Italian Police Arrest 13 In Nationwide Crackdown On Chinese Mafia Groups

Authored by Tom Ozimek via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Italian police arrested 13 people in a nationwide sweep against Chinese organized crime groups, striking what authorities called a “double blow” to criminal networks accused of drug trafficking, labor and sex exploitation, and money laundering.

An Italian State Police officer looks on at a checkpoint in Milan on March 10, 2020. Emanuele Cremaschi/Getty Images

Multiple coordinated operations conducted across a total of 25 provinces, including Milan, Rome, Florence, Prato, and Catania, targeted Chinese clans operating with mafia‑style intimidation and territorial control, according to a statement from the Interior Ministry and remarks by anti-organized crime police official Andrea Olivadese.

“On one front, the State Police carried out a ‘high‑impact’ action in 24 Italian provinces targeting entrenched Chinese criminal groups engaged in illegal trafficking, exploitation of prostitution and labor, product counterfeiting, drug dealing, and international money laundering,” the Interior Ministry said in a statement.

Hundreds of commercial businesses and vehicles were inspected, with more than 1,900 potential suspects identified, it added.

Alongside the arrests, police seized 550 grams—about 5,500 doses—of crystal methamphetamine known locally as “shabu,” as well as weapons and cash, Olivadese said. Another 31 people were reported to judicial authorities but not taken into custody.

Another operation, led by the Guardia di Finanza, dismantled a $3.9‑billion tax‑fraud ring, seizing $858 million, closing 266 shell companies, and freezing 400 bank accounts across the regions of Marche, Lombardy, and Piedmont, the Interior Ministry said.

“These coordinated actions show that Chinese mafia activity is not just a local issue but a transnational criminal reality capable of moving billions and infiltrating the economic fabric,” Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi said in the ministry’s statement.

He praised the “exemplary professionalism and determination” of investigators in protecting the “honest citizens and economic health of the country.”

The crackdown comes amid heightened scrutiny of Chinese influence in Italy, including investigations into “overseas police stations” operated by Chinese authorities. Human rights group Safeguard Defenders reported in 2022 that Italy hosts the highest number of these clandestine centers—11 in total—in cities such as Rome, Milan, Venice, Florence, Sicily, and Prato.

Italian officials have denied authorizing the centers and pledged increased monitoring. Piantedosi said in December 2022 that sanctions would follow if any illegality was confirmed. Italy previously participated in joint patrols with Chinese police, but those were terminated in 2022 amid concerns about Beijing’s human rights record and the potential misuse of such facilities to surveil dissidents of the Chinese regime.

The Italian Parliament’s Anti‑Mafia Commission has also expanded its remit to investigate Chinese organized crime and alleged ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Analysts, including former NATO Defense College Foundation Director Giuseppe Morabito, have warned that Chinese gangs in Europe often operate in symbiosis with state‑linked actors, blurring the line between organized crime and foreign influence.

The Italian operations follow years of investigations into underground Chinese banking networks accused of funneling billions of euros from counterfeit goods, prostitution, and tax evasion back to China.

International reporting has also highlighted Chinese organized crime’s reach beyond Europe. A joint investigation by ProPublica and The Frontier in 2024 described links between Chinese diplomats and organized crime figures in the United States, while other studies have traced the role of Chinese triads in supplying Mexican cartels with precursor chemicals for fentanyl.

Ben Liang, Olivia Li, and Reuters contributed to this report.