Italy sets up anti-mafia commission to investigate Chinese Communist infiltration: Report

The Italian government has mobilised the Italian Anti-Mafia Commission to investigate and eradicate any Chinese Communist infiltration in Italian society, according to a report by Inside Over. The investigation will focus on any collusion between Chinese officials, gangsters, and criminal organisations that facilitate illegal activities. The goal of this investigation is to combat the activities of Chinese gangs operating within Italy.

In addition to the probe on Chinese Communist infiltration in Italian society, the Italian Anti-Mafia Commission is also investigating China's overseas police stations, Chinese truck cases, and underground banks. According to a report by Italian news magazine Le Formiche on March 16, the Florence court has already arrested two Chinese individuals who were involved in illegal money laundering activities.

According to Inside Over, 13 individuals have been identified as suspects in the investigation. The case revolves around a covert Chinese bank with branches in several regions of Italy, including Rome, Florence, and Prato, that is believed to have transferred billions of euros to China. Italian investigators have referred to the bank as a "Chinese underground bank," suggesting that it was operating outside of the country's financial regulations and oversight.

The "bank" offers a clandestine remittance service and charges a commission of 2.5% of the transfer amount. There are primarily two methods to transfer money, which involve transferring small amounts from one or more credit cards to an account through apps like WeChat or Alipay.

The news report stated that for larger amounts of money, customers prepay the "underground bank" through an account and bank card opened in China. The cash is then withdrawn from the branches of the underground bank located in Florence and Prato, and transferred to other Chinese individuals who then send the money back to China through other means.

Italian police have discovered that Prato had become a "stronghold for illegal infiltration by the Chinese underworld". 

China's overseas 'service' stations in Italy

Additionally, China has established 54 police stations worldwide as of September 2021, and has added 48 "overseas police and overseas Chinese service stations," according to a survey published by the Spanish human rights group Safeguard Defenders in December 2022.

These stations have been set up under the pretext of assisting Chinese nationals living overseas with administrative affairs. However, according to the news report, China uses the bilateral security agreement signed with the host country to establish these stations as a means of monitoring Chinese nationals living abroad and waiting for opportunities to repatriate dissidents.

According to the news report, Giuseppe Morabito, Director of the NATO Defence Academy Foundation (NDCF), has stated that Italy has the highest number of overseas police bases established by the CCP. The report cites L'Espresso as its source. Currently, the CCP's overseas police have set up "service stations" in Rome, Milan, Venice, Florence, Sicily, and Prato.

Citing a report from RFI in 2022, Italian Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi stated that sanctions against the CCP's illegal activities in Italy would not be excluded.