A bus driver was caught buying drugs near the terminus, an incident which led to the arrest of a drug dealer and called into question the driver’s fitness to do his job.
During an operation to combat urban crime in the streets and squares near the Padua train station, the flying squad police arrested a 25-year-old Nigerian, already known for specific precedents. The officers, stationed in via Tommaseo, observed an individual quickly approaching the bus terminal and interacting briefly with the foreigner. During the check, it was found that the latter had given up a dose of heroin. Further doses of heroin and marijuana were found on the pusher, as well as 150 euros in cash.
The biggest surprise for the police was discovering that the pusher’s regular customer was a bus driver of the urban and extra-urban transport service of Padua. The driver admitted that he was a regular customer and that he had obtained the dose by promising to pay for it in the next few days. Already in the past, about a year and a half ago, he had been suspended from service for three months. Although he was not caught on duty, the police decided to report the situation to the prefecture and to communicate the incident to the competent authorities so that his suitability for duty can be assessed, given his dangerousness while driving public transport.
The drug dealer was arrested and tried immediately. The judge sentenced him to 9 months in prison and a fine of 1000 euros, and started deportation proceedings.
