Holland: a narco-colony of the 'Ndrangheta north of Europe
Luca Grossi 04 August 2022
Giuseppe Lombardo: " The mafias take their money where they can see it yield satisfactorily "
Europe is literally submerged by cocaine and the pockets of the mafias ('Ndrangheta in primis) continue to swell with huge capital.
It is illusory to think that there are still 'happy islands' where the white powder has not yet arrived and with it the influences of the mafia organizations and South American drug traffickers. It is a known fact that drugs mostly travel by sea. Passing through the Atlantic and the North Sea, large merchant ships (with their hidden drug cargoes) dock in the ports of Antwerp (Belgium), Valencia (Spain) and Rotterdam (Holland). In particular, in the country of poppies, the 'Ndrangheta has found more than just a' safe haven '. In 2021, Dia (in the report of the first semester) had indicated that the 'Ndrangheta is the "most ramified criminal organization in the area and with the greatest presence of affiliates" and dedicated "
Significant 'help' to the mafias comes from the lack of specific anti- mafia rules , from a very favorable tax regime, a solid economy and the ability to easily move money flows to tax havens connected to the Netherlands. " The mafias take their money where they can see it yield satisfactorily, " the prosecutor Giuseppe Lombardo of the Reggio Calabria DDA explained to Irpi . " The investments they continue to make in Italy mostly serve to maintain the loyalty of the people of their 'fiefdom' ".
the other part is in the hands of indigenous organizations that reinvest the capital accumulated locally. In both cases, the structures of these groups are consolidating on the model of the Calabrian mafia: interpersonal relationships are hierarchical and have a permanent and secret character; the penalties for misconduct are violent and merciless; the activities are managed with great ruthlessness; with corruption, referents are sought among politicians, officials, administrators; profits are invested in legal companies or in the purchase of real estate with the help of compliant banks; expert consultants in financial, fiscal and legal matters are used. Furthermore, Dutch criminals take full advantage of the particular conditions offered by a well-developed and relatively rich welfare state, with a complex tax system and welfare system. This is a fertile ground for penetration, through fraud and corruption, into procurement systems, supply systems, in general in the provision of public services; or for the evasion of taxes, customs and excise duties. This situation was already cause for alarm in 1991, when the Central Police Commission for Investigations commissioned an inventory of organized crime groups in the Netherlands. At that time, adequate measures had not been taken and the situation today has worsened more than ever. provision of public services; or for the evasion of taxes, customs and excise duties.

The Dutch mafia
The Mocro-maffia is a new type of mafia-like crime emerging not only in the Netherlands but in all parts of Europe. Its roots lie in the Maghrebian community, hence the name, but its affiliates are mostly born and raised in Europe, from the Netherlands to Belgium, passing through Spain.
Unfortunately, as in many other cases, it has long been considered a sort of B-level criminal group mainly devoted to drug dealing but which over time has managed to establish itself as one of the most powerful European drug cartels, strong especially for its links with the ports to which ships loaded with cocaine arrive, such as those of Rotterdam and Antwerp. Not surprisingly, the number two of the organization, Said Razzouki, was arrested in Colombia, where he fled thanks to the support of the Sinaloa Cartel and the Gulf Clan. Mafia leader Ridouan Taghi , on the other hand, was stopped by the police while he was in Dubai. Their arrests have certainly not stopped the criminal activities of this emerging mafia which is continuing to collaborate with other criminal factions such as the 'Ndrangheta, the Albanian and Nigerian mafia.