KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 12 — In 2012, it was tale of US$7 million (RM23.3 million) in cocaine found stashed inside cans purportedly of santan (coconut milk) in Malaysia, but that discovery has now led to the downfall of a Mafia drug cartel spanning Italy, Canada and the United States.
Following a global undercover operation that stemmed in part from the efforts of Malaysian drug enforcers, police in Italy and New York were able to arrest 24 individuals over a conspiracy to smuggle billions of ringgit worth narcotics worldwide.
According to a report by news agency Reuters, those arrested were linked to the Calabria-based ‘Ndrangheta, which had overtaken its Sicilian cousin, the Cosa Nostra, and was trying to make inroads in the US by forging ties with one of the traditional New York mob families, the Gambinos.
FBI and Italian agents jointly carried out “Operation New Bridge” simultaneously just after midnight in Brooklyn, New York, and just before dawn in Italy, American and Italian officials told a news conference in Rome.
Those arrested were accused of international drugs trafficking, money laundering and membership in organised crime.
“The ‘Ndrangheta determined to move deadly narcotics across international boundaries, attempting to build a bridge of criminality and corruption to stretch from South America to Italy and back to New York,” said Assistant US attorney Marshall Miller.
The operation began in 2012 when investigators detected a plan by members of the Ursino clan of the ‘Ndrangheta to smuggle large amounts of drugs.
But their plan was uncovered by the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), which tipped off their Malaysian counterparts and led to the seizure of liquid drugs that would have produced 76kg of pure cocaine after processing.
The drugs were then hidden in 16 cartons comprising 384 cans of coconut milk that were part of a shipment with 980 cartons.
