Nigerian criminal groups in Italy: organizational structure, drug trafficking and sexual exploitation

As a recent phenomenon in the Italian underworld scenario, the paper examines the crime of Nigerian criminal groups in Italy. It presents the main research results based on a variety of judiciary proceedings and interviews with prosecutors, police officers, and representatives of NGOs working with Nigerian trafficked women and asylum seekers. The aims of the paper are to depict the organizational structure and management of the main illegal activities in which Nigerian criminal groups operating in Italy are involved. The first part is based on the main literature on Nigerian criminal groups worldwide. The second outlines the methodology followed, the collected sources and the research questions. The last part analyses the characteristics of their organizational structure and the main criminal activities of drug trafficking and the exploitation of prostitution