COLOMBIA – Italian police have announced the capture of dangerous fugitive Luigi Belvedere, who was arrested in Medellín, Colombia, after being on the run since December 2020. Belvedere, 32, has been sentenced to nearly 19 years in prison for his role as an intermediary between Latin American drug cartels and the notorious Casalesi clan of the Naples-based Camorra mafia.
The arrest came after extensive cooperation between Italian authorities, Colombian investigators, and Europol. Belvedere, originally from Caserta, Italy, specialized in cocaine trafficking, facilitating the importation of drugs from Colombia to Europe. He was known for using encrypted messaging systems to organize the illegal shipments.
A photograph released by Italian authorities shows Belvedere visiting the grave of Pablo Escobar, highlighting his close ties to the Medellín cartel. His arrest marks a significant blow to international drug trafficking operations tied to both Colombian cartels and the Camorra syndicate.
Belvedere’s capture follows a similar operation months earlier, where a Norwegian crime boss involved in cocaine trafficking was also arrested in Colombia.