Fugitive Drug Trafficker Vincenzo Nettuno Arrested in Giugliano After Three Years on the Run
Giugliano, April 26 – Vincenzo Nettuno, a 51-year-old man who had been a fugitive for three years, was apprehended yesterday afternoon in Giugliano in Campania during a routine traffic stop. Nettuno, wanted since 2023 for international drug trafficking, attempted to evade capture using false documents but was ultimately identified by the Carabinieri.
Routine Traffic Stop Leads to Major Arrest
The arrest occurred when Carabinieri from the Radiomobile Section, conducting a roadblock, stopped Nettuno while he was driving a car. When asked for his documents, he provided false personal details and claimed not to have his driver’s license with him. However, his nervous demeanor and evasive answers raised suspicions among the officers.
A subsequent personal and vehicle search uncovered a driver’s license and a valid identity card for expatriation. Although seemingly legitimate, a check against police databases revealed that the photographs on the documents did not match Nettuno’s true identity, confirming them as forgeries.
Identity Confirmed: International Warrant Issued
Nettuno was taken to the barracks where a photo-identification process confirmed his real identity. He was revealed to be Vincenzo Nettuno, a fugitive since 2023 and subject to an arrest warrant extended across the Schengen area. He had been definitively sentenced to over seven years in prison for association aimed at international drug trafficking.
For three years, Nettuno had successfully eluded authorities, maintaining a hidden life protected by false documents and a fabricated identity. His desperate attempt to remain invisible through the use of forged documents ironically led to his unmasking, resulting in an additional arrest for possession and use of false documents.
A History of Fugitivity and Drug Trafficking
This is not Nettuno’s first encounter with the law after a period of being a fugitive. A notable coincidence surrounds his previous arrest on November 12, 2015, also after approximately three years on the run. At that time, he was captured in Marbella, on the Costa del Sol, while celebrating his birthday. That operation was the result of an investigation conducted by the Carabinieri of the Castello di Cisterna Investigative Unit in collaboration with Spanish authorities.
At 42 years old, Nettuno was then considered a member of the Nuvoletta clan, a criminal organization active in controlling illicit affairs in Marano di Napoli and the northern area of the provincial capital. He had been sought since July 2012 under two precautionary custody orders issued by judges in Naples and Palermo, as part of investigations into international drug trafficking, specifically involving drugs imported into Italy from Spain and the Netherlands, with the aggravating circumstance of mafia affiliation.
The successful apprehension of Nettuno marks a significant achievement for law enforcement in their ongoing efforts to combat organized crime and international drug trafficking in the region.
Source: https://napoli.corriere.it/notizie/cronaca/26_aprile_26/giugliano-arrestato-vincenzo-nettuno-da-tre-anni-latitante-del-narcotraffico-5115d0df-b8e5-4724-88d7-2151d0546xlk.shtml
