A total of 37 criminals have been arrested in seven countries in a massive police operation coordinated by Croatian police that dismantled an "extremely violent" criminal gang in the western Balkans, Europol said on Thursday.
The criminal network was involved in large-scale drug and arms trafficking in Europe, the EU's criminal police agency said.
Orders from prison
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A total of 37 suspects were arrested during the investigation, including the gang leader, a citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina considered a target of great importance by Europol and currently serving a four-year prison sentence in Italy," Europol said.
The gang leader is suspected of orchestrating drug and arms trafficking by giving orders to his subordinates from prison. Police operations were carried out simultaneously in Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia, the Netherlands, Italy, Belgium and Germany on Thursday to apprehend members of the criminal gang.
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The police also seized 148,000 euros in cash, eighteen firearms including two machine guns, and 500 grams of TNT with remote explosion triggers. Also seized were 15 kg of cocaine, 11 kg of heroin, 3 kg of amphetamine, 7 kg of marijuana and 10 kg of cannabis.
This large-scale operation was preceded by a "complex investigation" carried out by the Croatian Police Directorate as part of the operational mission "Balkan Cartel".