Italian authorities carried out an operation at a shantytown in Borgo Mezzanone, in Foggia, and arrested two migrants.
Police conducted a massive search at the Borgo Mezzanone shantytown and arrested two migrants. One, a 24-year-old Nigerian man, was found in possession of 60 grams of marijuana divided into doses and two bottles containing hemp oil, all of which was hidden in the shack he lived in. The man was also charged with stealing electricity and illegal occupation of land.
An arrest for attempted murder
During the raid, police also arrested a 21-year-old man from the Gambia, who has a pending criminal charge for the attempted murder of one of his compatriots on April 28.
During a row over the sale of a stolen bicycle, the man allegedly first wounded the victim with a knife, then followed him inside a shack, slashing him with shards from a broken bottle. The victim was taken to Riuniti Hospital in Foggia and admitted under a code red.
Around 1,500 migrants live at the Borgo Mezzanone shantytown. The makeshift camp sprung up next to the asylum seekers' center just outside of Foggia.
Cops find farmworkers crowded in van, driver cited and fined
Moreover, during checks to fight the exploitation of migrant farmworkers, Carabinieri police stopped and checked a Ford Transit van on a state road on the outskirts of Cerignola in the province of Foggia. The dilapidated vehicle, which has a legal capacity of nine passengers, was carrying 15 Romanian farmworkers, including the driver. The vehicle was placed under an administrative hold.
The driver, a 30-year-old Romanian, showed the Carabinieri a false Romanian driver's license, and was therefore cited for using a false document. He was also given two administrative sanctions totaling more than 5,000 euros; one for transporting more people than legally permitted, and another for driving without a license.