Bloody Christmas: because the 'ndrine like to kill during the holidays
The clans live on rites and traditions. Not only to maintain a high sense of fascination with affiliates, but also to bring down one's enemies. And hit their surviving relatives, who will forever link the holidays to the memory of a loss

Investigations
Claudio Cordova
December 26, 2021
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San Luca
A riddled road sign in San Luca

A feud that began during the Carnival period. A murder that took place on Christmas day. A massacre in a symbolic day of summer holidays. Nothing is done by chance. Holidays. Which, however, must become days of blood. And remain, forever, days of mourning . In the 'Ndrangheta, symbology counts. It matters a lot. The 'Ndrangheta thrives on rituals and traditions. Not only to keep the sense of fascination high towards affiliates, but also to hit enemies. This explains the numerous crimes that coincide with the holidays.

The feuds
The feuds are wars that are established between clans of the same country or from different countries. Wars that can last for several years and that spare no one, even if time passes, inexorably. The 'Ndrangheta never forgets: "In the province of Reggio Calabria the feud of Cimino caused almost fifty deaths , that of Cittanova sixty-five , that of Laureana di Borrello thirty , including a nine-year-old girl , the Botticella feud claimed sixty victims. Other feuds with dozens and dozens of deaths occurred in Gioia Tauro, Sant'Ilario, Siderno, Roghudi, Bova, Locri », write Mario Andrigo and Lele Rozza in the volume The roots of the 'ndrangheta for Nutrimenti Edizioni.

The feud of San Luca
The most famous one, however, reached its peak on August 15, 2007 in Duisburg, Germany, when six of them remained on German soil, riddled with shots. A massacre that is part of the very bloody San Luca feud which began in 1991 for a banal Carnival joke. Historically, in fact, the long bloody one is started on 10 February 1991 , when a group of young people linked to the Strangio and Nirta clans, called "Versu", on the occasion of the Carnival festivities, threw eggs against the ARCI recreational club, managed by Domenico Pelle , one of the "Gambazza". A disgrace. Made even more serious by the fact that those eggs dirty, among other things, also the car of one of the Vottari.

It all starts that way. Young people are also punished with a loud dose of "beating" as they say in the jargon. Everything seems to end there. But, in reality, it is only the beginning, because subsequently, in the name of that feeling of revenge which is sacred in the 'Ndrangheta, another group of young people from the Nirta-Strangio , who became aware of what had happened, met an affiliate of the Vottari . Frightened, he began to shoot, killing two young people of the group, Francesco Strangio , 20 years old, Domenico Nirta, 19, and injuring two others. Given the extreme gravity of the action, the Vottari clan decided that the perpetrator of the murders would have to leave San Luca and the neighboring towns forever. However, he will be killed in the municipality of Bovalino , where he had found temporary refuge. The long trail of blood is now triggered .

The murder of Maria Strangio
A slaughter that seems to have remained silent for some years. Until the new explosion, fifteen years after the first event. And, even in this case, the date has a certain meaning. On December 25, 2006, Maria Strangio, wife of Giovanni Luca Nirta, the real target of the assassins, was killed, who, instead, was saved . The feud thus begins again after a long period of pause. Giovanni Luca Nirta has always professed innocence with respect to the accusations that indicate him as a charismatic leader of the 'Ndrangheta.

In various interviews he portrayed himself as a humble farmer. Indeed, in one of the raids in Calabria, even the mass media scientist Klaus Davi , for years municipal councilor in San Luca, met the alleged boss. Who made him sit in the house, offering him a coffee. Without, however, wanting to talk about 'Ndrangheta. Yet, according to the investigators, he is an apical subject of the 'Ndrangheta of San Luca. About a year ago he finished serving the 12-year prison sentence for mafia association remedied in the “Fehida” trial . Which has reconstructed the very last episodes of the San Luca feud.

The Duisburg massacre

The massacre of Duisburg is the answer to the murder of Maria Strangio , fortuitous but still washed in blood. Among the dead in Germany was also a young man, just eighteen, Tommaso Venturi , who was found wearing a burnt holy card of St. Michael the Archangel, probably a sign of the recent affiliation , which occurred in conjunction with his coming of age, celebrated in the night.

A massacre that, over the years, Calabrian investigators will reconstruct, leading to definitive convictions. Including that of Giovanni Strangio , punished with life imprisonment because he was considered the mind of the commando who went into action on the day of August 15th. Strangio will be arrested on March 12, 2009 in Diemen , a small town near Amsterdam, in the Netherlands.

