A 39-year-old man believed to be at the helm of a Sicilian drug trafficking ring has been arrested in St Paul’s Bay by the Maltese police. 

The man was arrested at 2am on Tuesday morning inside an apartment, following days of surveillance by local police.  

As he was being arrested in Malta, Italian carabinieri [domestic police] in Syracuse arrested 29 people in connection with the drug operation, which is believed to yield €25,000 in daily profits. 

A spokesperson for the Maltese police said they could not confirm or deny a suspect's identity, as the law forbade them from doing so. Italian media, however, identified him as alleged Syracuse drug kingpin Maximiliano Genova.

Maximiliano Genova.

Genova is alleged to have led a 24/7 trafficking ring that sold anything from cocaine to crack, marijuana and methamphetamine, operating out of heavily-guarded apartment blocks in the northern part of the city. 

Men would deal the drugs, women would handle packaging and children were also reportedly roped in to take phone calls or deliver drugs, La Sicilia reported. 

Dealers worked three separate shifts, with the first starting at 6am to 2pm, the second from 2pm to 10pm and the third running from 10pm to 6am. 

The Italian man arrested in Malta is expected to be arraigned in court on Wednesday. He was arrested on the strength of a European Arrest Warrant.