Italy Targets 30 in Alleged $79 Million Mafia Crypto Laundering Case

Milan prosecutors accused an underground banking network tied to Italian mafia groups of moving about $79 million overseas, as authorities targeted 30 suspects in the cryptocurrency laundering case Wednesday.

The Oct. 21 operation centered on a car rental company near Milan that investigators believe served as the network’s base. Prosecutors linked the alleged operation to the ’Ndrangheta and Camorra, two Italian organized crime groups.

Investigators identified more than $128 million in false invoices. The network allegedly used shell companies to issue false invoices and took in cash from drug sales. Funds in the companies’ accounts passed through banks in Luxembourg, Lithuania and Germany, then through cryptocurrency exchanges into wallets allegedly controlled by the group.

The suspected laundering route combined bank transfers and cryptocurrency transactions. Investigators also found that money stolen from victims of online cryptocurrency investment scams passed through the network.

Spanish police were executing European arrest warrants, while Swiss authorities sought to detain another suspect.