The Italian Job: Mexican Police 'Sold' Tourists to Gang for $50

Mexican police officers have admitted selling three visiting Italians to a Jalisco criminal gang for US$50, the state prosecutor’s office has revealed in an ongoing investigation.

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The four officers, whose identities have yet to be confirmed but are believed to be three male officers and one female, are now facing criminal charges, Attorney General Raul Sanchez said. 

During a press conference, Jalisco Government Secretary Roberto Lopez said other police agents may also be involved. According to reports, the three Italians were "sold" to a local criminal organization for US$53.

Sanchez said: "It was part of an operation that they (the police) did as active elements in coordination and collusion with organized crime."

The trio from Naples was reported missing January 31, after arriving in Jalisco on business. Raffaele Russo, 54, had left the house for a meeting. When he failed to return two hours later, his son, Antonio Russo, 25, and nephew, Vincenzo Cimmino, 29, ventured out to find him.

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Antonio later messaged his younger brother, Daniele, to say he and Vincenzo had been intercepted by municipal police at a local gas station in Tecalitlan and were being taken into custody.

Five minutes later, his phone was deactivated. The incident was reported by their brother, Francesco Russo. "The Mexican police for fucking US$53 sold three people to criminals, it's too shameful to believe," Russo told BBC Mundo in a telephone interview.

Gino Bergame, a spokesman for the family, said: "Tell us where they are... we hope they are alive."

The Russo family has denied any connection to organized crime in Mexico and said the three were traveling as tourists. Mexican authorities say the family is involved with selling energy, welding and tools.

"We asked the Italian authorities to intervene because no one in Mexico gives us information, no one helps us know the truth about our family," said Ciro Bergame, a relative.

Last year in Mexico, 33,517 were reported missing, 197 of which were tourists. In Jalisco alone, there were 2,917 disappearances, the National Registry of Missing Persons reports.