Today, the Carabinieri of the Provincial Command of Messina have executed, in Sicily, Calabria, in other locations in the national territory and in Spain, precautionary custody orders against over 110 people (85 recipients of precautionary custody in prison and 27 under house arrest), of which 4 by the Penitentiary Police, issued by the GIP of the Court of Messina, at the request of the Public Prosecutor’s Office. Among the recipients of precautionary measures, 16 are already detained in prison.
The execution of the restrictive measures takes place following three separate investigations coordinated by the Messina Anti-Mafia District Directorate, starting from January 2021 to the present; of which, one performed by the CC of the Compagnia di Messina Sud, the other two by the Compagnia CC of Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto. The detailed and complex investigations have revealed the existence and operation of various criminal organizations in the city of Messina and the Barcelona area, active in drug trafficking, with links to Calabrian criminal structures and subjects also active in Campania, Lombardy and abroad. In the context of the three investigative activities, several stable drug supply channels were documented, with Calabria, for cocaine; with some subjects active in the provinces of Naples and Milan, as well as with Spain, for hashish; and with subjects active in the Netherlands, with reference to spice, a synthetic cannabinoid with a psychotropic effect that is extremely harmful to health. The detailed and complex investigations were structured using the traditional tools of telephone and environmental wiretaps; observation and shadowing services with arrests and seizures of narcotic substances; of the declarations of subjects who have started collaboration with the judicial authorities. The elements collected, therefore, revealed the organization chart of 4 of the main criminal organizations operating, since 2020, in drug trafficking and in the management of drug dealing centers in the Messina neighborhoods of Giostra, Santa Lucia Sopra Contesse, Villaggio CEP and Villaggio Aldisio , as well as in the areas of Barcellona PG and Milazzo.
In particular, the investigation delegated to the Carabinieri Company of Messina Sud concerned the execution of precautionary measures in prison and under house arrest against 49 people, seriously suspected – in various capacities – of the crimes of “association aimed at drug trafficking ”, “possession, cultivation, sale and trafficking of narcotic substances”, “self-laundering” and “carrying and possession of clandestine weapons”. The roles and structures of a criminal group have been outlined, considered among the most active in drug trafficking in the Peloritana area, with significant relationships with criminal organizations in other regions, which has reorganized and reaffirmed itself in the territory after a previous investigation by this District Attorney’s Office and delegated to the CC of Messina which, on 19 July 2022, led to the arrest of 18 people. The association, with an operational base in the popular “Giostra” neighborhood of Messina and with the availability of weapons, would have sold, over time, large quantities of narcotics, supplying multiple drug dealing places in the various neighborhoods in the areas to the north and south of the capital and the Nebroidean and Tyrrhenian areas of the province, in particular in Tortorici. The narcotic would have been stored and kept in the homes of some associates, strategically protected by video surveillance systems, railings and armored doors, aimed at delaying the access times of the Police Force during searches and allowing, in the meantime, the concealment of the drugs and weapons, creating real “forts” that are difficult, if not impossible, to access. In fact, during the investigations into the branch operating in Messina, in January 2021, we recorded the wounding of a carabiniere, who, in an attempt to enter a house to be searched, was injured in the foot, as a result of the sudden and voluntary closure, against him, of an armored door to protect the apartment. The organization, also through the considerable economic availability acquired and the proven criminal capabilities, would have gained credibility on the illicit drug market, being able to count on numerous supply channels, identified in the areas of San Luca and Rosarno (RC), as well as in entities operating in the Neapolitan area and in Milan; or, again, making use, in case of difficulty, of other Messina groups active in drug dealing. Based on what emerged from the investigations, the association would have reused part of the substantial profits from drug trafficking – which is estimated to be equal to approx. €500,000 per month, flowing into a common fund – in a commercial activity in the clothing sector in Messina, allocating another part to the families of the inmate associates. The investigation also revealed a second criminal gang, which supplied itself with narcotics from the main association, qualifying itself as a privileged purchasing group, and then putting it up for sale in the popular neighborhood called “Villaggio Aldisio”.
