Former centre-right lawmaker Giancarlo Pittelli was among several people arrested on Tuesday as part of an operation targetting an alleged illegal waste-trafficking ring run by the 'Ndrangheta mafia.
Pittelli, who is also a prominent lawyer, is accused of external participation in mafia association, the same charge he faces in another case, the "Rinascita-Scott" trial.
In total Carabinieri police executed warrants restricting the freedom of 29 people and impounded five companies involved in waste-management in the southern region of Calabria, the 'Ndrangheta's home turf, and the northern region of Emilia-Romagna.
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