Sudan has extradited to Italy an Eritrean national suspected of being a kingpin in an organised crime network responsible for bringing thousands of migrants and refugees to Europe. About 170,000 migrants reached Italy by sea in 2014 and 153,800 in 2015, according to the International Organisation for Migration. He had been sought since 2015 on accusations of international people smuggling. The smuggling networks have mostly eluded international law enforcement agencies because they are based on anonymous cells spread across many countries. Between them they allegedly raked in huge sums by bringing migrants from Libya to Italy across the Mediterranean on overcrowded and often unseaworthy boats.

Source: The Guardian June 08, 2016 05:54 UTC