50 warrants issued in mafia sweep

Arrest warrants for more than 50 people were issued today in a Mafia sweep across Italy, targeting drug trafficking and extortion rackets, news reports said.

Local officials, including a tourism official from the southern region of Calabria, were among those detained in early morning raids, the Ansa and Apcom news agencies reported.

The swoops were focused on Calabria - home of the 'Ndrangheta organised crime syndicate - and Umbria, in central Italy, the reports said.

The probe, codenamed Naos, uncovered an association between the 'Ndrangheta and the Naples-based Camorra mob, the reports said.

The ring focused on drug trafficking and extortion rackets, particularly concerning contracts for hydroelectric utilities and tourism buildings, the reports said.