Davide Fiorucci, 29, with criminal records, was shot dead in front of his home with 10 bullets in the town of Boscoreale (Naples)

The seizure of the boss Setola was ineffective, the villas returned to the family

The seizure of the two villas of Giuseppe Setola , found guilty of dozens of murders including the massacre of Ghanaians in Castel Volturno , dating back to 18 September 2008, is ineffective .

This was established by the judge for preliminary investigations of Naples, Gianluigi Visco, to whom the documentation relating to the seizure of the two properties located in Casal di Principe, where Setola's daughter and her Camorra in-laws still live, was sent at the beginning January by the Court of Assizes of the court of Santa Maria Capua Vetere, which declared itself incompetent after ordering the seizure of the villas last November.

A procedural issue which involves the return of assets to the family members of the head of the Casalesi massacre wing , detained under 41 bis at the Milan Opera prison with numerous life sentences to serve.

Naples, Finance blitz against drug trafficking, 16 arrests
| FEBRUARY 13, 2024 10:09 AM | 0 comments
2 minutes to read
Finance blitz coordinated by the Naples DDA led by Nicola Gratteri against drug trafficking: 16 arrests

NAPLES - The soldiers of the Economic-Financial Police Unit of the Guardia di Finanza of Naples have carried out an order for the application of the precautionary custody measure in prison, issued by the judge for preliminary investigations of the Court of Naples, at the request of the Public Prosecutor's Office of Naples – District Anti-Mafia Directorate, led by Nicola Gratteri .

The provision concerns sixteen people "seriously suspected, in various capacities, of the crimes of criminal association aimed at drug trafficking, detention for the purpose of drug dealing, kidnapping for the purpose of extortion, failure to comply with the sentence". The investigations, conducted by the financiers of the GOA Section of the Organized Crime Investigation Group, would have made it possible to «reveal the operations of four different criminal groups (in the province of Naples, but with ramifications also in other Italian territories and in Spain), dedicated to the trafficking of various types of drugs (mostly hashish and cocaine)".

DRUG TRAFFICKING IN NAPLES, THE GROUPS INTO WHICH THE SYSTEM WAS ORGANIZED
In particular, a first group, operating in the territory of Naples and the province and with branches in Crotone, headed by a person who, through couriers, was responsible for the wholesale marketing of batches of narcotics in favor of customers not only from Campania but also Calabrians. A second group, operating in Naples and its province and with branches in other Italian regions (in particular, Emilia-Romagna), which would also have distributed batches of narcotics to the first group. A third group, which would have imported batches of narcotics from Spain, mainly destined for the Irpinia market. A fourth group, with an operational base in Giugliano in Campania (province of Naples), which would have dealt with the marketing of the narcotic in favor, in particular, of another criminal group active in the Vesuvian countries.

During the investigative activities, conducted in collaboration with the Central Organized Crime Investigation Service, the military seized over 300 kg of hashish, 36 kg of cocaine and over 400 thousand euros in cash. The investigation would also have made it possible to ascertain the kidnapping for the purpose of extortion of one of the recipients of the precautionary measure to force his wife and brother to pay off a debt of 7,700 euros originating from previous unpaid drug supplies.

The Camorra in Naples, the Secondigliano Alliance advances towards the Sanità district
From Giuseppe Letizia - February 14, 2024

