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| The Carabinieri are busy dismantling a criminal organization dedicated to drug trafficking |
VENICE – With Operation Marshall, the Carabinieri dismantled a criminal organization dedicated to international drug trafficking. Acting on behalf of the Venice Prosecutor's Office, the Carabinieri of the Vicenza Provincial Command executed a precautionary custody order against 20 Nigerian nationals, aged between 25 and 57, who were seriously suspected of belonging to a transnational criminal syndicate dedicated to the trafficking of cocaine and heroin, with its operational base in Vicenza. The investigative activity conducted by the Vicenza Company led to the identification of a complex criminal organization in the Vicenza area, classified under Article 74 of Presidential Decree 309/90, composed of Nigerian nationals engaged in drug trafficking on a stable and continuous basis. The organization was structured to ensure a constant supply and widespread distribution of drugs in the main drug dealing centers of the capital and the province, as well as in other drug dealing centers throughout the Veneto region and neighboring Lombardy.
Drug importation from the Netherlands to Italy
The supply channel, which remained unchanged throughout the investigation, was located in the Netherlands, while the management of contacts and agreements for the shipment of the drugs to Italy was entrusted to the leader of the syndicate, who was fully identified during the investigation. The drugs were imported from the Netherlands to Italy via body packers, who, after ingesting the ovules containing the drugs, reached Italy via France and crossed the Ventimiglia border aboard passenger trains. The operational pattern was repeated regularly, on an almost weekly basis: each courier transported approximately 1 kilogram of the drug (cocaine or heroin), divided into heat-sealed ovules weighing approximately 11 grams each. Each ovule was marked with a marker pen with the final purchaser's identification code, which allowed the local distribution network to be traced.
Promoter in Italy responsible for the management and coordination of operational activities
All individuals targeted by the precautionary measure were implicated, in various capacities, in the redistribution of narcotics destined for the city's drug dealing centers. The investigations, which lasted nearly two years, revealed the existence of a multi-level criminal organization with clearly defined roles: a supplier based in the Netherlands, responsible for sourcing and shipping the narcotics; a promoter in Italy, responsible for managing and coordinating operational activities; a network of couriers dedicated to physically transporting the drugs; and a group of local distributors responsible for packaging and retail distribution. Technical operations and observation services documented numerous significant incidents. Among the most notable: in April 2025, at the Padua train station, a 34-year-old woman was arrested while carrying 1.1 kg of cocaine concealed in her bra, divided into 110 ovules, after arriving in Italy from France; In September 2024, an operation at a home in Camponogara led to the seizure of 46 cocaine pellets (approximately 500 grams), some of which had just been thrown down the drain in an attempt to evade military control. In the same month, at the Vicenza train station , a 35-year-old courier was stopped while transporting 20 cocaine pellets, two of which were hidden in his purse and 18 of which he had ingested, and were subsequently expelled from the hospital, according to a Carabinieri press release.
The execution of restrictive measures and searches
During the investigation, it was also possible to decipher the cryptic language used by the suspects in their communications: the term "TOP" referred to cocaine, "SPA" to heroin, "Pantaloncino" to 5-gram doses, and "Fogli di dolci" to cash. The seizure of handwritten accounting records documented daily receipts and cash movements attributable to a large business, with payments made via international wire transfers to Nigerian bank accounts amounting to tens of thousands of euros. The Venice preliminary investigations judge ordered the pre-trial detention of all twenty suspects, highlighting the group's "dangerous professionalism" and the real risk of escape, given the numerous criminal records held by some of the organization's members. The enforcement of the restrictive measures and searches was conducted with the assistance of Carabinieri reinforcements from all provincial commands in the Veneto region, with the support of the Carabinieri's mobile and special units, drug-sniffing canine units, and the Carabinieri helicopter unit , which provided air cover during the operations. Operation "Marshall" represents a significant achievement in the fight against international drug trafficking and transnational criminal organizations, confirming the Carabinieri's ongoing commitment to territorial control and the protection of the community.
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