According to the Australian based Herald Sun, the investigation began last year when more than 50 trafficked people from Afghanistan were found hiding on a boat in Ravenna.
Victims of the human trafficking operation were from Afghanistan, Iran and Iraq. They would arrive in Italy through Greece or Turkey, hidden in containers or vans by way of boats or small ferries. They would then be moved to northern European countries such as Germany, Austria, Belgium, and Switzerland. The ring was run throughout Italy, in the major northern cities of Milan and Bologna, Bari in the south, and Teramo and Ascoli in central Italy.
The newspaper quoted head of police in Leece, Vincenzo Carella as saying,"The operation uncovered a sizeable smuggling ring. Over the course of a year we intercepted an influx of over 5,000 immigrants."
Piero Grasso, director of the Anti-Mafia Agency, which focuses on organized crime in Italy, told the newspaper that wiretaps played a large role in the arrests.
