The body of a brutally murdered young Arab was discovered in an abandoned mine on the outskirts of a large Italian city. Local prosecutors and city officials are afraid of an open and impartial investigation. While Police Commissioner Paolo Mormino and Carabinieri captain Pietro Cau are trying to find out who the murdered man was, a real war is breaking out in the city: arson, unrest in the Muslim community, street clashes involving illegal immigrants from eastern countries, drug dealers, pimps and simply homeless people. In this chaos, where all traces are lost, Paolo and Pietro cannot do without the help of the omnipresent reporter Marco Cambi.