The Bruzzese murder
Dates that matter. Which become scarring. We are in 2018. Marcello Bruzzese , 51 years old of Calabrian origin, was also murdered on Christmas day . Shot in the garage under the house, in a small street in the historic center of Pesaro. An ambush in pure mafia style, perhaps a warning to hit the brother of Girolamo Biagio Bruzzese , 'Ndranghetista, who became a collaborator of justice in 2003 after attempting to kill the boss: his testimonies allowed the magistrates to know the links between the clan Crea and some local politicians.


The Bruzzese murder in Pesaro
Just a few weeks ago, the judiciary and the police made some arrests, convinced that they had closed the circle on the matter. It took the work of three DDAs, Reggio Calabria, Brescia and Ancona to reconstruct what happened in the quiet Pesaro, indicated as a "protected location". The victim was the brother of the collaborator of justice Girolamo Biagio Bruzzese, formerly a member of the Crea clan of Rizziconi (RC) and from whom he disassociated himself in 2003 after attempting to attack the life of Teodoro Crea, head of the clan, known as the "Bull".

The meaning
In all cases, therefore, the dates are not chosen at random. Remaining on the San Luca feud: the beginning, Carnival of 1991, the murder of Maria Strangio, Christmas 2006, the Duisburg massacre, August 2007 . All events occurred in correspondence of some days of celebration. «According to the ethnologist Vito Teti, revenge in an archaic universe represented the attempt to restore order upset by a bloodshed», write Nicola Gratteri and Antonio Nicaso in La malapianta .

«In the traditional horizon, the rule of blood that calls blood has often been adopted, even in an instrumental way, to legitimize bloody behavior in the 'Ndrangheta. It is therefore possible to understand why on feast days , or on days dedicated to the dead, when the memory is more oppressive and fundamental, sometimes remembrance behaviors are used. In the logic of feeding the memory through pain, the revenge practiced in festive moments (in a Mediterranean context but also in many other traditional societies) takes on a ritual and highly symbolic value "write the prosecutor of Catanzaro and the journalist and expert of ' ndrangheta.

Symbology and religion
Symbology, especially if it intersects with religion , has a predominant role in the behaviors, even of a criminal nature, enacted by the 'Ndrangheta. In the strategies of crime, in customs, nothing is done by chance . The mafia - and, in particular, the 'Ndrangheta - chooses to kill especially on relevant dates that often coincide with religious holidays. Or on important occasions for the subject to be eliminated. It is no coincidence, for example, that many murders take place on the victim's name day or birthday . Mafia killers sometimes commit their own murders in sacred places. As in the killing of Domenico Vallelunga , the boss of the homonymous gang of Serra San Bruno, Vibo Valentia,assassinated in front of the Sanctuary of the Saints Cosmo and Damiano, in Riace .

It is just one of many possible examples. Crimes, killings, aggravated by the fact of having profaned a place of worship, of having stained the consecrated land with blood. Facts, obviously, in full antithesis with the mantle of religiosity with which organized crime is often and willingly covered . And so, therefore, also happens for the so-called cases of "white shotgun" , in which a person is killed. And his body made to disappear. Buried in some distant countryside, or dissolved in acid. One way is the other so that families cannot mourn their relative . In addition to death, therefore, there is another type of punishment, equally cruel, for the survivors .

https://icalabresi.it/inchieste/natale-di-sangue-perche-la-ndrangheta-uccide-nelle-feste/

Good article , thanks for sharing

'Ndrangheta, one of the leaders of Calabrian organized crime dies
By editorial staff December 28, 2021
The elderly boss, convicted in the Crimine trial, had been in poor health for some time. He was believed to be at the top of the 'Ndrangheta

Francesco Gattuso, “Ciccillo”, one of the old 'Ndrangheta leaders of Reggio Calabria, left this land. He was 90 years old, and had been in poor health for some time. According to experts, he was the first of the prominent figures and head of the "club" of Croce Valanidi, a hilly southern suburb of Reggio. In the "Crimine" trial, Gattuso reported the sentence to 13 years of imprisonment. His role in organized crime emerged in all evidence from the video and environmental interception at a summit of 'Ndrangheta in Polsi, the temple of the Calabrian clans. It was 2009 and Gattuso was greeted with reverences that are reserved exclusively for the wise godparents.

Looks like the Monopoly man lol

'Ndrangheta: lawyer Pittelli remains in prison
Application for revocation of aggravation of precautionary measure rejected

(ANSA) - CATANZARO, 28 DEC - The lawyer Giancarlo Pittelli, former member of the Forza Italia parliamentary, remains in prison, accused of external involvement in the Mafia association in the "Rinascita Scott" trial, against which the Court of Vibo on 7 December last Valentia has ordered the revocation of the benefit of house arrest and the translation in prison.

The measure was adopted after it was discovered that Pittelli had sent a registered letter to the Minister for the South, Mara Carfagna, in which he asked her to help him, calling the accusations against him by the Catanzaro DDA "crazy".

