Italian police arrest Dutch drug crime fugitive at Lake Garda villa

Police from the province of Brescia, Italy arrested a Dutch fugitive who had been hiding out in a luxury villa. The man was taken into custody at the home in Desenzano, a holiday town along the southwestern shore of Lake Garda where fewer than 30,000 people reside.

The suspect was not identified, but authorities said in a statement that he was wanted by international authorities for the production and distribution of narcotics. Dutch police issued a European arrest warrant for the man in December, saying he is also a suspected money launderer. His arrest was announced in Italy on Monday.

Police monitoring the villa saw the man leaving the villa with a woman. He was stopped and asked for identification. When the suspect presented forged documents, he was taken into custody. Police officers took a mugshot of the suspect and fingerprinted him, which was then shared with police in the Netherlands who positively identified him as their fugitive.

The arrest followed an investigation by plainclothes detectives working as part of a mobile division within the Brescia police. They were assisted by national and international police, including Europol’s European Network Fugitive Active Search Team, or Enfast.

News outlets in Italy reported that the man was incarcerated in a Brescia prison.