NAPLES – The historic center is a 'powder keg'. The Sanità district is 'undefended', to use the words of one investigator. And this creates appetites. After the maxi blitz and then the arrest of Vincenzo Pirozzi (taken into a workhouse), local families have to reorganize, but it takes time. The police fear a scenario: the Secondigliano Alliance and the Splinterists want to get their hands on Sanità . Not from today. We will have to wait a few days to see if the old non-belligerence pact still holds. The clans of the northern area may have already decided to regain Sanità. Propitious occasion. After all, the Lo Russos from the Miano neighborhood had already done it some time ago, but today they no longer exist. The 'capitoni' had placed trusted men in the alleys at the Sanità: a remote control. Successful for years, until the revolt of the local boats. Something similar could happen again.
The closest to Sanità are the Licciardi and Contini members of the Alliance cartel, together with the Mallardos. The Licciardis moved from Masseria Cardone to Secondigliano. The Contini from Vasto. But the Amato-Pagano from Melito and Mugnano are constantly expanding and could also claim space in the historic center. In short, the chessboard is fragmented.
According to the maps, the group closest to Sanità is the one once led by Eduardo Contini. Today they have a new organizational chart. Even the Splinterists have changed their face: the old guard of Cesare Pagano and Raffaele Amato no longer exists.
Now silent investigations begin: the agents collect information confidentially, to understand who and how will take the first step. For now the alleys are deserted: a strange silence has fallen on the Sanità system after the arrests. On January 16th, twelve were arrested by the flying squad, an alleged association aimed at drug trafficking. The so-called itinerant drug dealing squares: orders for drugs were received by telephone, then transmitted to the various pushers on scooters, who completed the home delivery. It's not all. In a different context - on February 1st - Vincenzo Pirozzi was stopped: the agents of the investigative team of the San Carlo Arena police station notified the 43-year-old of the security measure of the workhouse near Vasto. Already placed on probation. The Prosecutor's Office lists him as one of the bosses of the Sanità district. In the past considered close to the Missos.

Anti-Camorra blitz to stop the war between clans in northern Naples: 13 precautionary measures in Frattamaggiore

The Carabinieri are notifying 13 precautionary measures (11 arrests and 2 residence bans) to various people between Frattamaggiore, Frattaminore, Arzano and Caivano.

Anti-Camorra blitz by the police to stop the war between clans in the northern area of ??Naples, between the municipalities of Frattamaggiore, Frattaminore, Arzano and Caivano . The operation by the carabinieri of the Giugliano in Campania and Caivano companies, coordinated by the Naples Public Prosecutor's Office - District Anti-Mafia Directorate, began this morning. There are 13 precautionary measures notified to as many people, of which 11 of custody in prison and two residence bans in Campania, following an order for the application of precautionary measures issued by the GIP of the Court of Naples.

The 13 recipients of the precautionary measures are considered seriously suspected, for various reasons, of the crimes of mafia-type association, association aimed at illicit trafficking of narcotic substances, extortion and attempted extortion, possession and carrying of weapons, detention for the purpose of drug dealing , crimes aggravated by the mafia method.

I don't think this will have any effect, murders in Naples are crazy in last few months.

It will be interesting this year now Nicola Gratteri is in charge of the Public Prosecutor's Office of Naples, he has been dealing with the Calabrians for decades, but Camorra is something else.

Camorra, blitz against the new clan of the Agro Nocerino: dozens of arrests

Operation against the Camorra and in particular against the new clan of the Agro Nocerino with ramifications also in the province of Naples .

A precautionary custody order was carried out by the carabinieri of the territorial department of Nocera Inferiore at the request of the Salerno prosecutor's office.

The action was directed against the members of a Camorra-type criminal association, operating in the Nocerino Sarnese countryside and in the province of Naples.

Dozens of affiliates and bosses have ended up in prison accused of drug trafficking and extortion of traders and entrepreneurs.

About a hundred carabinieri from the Nocera Inferiori territorial department are in action with the collaboration of the Pontecagnano helicopter unit

Fight against Scafati's Camorra clan: dawn raid leads to 31 arrests, 5 fugitives
February 16, 20243 min. read
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3 min. read
At dawn this morning the Carabinieri of the Territorial Department of Nocera Inferiore together with the soldiers of the Provincial Command of Salerno , of the Torre Annunziata Group and of the Ferrara and Potenza Companies carried out a precautionary custody order - issued by the Salerno GIP on request from the local Prosecutor's Office, against 36 members of a mafia-type criminal association operating in the Agro Nocerino Sarnese and in the Province of Naples.
The raid arose from the existence of serious indications of guilt towards the suspects for having set up a Camorra clan self-defined as a " family " due to the kinship ties that bind the main suspects and at the top of which is Dario Federico di Boscoreale who - as the GIP writes - "already convicted as leader and promoter of a mafia-style criminal association in 2007, he moved his criminal interests from the historic location in Pompeii and Boscoreale, assuming criminal control of the Scafati territory" together with the convicted criminal Salvatore Di Paul .

