rome and the Lazio coast
In parallel with the extortion incident, the investigations would have allowed them to outline the existence of a presumed criminal organization with international connections, specialized in the importation of cocaine from South America.
According to the prosecution, the drugs were destined for the drug dealing centers of the capital and the Lazio coast, through operational bases located between Rome, Cerveteri, Ladispoli and Tarquinia.
The group allegedly used systems considered particularly sophisticated by investigators to evade controls: modified cars with mechanically and electronically opening double bottoms, encrypted phones with remote data deletion systems, and digital financial instruments to transfer the illicit proceeds.
Drug seizures and discovery of an alleged clandestine refinery
During the investigation, the State Police and Carabinieri made several arrests and seizures of narcotics along some of the main roads.
In related investigative activities, the Carabinieri also reportedly identified a laboratory believed to be used for drug refining in the countryside of Sant'Agata del Bianco, in the province of Reggio Calabria .
Investigators also discovered an apartment in Rome that was used, according to investigators, as a drug warehouse. Inside, 24 kilograms of hashish , quantities of cocaine ready for distribution, and various types of synthetic substances, including so-called pink cocaine, were seized.
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