The Italian special unit Raggruppamento Operativo Speciale (ROS) of the Carabinieri targeted a suspected right-wing extremist network this morning as part of a nationwide raid. Under the coordination of the Brescia public prosecutor's office and in close cooperation with the National Directorate for Combating the Mafia and Terrorism, homes and individuals were searched throughout the country.
The action was triggered by an arrest warrant issued by the investigating judge Dr. Alessandro D'Altilia against a 21-year-old man from Brescia, who is accused of serious crimes under Art. 604 bis para. 2 of the Italian Criminal Code. At the same time, the deputy public prosecutor of Brescia, Dr. Caty Bressanelli, ordered 26 further search warrants. The persons concerned are accused of belonging to virtual right-wing extremist groups that advocate radical neo-Nazi, accelerationist, supremacist, xenophobic and anti-Semitic positions.
Extensive investigations since December 2023
The investigation, led by the ROS Crime Prevention Unit in Brescia, began in December 2023. Initially, the officers focused on the technical monitoring of the 21-year-old main suspect's Telegram and TikTok profiles. In doing so, they came across a wealth of evidence to prove his criminal behavior. These include:
- the dissemination of ideas based on racial and ethnic superiority and hatred, including the trivialization and denial of the Holocaust, and
- participation in various virtual Telegram groups aimed at inciting discrimination or violence on racial, national or religious grounds, and
- the glorification of fascism.
Virtual breeding grounds for hatred: the groups studied
Particularly striking was the activity of the main suspect in several online groups that served as breeding grounds for extreme ideologies:
- "WHITE LIVES MATTER ITALIA"This group disseminated content that glorified the division of humanity into races and the superiority of the white race over other ethnicities and races in a discriminatory manner.
- "VannaWaffles TM"National socialist and accelerationist ideas were propagated here. The group also called for violence against people with dark skin, immigrants, Muslims and members of the LGBTIQ+ community.
- "SANGUE E SUOLO" (Blood and Soil)This group published clearly supremacist, neo-Nazi, Holocaust-denying, anti-Semitic and fascist-glorifying content.
- "SPIRITO FASCISTA" (Fascist Spirit)Fascism, National Socialism, racial superiority, anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial were glorified here, and political, ethnic and social mockery was spread.
- "Hooligans/NS/WP/WLM"This group made explicit references to National Socialism and white supremacy ("white power"). Posts were published with National Socialist, supremacist, racist and homophobic content as well as explicit calls to commit crimes, including arson and physical altercations.
- "RIVELAZIONI NON AUTORIZZATE" (Unauthorized disclosures): Films and images glorifying fascism, National Socialism, anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial were published on this channel.
- "IDENTITÀ EUROPEA" (European identity)This group disseminated anti-Semitic, homophobic and racist posts.
- "CASA DEL FASCIO" (House of Fascism): Articles were published here that glorified fascism and National Socialism and contained anti-Semitic content that denied the Holocaust.
Extension of the investigation to other users
The initial investigation led to an expansion to other social networks and the identification of 29 additional internet users. Many of them are between 18 and 25 years old, five of them were even minors at the time of the offense. They come from all over the country and are also being investigated for the same offense.
The raid underlines the Italian authorities' decisive action against the spread of hate and extremism in the digital space.
