New Delhi, July 20 -- ROME - Italian police arrested 539 people and placed 954 others under formal investigation in a nationwide operation targeting youth criminal networks on Monday, deploying officers across 44 provinces in one of the country's largest coordinated enforcement actions against organized youth crime in recent years.

The Central Operations Service, which directed the sweep, screened approximately 188,000 people during the operation, including more than 19,000 individuals under 18. Forty-seven of those arrested were minors.

Drug seizures across the 44 provinces exceeded 700 kilograms, including 41 kilograms of cocaine and 660 kilograms of cannabinoids. Officers also confiscated €307,000 in cash, 49 firearms, and a ra...