The Court of Vibo Valentia, before which the "Rinascita Scott" trial is underway in the bunker hall of Lamezia Terme, rejected the request for release presented by Pittelli's defenders, Salvatore Staiano and Guido Contestabile, giving reasons for the decision with the fact that the criminal lawyer "although unable in any way to communicate with the outside world, has kept in contact with several subjects to affect the process in which he is accused".

Three tons of cocaine seized in the port of Gioia Tauro

https://globalhappenings.com/opinion/74711.html

3,000kg of cocaine seized in Calabrian port; worth over €1 billion on streets – ‘Ndrangheta link believed https://gangstersinc.org/blog/3-000kg-of-cocaine-seized-in-calabrian-port-worth-over-1-billion

Ndrangheta link "believed?" You kidding me right?

I don't know how the Italians estimate the value but 3000 kilo of cocaine in the port of Rotterdam would be a street value of 225 million euros not €1 billion.

Yeah they always inflate the numbers. The going rate for a kilo is something like 75k at the highest and 35k at the lowest.

Not even close to 1 billion , here in Balkans u can get a kilo of pure stuff for around 35,000 euros , once sold on streets its around 100k

For that load to be worth a billion I'm guessing they would have to make over 300k per kilo, highly doubtful.

These papers need to be sued over them inflating the numbers, because people get convicted and receive heavier time over that shit.

Or here's an idea, how about you break down exactly how you came up with such figures.

Here in balkans we have huge cocaine player , Filip Korac , his kilo of pure is going for 26,000e ( you can even take product for free and pay later , once u sell it) , his best man Dusan is living in Rome and have powerful connections in Italian mafia. No one here can match his price.

When everyone was getting ready for the New Year's Eve dinner, Giuseppe De Masi, 39 years old was shot dead in a barbershop in Sorianello, in the late afternoon of Friday.

Those who knew Giuseppe De Masi, in fact, describe him as a man, for at least ten years now, dedicated to work - he owned a small earthmoving company and a car wash - even if in the past he had been involved in two operations (Luce in the woods and Ghost, both coordinated by the Dda of Catanzaro) for crimes relating to drug trafficking, but the two trials ended for Giuseppe De Masi with a full acquittal.

So basically just a video of men in face masks.

Maxi anti ‘Ndrangheta operation throughout northern Italy, arrests also in Turin

13 precautionary custody orders issued by the GIP of the Court of Milan against as many subjects, some of which would be contiguous to historical ‘Ndrangheta families originating from Platì (RC) and rooted in Northern Italy in the territories between the provinces of Pavia, Milan and Monza Brianza as well as in Turin.

The investigative hypotheses disputed to today’s arrested by the Milanese District Anti-Mafia Prosecutor’s Office range, for various reasons, from criminal association aimed at drug trafficking to the possession and carrying of firearms up to extortion episodes perpetrated in Lombardy with the aggravating circumstance of mafia method.

'Ndrangheta, blow to the Barbaro family: 13 arrests. Threats with the gun: "I'll kill you like dogs"
Thirteen people were arrested today in an operation by the Pavia Finance Police. Among them also Antonio and Rocco Barbaro, members of one of the most powerful 'Ndrangheta families in Lombardy. The threats to a debtor: "See that I kill you, like dogs".

The surname is one of those that count in the chessboard of organized crime. Legend has it that the surname Barbaro dates back to January 26, 1873 when Francesco Barbaro was born in Platì, on the slopes of the Aspromonte. A story of 'ndrangheta that leads to Piedmont, Australia and obviously Lombardy. And here in Lombardy the Barbaro are unrivaled: dedicated to drug trafficking, to contracts in the construction sector, to usury, over the years the names of the descendants of that Francesco appear in the most important investigations of the 'Ndrangheta. Domenico Barbaro (now life imprisonment), Rocco (released from prison a year ago and now in a workhouse in Vasto) and Antonio (life imprisonment in Padua) are the godparents who together with the other satellite families of the Barbaro family (Sergi-Agresta-Marando -Musitano-Molluso-Zappia) gave life to the Lombard criminal empire.

The arrested are all from Platì
Antonio Barbaro , 52, owner of a fruit shop in Gaggiano (Milan) and his son Rocco , 29, arrested today along with 11 other people, I am at the head of the group that holds the ranks in Casorate Primo and that, according to investigations by the public prosecutor of the district anti-mafia Directorate Gianluca Prisco, with their respective wives were involved in trafficking large quantities of cocaine and marijuana between Lombardy, Piedmont and Liguria.

I wish we had like a Jerry Capeci over there to explain all of this in fluent English.

