An Italian who is said to be the head of a criminal network that operates in the north of the country has been arrested in Montecristi by the National Drug Control Agency (DNCD) and was deported to Italy on Sunday, 21 October 2018. Alleged drug dealer 75-year old Marcello Battigaglia is accused of heading up a gang that had contact with criminal networks in Calabria, Italy and in Latin America.
He had been sought by authorities for the last three years following a ruling by a court in Milan in 2017, which sentenced him to 16 years, 10 months and 23 days in jail plus a fine of Euro98,000 for international drug dealing and evading authorities.
A liaison between the Italian and Dominican authorities led to his capture in a pizza restaurant on kilometer 17 of the Duarte Highway in Montecristi. He had previously been arrested Zagabria (Croacia) for importing cocaine from Caracas, Venezuela, as reported by the DNCD.
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DNCD
24 October 2018
