Yemeni diplomat arrested in Rome on drug smuggling charges

ROME, Oct. 05 (YPA) -Italian police arrested a Yemeni diplomat in the capital, Rome, on charges of smuggling drugs, and distributing them in six Italian cities. He was working within a criminal network consisting of 33 people, according to the Italian newspaper Fanpage.

The newspaper said in a report published on Wednesday that “There is also a diplomat from Yemen in Italy among those under investigation in the international drug trafficking ring uncovered by the financiers of Rome’s Guardia di Finanza.”

According to the paper, his name is in the precautionary custody order issued by the judge of the preliminary investigations of the Court, which has made a total of thirty-three arrests.

The Yemeni diplomat enjoys immunity, and his role within the criminal organization was that of a drug courier, transporting the narcotic substance inside the car with a diplomatic license plate to the various drug dealing squares in Rome. These are vehicles that cannot be stopped at any checkpoint, nor can they be checked, the newspaper said in its report.

Yemeni sources in Rome said the diplomat, who is under investigation for drug trafficking, is the “administrative attaché” at the Yemeni embassy in Italy.

E.M