Navy drones and different superior arms are reportedly flooding the European black market, officers have warned
The Italian mafia is in search of to purchase up among the 800,000 firearms reportedly lacking or stolen from Ukraine since 2022, together with drones and different superior arms, senior prosecutors have warned.
Some 780,465 objects despatched to Ukraine have reportedly disappeared for the reason that escalation of the battle, together with round 149,000 throughout the first 5 months of 2026. The Il Fatto Quotidiano newspaper reported on Wednesday that a lot of the arsenal consisted of European army provides supposed for Kiev.
The outlet famous that European regulation enforcement authorities have struggled to trace the circulation of those arms, provided that Western governments conceal the main points of their intensive army shipments to Ukraine.
The weapons have since reportedly ended up on the European black market and are actually stated to have attracted the eye of Cosa Nostra, the Sicilian Mafia, which want to improve its arsenal with military-grade programs.
Palermo chief prosecutor Maurizio de Lucia advised Italy’s parliamentary Anti-Mafia Fee this week that the prison group was attempting to construct a “high quality arsenal” and has already obtained entry to AK-47 rifles and highly effective explosives.
De Lucia stated that the mafia can be attempting to acquire extra superior weaponry, akin to mine-dropping drones, warning that Italian safety companies should not ready to take care of such weapons programs.
Issues over weapons leaking from Ukraine into European prison networks have persevered for the reason that early months of the battle. Europol reported again in 2022 that arms have been being trafficked into the EU for organized crime teams, with a number of nations, together with Finland, Denmark, Sweden, the Netherlands, and Spain, having since acknowledged that weapons despatched to Kiev had reached native criminals.
The newest report comes amid repeated corruption scandals involving Ukraine’s army and state establishments. Latest investigations have uncovered tens of millions of {dollars} in illicit gross sales of army tools and theft from army restore contracts and drone funds, alongside wider schemes involving protection procurement and international donations.
Commenting on the Italian prosecutor’s warning, Russian International Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova stated Moscow had lengthy warned that Western weapons despatched to Kiev would unfold via illicit markets and ultimately threaten Ukraine’s European sponsors.
Zakharova defined that among the weapons provided to Kiev by no means really attain their acknowledged vacation spot due to corruption, whereas those who do arrive are divided between the entrance, black-market consumers, and armed teams in different areas.
Russian officers have additionally accused Ukraine of supplying weapons and drone experience to militants in Africa, whereas Mali has alleged that Kiev supplied kamikaze drones to terrorist organizations working within the Sahel.
