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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
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| ‘Major Mafia Roundup’ in New York and Italy | ‘Major Mafia Roundup’ in New York and Italy |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Italian national police have arrested two dozen people in New York and Italy as part of an organized-crime investigation into cocaine and heroin trafficking from southern Italy to the United States, the Justice Department announced on Tuesday. | The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Italian national police have arrested two dozen people in New York and Italy as part of an organized-crime investigation into cocaine and heroin trafficking from southern Italy to the United States, the Justice Department announced on Tuesday. |
| The investigation is centered on the ‘Ndrangheta, the Mafia group from the Calabria region of Italy, which had begun to establish a foothold in New York City, according to officials. The charges include narcotics trafficking, money laundering and firearms offenses. | The investigation is centered on the ‘Ndrangheta, the Mafia group from the Calabria region of Italy, which had begun to establish a foothold in New York City, according to officials. The charges include narcotics trafficking, money laundering and firearms offenses. |
| The defendants include a Brooklyn resident, Franco Lupoi, whose father-in-law was described by the authorities as a member of the ‘Ndrangheta. | |
| In 2012, the father-in-law, Nicola Antonio Simonetta, visited Mr. Lupoi in Brooklyn to work on plans to ship heroin into the United States, the authorities said. For suppliers, they intended to rely on Mexican drug cartels in Guyana, who would conceal narcotics in frozen food containers aboard ships operated by a Guyanese company, the authorities said. | In 2012, the father-in-law, Nicola Antonio Simonetta, visited Mr. Lupoi in Brooklyn to work on plans to ship heroin into the United States, the authorities said. For suppliers, they intended to rely on Mexican drug cartels in Guyana, who would conceal narcotics in frozen food containers aboard ships operated by a Guyanese company, the authorities said. |
| The scheme included paying off a port official in Calabria whom they expected to look the other way. But the plan got off to a rocky start when $7 million of cocaine originating from the shipping company was seized in Malaysia, the authorities said. The drugs were found in containers full of pineapples and coconut milk. | The scheme included paying off a port official in Calabria whom they expected to look the other way. But the plan got off to a rocky start when $7 million of cocaine originating from the shipping company was seized in Malaysia, the authorities said. The drugs were found in containers full of pineapples and coconut milk. |
| At one point in the investigation, Mr. Lupoi and another suspected ‘Ndrangheta member, Raffaele Valente, sold a sawed-off shotgun to an undercover F.B.I. agent at a bakery in Brooklyn, the authorities said. In one conversation, intercepted by an Italian wiretap, Mr. Valente said that he had a group of well-armed men whose position in New York was as secure as “Fort Knox,” according to a news release issued by the office of the United States attorney in Brooklyn, Loretta E. Lynch. | At one point in the investigation, Mr. Lupoi and another suspected ‘Ndrangheta member, Raffaele Valente, sold a sawed-off shotgun to an undercover F.B.I. agent at a bakery in Brooklyn, the authorities said. In one conversation, intercepted by an Italian wiretap, Mr. Valente said that he had a group of well-armed men whose position in New York was as secure as “Fort Knox,” according to a news release issued by the office of the United States attorney in Brooklyn, Loretta E. Lynch. |
| As a result of the case, Ms. Lynch said, “the ‘Ndrangheta’s efforts to gain a foothold in New York have been dealt a lasting blow.” | As a result of the case, Ms. Lynch said, “the ‘Ndrangheta’s efforts to gain a foothold in New York have been dealt a lasting blow.” |
| At least seven of the arrests were made overnight in the New York area; they are expected to be arraigned in Federal District Court in Brooklyn later on Tuesday. | At least seven of the arrests were made overnight in the New York area; they are expected to be arraigned in Federal District Court in Brooklyn later on Tuesday. |
| The F.B.I.'s New York office broke the news on Tuesday morning by posting on Twitter that it was carrying out a “major mafia roundup.” | The F.B.I.'s New York office broke the news on Tuesday morning by posting on Twitter that it was carrying out a “major mafia roundup.” |