The suspected Eritrean leader of a global human trafficking group sought by Interpol has been extradited to Italy, Italian police told AFP on Friday.
Ghebremedhin Temesghen Ghebru, 35, is accused of involvement in human trafficking and aiding illegal immigration.
He arrived Wednesday in Italy after being arrested at Ethiopia's Addis Ababa International Airport as he was about to board a flight to the Australian city of Adelaide, police said.
At the time of his arrest, he was in possession of an Australian passport, a country where his criminal organisation also has activities, according to the Italian police.
The human trafficking group, for which Ghebru was "among the leaders and promoters," according to police, has been active in Eritrea, Ethiopia, Sudan, North Africa, especially Libya, and European countries including Italy, Germany and England.
The group organised a migrant route by land from Central African countries to Libya, where they then journeyed by sea to Europe.
His arrest is the result of collaboration between the Italian, Dutch and British judicial and police authorities, the International Criminal Court (ICC), Interpol and the European Union's police cooperation agency Europol, police said in a statement.
The Interpol office in Addis Ababa was able to arrest the suspect by following his movements, particularly between Australia and Ethiopia.
