Chinese couple shot dead in Italian ‘gang war’ over designer fakes

A Chinese suspected gangster has been changeable dormant successful Rome successful what investigators judge is simply a feud betwixt rival clans for power of the fake decorator goods trade.

Zhang Dayong, 53, was killed on with his woman Gong Xiaoquing, 38, successful what appears to person been a targeted assassination by a gunman extracurricular their flat successful the Pigneto territory of the Italian capital.

The treble homicide precocious connected Monday appeared to beryllium a nonrecreational deed and the archetypal execution-style sidesplitting of Chinese mafia members successful Rome.

The mates were changeable astatine adjacent scope successful the caput and thorax with astatine slightest six rounds from a 9mm limb earlier the assassin fled connected foot.

Police fishy that the deed was portion of a long-running turf warfare wrong Italy’s Chinese transgression networks for a portion of the fake goods market.

Counterfeit Gucci, Chanel and Louis Vuitton decorator handbags and apparel person go large concern worthy billions of euros.

It is believed Zhang whitethorn person crossed idiosyncratic from a rival clan oregon tried to determination successful connected a concern tally by different triad gang.

Investigators said the dormant antheral worked for Zhang Naizhong, who is connected proceedings successful Florence implicit allegations helium coordinated amerciable operations crossed Italy, France, Germany, and Spain.

The accused antheral had acquired a adjacent monopoly successful organisation of goods crossed overmuch of Europe done threats and unit against Chinese institution owners, anti-mafia prosecutors said.

Zhang Dayong was allegedly a indebtedness collector and enforcer, and was antecedently based successful the municipality of Prato successful Tuscany.

The town, adjacent to Florence, is location to astatine slightest 20,000 Chinese radical and the centre of a lucrative textiles assemblage that produces billions of euros worthy of accelerated manner covering and fake decorator goods.

The Chinese person been established successful Prato for decades, providing inexpensive labour sleeping successful squalid dormitories and moving successful sweatshops.

Shadowy satellite of fake manner capital

It is simply a shadowy satellite that investigators person struggled to penetrate – lookouts connected ft oregon connected bicycles support tabs connected strangers and determination is simply a connection barrier, with galore of the workers not speaking Italian oregon English.

And dissimilar Italian mafia organisations, determination is nary contented of informers who divulge accusation to the constabulary successful speech for much lenient sentences.

There are occasional raids by constabulary but they person small effect connected the much than 4,000 Chinese-owned businesses successful Prato.

Rival Chinese clans are engaged successful a conflict for power of the sector, successful peculiar the warehousing of products and their organisation by motortruck crossed Europe.

They are besides allegedly progressive successful cause trafficking, prostitution and the moving of gambling dens.

“It is simply a systemic problem. Not lone the accumulation of clothing, but besides retention successful warehouses and the logistics of distribution,” Giovanni Santi of Prato’s enclosure of commerce told La Repubblica newspaper.

Luca Tescaroli, a section prosecutor, said that the Chinese triad groups “maintain links with accepted mafia organisations” specified arsenic the ’Ndrangheta of Calabria, the Cosa Nostra successful Sicily and Albanian gangs.

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