On the Barcelona side, of the two investigative activities, the first culminated in the arrest of 28 people, of which 24 were carried out by the CC Company of Barcellona PG; the remaining 4 are managed by the Penitentiary Police of the Palermo Prison Administration Department; in particular, 23 recipients of precautionary custody in prison and 5 under house arrest, seriously suspected – for various reasons – of the crimes of “association aimed at drug trafficking”, “detention, sale and trafficking of narcotic substances”, “criminal association aimed to the undue introduction of mobile phones into penitentiary institutions”, “illegal possession of weapons” and “fraudulent transfer of valuables”. Also on this front, the investigations were coordinated by the DDA of the Messina Prosecutor’s Office and delegated to the CC of the Compagnia di Barcellona PG; a segment of the same investigations was delegated to the staff of the Sicily Regional Investigation Unit of the Penitentiary Police, for the crimes alleged to have been committed inside the Barcellona PG prison
The investigative activities made it possible to reconstruct the subjective and objective components of a criminal organization, active in Barcelona PG in the narco-trafficking of large quantities of cocaine, marijuana and hashish. The suspects allegedly carried out an intense drug dealing activity, in a systematic way, through a structured criminal organisation; with the availability of weapons; composed, among leaders and affiliates, also of individuals linked by family ties, who would have distributed the drugs in favor of a network of drug dealers in the area of Barcelona and in neighboring towns, also selling them to other drug traffickers in the province of Catania. The drugs, in particular Yhashlsh, would have been, in part, supplied from Spain, through an associate living there and then stored and hidden in the homes of other members of the gang, who used a car dealership in Barcelona PG, fictitiously registered to some of the suspects, although attributable to one of the leaders of the association, as an operational base for drug trafficking as well as a commercial activity where part of the proceeds of the illicit drug dealing activity can be directed. From the investigations carried out by the soldiers of the Carabinieri, together with the Regional Investigative Unit of the Penitentiary Police, it emerged that, in order to increase their income, the criminal association had even introduced drugs into the Barcelona PG prison, where one of the promoters , detained there, directed and coordinated the distribution of doses and cell phones, also illegally introduced, to other inmates. The investigative activity also made it possible to collect clues regarding the existence of a further criminal group, connected to the first association, aimed at the illicit introduction of mobile phones into the Barcelona PG prison, made up of prisoners and a woman who, from outside the institute, he would have introduced the devices hidden inside packages intended for prisoners. Among the recipients of the precautionary measure in prison were a Penitentiary Police Officer and a nurse from the ASP (Provincial Health Authority) of Messina, both on duty at the aforementioned prison at the time. The first would have assisted one of the leaders of the gang – subjected to detention – by giving him narcotics, which were then distributed in the prison; the second allegedly introduced the drugs into the prison, which was then sold to some inmates.
At the same time as carrying out the precautionary measures, the Carabinieri also carried out the preventive seizure of the share capital and corporate assets of 5 companies, including a car dealership, located in Barcellona PG, Milazzo and in Spain, as well as 7 real estate (buildings and land), cars, insurance policies and current accounts, including one relating to a Spanish credit institution, registered or available to the suspects, with a total value of 4 million euros, substantial circumstantial elements having been acquired to believe that these activities were the reuse of illicitly acquired profits.
Still on the Barcelona side, the second segment of the investigation today records the execution of the precautionary custody order against 35 people, of which 20 recipients of the measure are in prison and 15 under house arrest, of which 10 are already detained ; at present, seriously suspected – for various reasons – of “association aimed at trafficking in narcotic substances”, “possession, sale and trafficking of narcotic substances”, “extortion”, “illegal possession and carrying of weapons”, as well as “undue introduction of mobile phones in penitentiary institutions”. The investigative activity made it possible to reconstruct the reference coordinates of a criminal organization, with operational bases in Barcellona PG and Milazzo (ME), dedicated to the trafficking of large quantities of the synthetic drug called spice, as well as cocaine and marijuana. In particular, the criminal group would have imported spice from the Dutch market – in considerable quantities, through websites apparently relating to the trade of legitimate products – for subsequent sale, for a turnover of around 50,000 euros per month. The strong pressure exerted by affiliates on some drug dealers, their buyers, to force them to honor drug debts owed to the gang also emerged. From the investigations conducted, this criminal organization would also have had the availability of weapons and its criminal strength would have emerged from the circumstance of being able to operate in drug trafficking, without suffering interference from competing associations in the Barcelona area PG
Although there are 3 separate investigations, elements of connection have emerged between the territories involved, as documented for the trafficking of spice, which by the Barcelona PG group, in addition to pushers in the area, was sold in favor of drug dealers from Messina, reached by today’s provision , who distributed the substance to consumers in the capital.
