Italian police have arrested 20 people and seize about 17 seaside resorts along the southern coast in a crackdown on organized crime organization known as the 'ndrangheta crime syndicate. There has been substantial evidence that the resort owner may have links to the IRA.
Italian prosecutor Nicoli Gratteri told reporters in Reggio Calabria that two 'ndrangheta crime syndicate clans are believed to have invested illicit revenue in the resorts. According to the Associated Press, authorities said those arrested on Tuesday include two Spanish businessmen with dealings with the Calabrian mob organization.
Prosecutors say the probe indicates that a Belfast-based developer was also involved in the alleged laundering scheme, but it was not immediately clear if the developer was arrested. Prosecutors were not immediately available for comment.
The seized tourist resorts and vacation homes were valued by authorities at about $600 million.
"I know he was managing lots of money,"one source said to the BBC. "I can't assume, I don't know, where his money is coming from. I have no evidence to imagine a concrete link with the organization."
