Involved with the mafia? Arrests in raid against Ultras!

Milan (Italy) - More than a dozen high-ranking Ultras from the soccer clubs AC Milan and Inter Milan have been arrested in Milan in a large-scale raid by the Italian police.

Several Ultras from the Italian clubs Milan and Inter were arrested in a major police raid.
Several Ultras from the Italian clubs Milan and Inter were arrested in a major police raid.  © Luca Bruno/AP/dpa

The suspects are accused of extortion, assault and other crimes, the police announced. Some of those arrested are also accused of having close links to the mafia. The anti-mafia authorities are investigating.

16 men were remanded in custody and three others are now under house arrest.

According to the police, the specific allegation is that the ultra-groups of the two clubs in the northern Italian metropolis are said to have formed a kind of alliance. The police speak of "criminal conspiracies with mafia-like methods".

The Ultras are said to have coordinated and organized the illegal sale of tickets for Milan and Inter matches at the San Siro stadium.

Star rapper's bodyguard also among those arrested

National anti-mafia prosecutor Giovanni Milillo, center left, and Milan prosecutor Marcello Viola, center right, take part in a press conference at the Milan court.
National anti-mafia prosecutor Giovanni Milillo, center left, and Milan prosecutor Marcello Viola, center right, take part in a press conference at the Milan court.  © Luca Bruno/AP/dpa

The Ultras are also said to have demanded protection money from vendors and for parking spaces in front of the stadium.

But it is also about brawls in front of and inside the stadium during the matches of the respective clubs.

According to Italian media reports, the big names of the Milan Ultra scene are among those arrested, including the two leaders of the respective Ultra groups.

The head of the Inter Ultras only recently took over from his predecessor, who was arrested after the killing of a member of a powerful mafia family. The bodyguard of the well-known Italian rapper Fedez (34) is also among those arrested.