The district gup of Catanzaro, De Salvatore, ordered the trial of Salvatore Mantella, of Vibo Valentia, cousin of the repentant Andrea Mantella, of Onofrio Barbieri and Domenico Bonavota, the latter two from Sant'Onofrio, for the murder of Domenico Belsito.

The man, on March 18, 2008, was seriously injured along the Via Nazionale in Pizzo and died after two weeks in the Jazzolino hospital.
Belsito had been seriously injured while he was near a bar in Pizzo. He had just got out of his car when he was hit by numerous gunshots fired by the members of a commando who had immediately lost their tracks. A few hours after the ambush, the car in which the killers were traveling was found in flames by the carabinieri near a farm a few kilometers away.
The three defendants opted for the ordinary rite. The first date of the trial was set before the Court of Assizes of Catanzaro for 17 March. Four other defendants opted for the shortened trial: Pasquale Bonavota (currently a fugitive); Nicola Bonavota, (brother of Pasquale and Domenico); Francesco Salvatore Fortuna; the collaborator of justice Andrea Mantella. For them, the trial will begin on March 16th.

Here the mafia boss serves – in the Lugano pub the cocaine godfather of the ‘Ndrangheta tapped the beer
One of the main cocaine importers in the Calabrian `Ndrangheta “worked” as a waiter in a pub in the center of Lugano from spring 2017. He had an assistant with the best contacts in local politics.

Most of the cocaine consumed in Europe comes from the `Ndrangheta.

It was to be a special day. Monday April 10, 2017 is the day A.* started working as a waiter in a pub in Lugano. He had a work permit and told Swiss authorities that he lived in a few houses in Lugano. In fact, he had rented an apartment there.

What's his name?

'Cannot be named for legal reasons'

Yeah those other countries don't name people. And some will only give you first name and last initial

Italian mafia boss is on trial in Tongeren for cocaine trafficking
The infamous Italian mobster Sebastiano Signati and nineteen of his accomplices are on trial in the criminal court of Tongeren at the beginning of January. They are suspected of large-scale cocaine trafficking.
Signati (55) lived in hiding in Belgium for eleven years. Smart and careful enough to always stay out of the hands of the authorities, except when he ended up in a private hospital in Brussels in 2015 due to heart problems.

'Ndrangheta, the boss Pasquino sentenced to 17 years in prison
He had been captured by the carabinieri last year in João Pessoa, Brazil
January 22, 2022

Vincenzo Pasquino was sentenced to 17 years in prison , yesterday at the trial for 'Ndrangheta Cerbero. Pasquino, who is in prison in Brazil awaiting extradition since last October, was accused of 416 bis, money laundering and drug trafficking association. Prosecutor Paolo Toso had asked for a 24-year sentence. Pasquino 's defense attorney, Mauro Molinengo, had asked for acquittal regarding the crime of mafia-type criminal association.

Over 400,000 euros in cash, along with Rolex watches and jewels worth over 200,000 euros, were discovered by the police in a garage in Nichelino (Turin). The treasure, to which the investigators of the Flying Squad led by Luigi Mitola arrived after the arrest of two men for drugs, which led to the seizure of a large quantity of drugs, could be linked to Vittorio Raso , boss of the 'Ndrangheta ( believed to be close to the family of Rizziconi ) arrested in autumn 2020 then released from prison and now a fugitive. The clues collected by the investigators in fact suggest that the arrested are part of the group of drug traffickers managed by the boss.

'Ndrangheta: murder of Giuseppe Nirta, trial in April in Spain

The trial for the murder of Giuseppe Nirta, who was killed at the age of 52 on 9 June 2017 in Murcia on his way home, will be held between 25 April and 3 May in Spain, before a popular jury.

He had a history of drug trafficking and had been involved in the Minotauro operation against the 'Ndrangheta in Piedmont.

The only defendant is his partner, Cristina Elena Toma, a Romanian. For her, the prosecutor is asking for a sentence of 26 years.
According to 'El periodico de Espana', which reports the news, Nirta was under investigation in Spain for his alleged links with the 'Ndrangheta.
Originally from San Luca (Reggio Calabria), he is the brother of Bruno Nirta, for the Carabinieri and Dda of Turin at the top of the 'Ndrangheta club in Aosta and sentenced last year, in the second degree of the Geenna trial, to 12 years 7 months and 20 days of imprisonment. According to the Spanish prosecutor, the couple was returning home to Aguilas on the night of the murder when the woman got out of the Alfa Romeo 147 and fired seven gunshots at them. Cristina Elena Toma also did not call for help directly, but she limited herself to informing a friend of Giuseppe Nirta using his cell phone. The prosecutor's accusation is based on two technical reports by the Guardia civil, according to which the shirt and trousers worn that evening by Toma showed traces of gunpowder.