An operation was carried out by the Italian police in Rome and Milan as a result of joint efforts by Türkiye's Anti-Smuggling and Organized Crime Department (KOM), the Interpol-Europol Department, and the Italian security authorities. The target was an organized crime organization in Italy, wanted by the judicial authorities of Türkiye, whose ringleader is Barış Boyun.
Some 19 people were detained in the operation against the organized crime network in Italy and Europe, reports said.
According to a written statement by the Italian Police (Polizia di Stato), 19 people were detained in operations conducted in Italy, Switzerland, Germany and Türkiye. This was done in cooperation with Italy, Türkiye and the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) in accordance with the interim detention order issued by the Preliminary Investigation Judge of the Milan Court.
According to the statement, the detainees were arrested on charges of establishing a criminal organization for terrorist purposes, forming an armed gang for murder, injury, illegal possession of weapons and explosives, arms trafficking, drug trafficking, murder and assisting illegal immigration.
Italian press reports stated that Barış Boyun, the ringleader of the organized crime network, was among those detained in the operation. Boyun was reportedly detained in the morning in Viterbo, 90 kilometers (55.92 miles) from Rome.
The news reports said that the 40-year-old Boyun was one of the most wanted individuals in Türkiye. When he was detained in 2022, Turkish authorities requested his extradition, but the Italian judiciary did not approve it.
Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya shared the details of the operation on his X account:
''An operation was carried out by the Italian police in Rome and Milan as a result of the joint efforts of our KOM Presidency, Interpol-Europol Department and Italian Security Authorities against the organized crime organization in Italy, which is wanted by the judicial authorities of our country with a Red Bulletin and whose ringleader is Barış Boyun.''
''In the operation, a total of 19 suspects, including 17 Turkish and two Italian members of the organized crime organization, including the ringleader Barış Boyun, were arrested.''
''In 26 separate operations carried out in Istanbul, Izmir, Tekirdağ, Sakarya and Kütahya until today against the fugitive Barış Boyun organized crime network, 317 people were arrested. Some 1,752 of them were arrested, 100 of them were given a judicial control decision.''
