Palermo anti‑mafia raid nets 22 arrests in Kalashnikov gang

Carabinieri of the Palermo provincial command, together with the Prosecutor’s Office’s Antimafia Directorate, carried out a large‑scale operation against the criminal group operating in the Tommaso Natale‑San Lorenzo mandamento. The raid resulted in the detention of 22 people, seven of whom were arrested directly in prison. Nine of the suspects are accused of extortion, attempted extortion and illegal possession of firearms, including war weapons, while six are alleged members of a cocaine, hashish and marijuana trafficking network operating in the San Lorenzo and Zen 2 districts. An additional seven individuals already detained for other cases were also listed in the measures.

The investigation, led by prosecutor Maurizio de Lucia, was praised by Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi, who said “Lo Stato è presente e in Italia non c’è spazio per l’impunità,” and by Palermo mayor Roberto Lagalla, who emphasized that “Lo Stato è presente, non arretra”. authorities also disclosed that detained mafioso Salvatore Verga allegedly coordinated attacks from prison via a smuggled smartphone, and that the Kalashnikov‑type weapons were traced to sources in Puglia.