They were returning from Spain in a camper van, travelling at high speed on the A10 motorway towards Genoa. They appeared to be two tourists returning from a holiday, but were in fact drug couriers: hidden in a trapdoor beneath the sleeping area of the motor home were more than 34 kilograms of cocaine, which would have fetched over 2 million euros once introduced onto the drug market.
They were identified and arrested at the Autogrill rest area in Ceriale by officers from the Economic and Tax Police Unit of the Savona Provincial Command, led by Lieutenant Colonel Giovanni Linardi, assisted by Deputy Commander Lieutenant Gian Mario Uniola, during one of the routine motorway checks that extend from the border area with France along the road artery between Ventimiglia and Genoa. The two men – aged 29 and 32, from Rome, with minor prior drug offences – immediately displayed a certain nervousness, which aroused the officers' suspicions, as did the immaculate and pristine appearance of the camper van, which turned out to be brand new and recently purchased (valued at around 80,000 euros) and registered to one of the two, who was unemployed.
A thorough inspection of the vehicle, carried out with the assistance of a drug-detection dog unit, led to the discovery of the large quantity of cocaine, divided into blocks, inside the purpose-built compartment. The two men were subsequently arrested and taken to Genoa's Marassi prison, where they are being held at the disposal of the Judicial Authority. In addition to the drugs and the vehicle, mobile phones and cash were also seized. Further investigations are ongoing to identify who the intended recipients of the drug consignment were. The Ventimiglia-Genoa route is considered an "interesting" motorway stretch by Guardia di Finanza investigators, particularly in recent times, as Lieutenant Uniola explained. This is because criminal organisations have modified their drug transport methods, preferring the so-called "cluster" approach – whereby drugs are split across multiple vehicles – rather than storing large quantities in a single vehicle.