According to the accusatory hypothesis, the Clan, by virtue of the intimidating force also provided by the availability of firearms mainly supplied by Domenico Tamarisco , a member of the Nardiello Clan of Torre Annunziata , managed the drug dealing squares of Scafati , also engaging in extortion activities on the same territory and neighboring areas.

According to the accusatory reconstruction, shared by the GIP, the group already subject to previous investigations by another judicial office as it operated in the District of Naples and in particular in the areas of Pompeii and Castellammare di Stabia , had moved to the nearby territory of Scafati following the power vacuum related to the arrest carried out in December 2021 of alleged exponents of a mafia group linked to Franchino Matrone , acquiring supremacy over other criminal groups operating in the same territory to the point of being called to intervene to regulate the Camorra's territorial competences and the " runnings" carried out by other groups that had trespassed into the settlement territories.

Ten extortion episodes carried out by affiliates of the clan were deemed proven: among these we note the extortion carried out inside the tourist port of Marina di Stabia carried out in sensational ways, i.e. through a so-called " lay " perpetrated by subjects who went to the site on large-displacement motorcycles.

It should be highlighted that 5 people avoided the execution of the precautionary order while at the same time the Economic and Financial Police Unit of the Guardia di Finanza of Salerno executed an order for the seizure of registered immovable and movable assets, economic activities and financial relationships for a total value currently estimated at approximately 3 million euros.

Press release from the Public Prosecutor's Office of Salerno

Italy, Home Of The Mafia, Now One Of Europe's Safest Countries
By Gaël BRANCHEREAU
February 17, 2024
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After a crackdown on mafias which pushed them into less violent financial crime, the murder rate plummeted
Miguel MEDINA
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Italy may be the land that launched Cosa Nostra, but today it is one of the safest countries in Europe, with a murder rate well below its neighbours.

From the mid-19th century through to the 1990s, thousands of people died in mafia violence, from rivals or traitors cast in cement or fed to pigs, to judges, priests and witnesses killed for daring to defy the mob.

There were also the traumatic "Years of Lead" from the end of the 1960s to the 1980s, when armed groups from the extreme left and extreme right brought terror to Italy with bombings and assassinations.

The brutal murder of former prime minister Aldo Moro by the Marxist-Leninist Red Brigades in 1978 is burned into the national psyche, although the largest number of the estimated 400 victims of the period were killed by neo-fascists.

But when this bloody period ended, and after a crackdown on mafias which pushed them into less violent financial crime, the murder rate plummeted.

Back in 1990, there were 34 murders per one million inhabitants in Italy, compared to 24 in neighbouring France, according to UN figures.

In 2021-22, this had fallen to 5.5 per million in Italy and 11 in France, eight in Germany and 10 in the UK.

In Europe, only Norway and Switzerland have a murder rate lower or equal to Italy's, while Latvia, the worst, has a rate 6.5 times higher.

"Homicides in general have decreased in the last 25 years, especially the percentage of men" -- who previously were the main victims of mafias, noted Raffaella Sette, a sociologist at the University of Bologna.

Just 10 percent of murders each year are now blamed on organised crime.

"The mafias -- the Camorra, the 'Ndrangheta, the Cosa Nostra -- have radically changed their way of operating," said Gianluca Arrighi, a criminal lawyer who writes police novels.

"Today, they operate from a more economic point of view, buying up real estate, entering into companies," he said.

Analysing the causes of violence across different countries is always risky, but Arrighi believes several factors are at play.

While Italy is poorer than its comparable EU neighbours, he says this is not always detrimental to social well-being, saying "goodwill" between people can help compensate for life's difficulties.

"The higher the conflict in a society, the higher the number of murders, committed by people who are in some state of anger," Arrighi told AFP.

The murder rate is, however, higher in the south of Italy, the poorest part of the country.

But Stefano Delfini, head of criminal analysis at the government's department of public security, agrees that "our society is less violent".

"The social fabric is more resistant, probably because of the presence of family values which mean difficulties are felt in a less harsh way."

Another factor that drives violence in other countries is alcohol or drug use, particularly in France and the UK.

Italy does not keep data on this, but consumption of alcohol is the lowest in the EU, according to the World Health Organization.

There is rising awareness in Italy about femicides -- killing of a woman or girl by a partner, spouse or family member -- with 97 recorded in 2023, out of a total 330 murders.

A lack of harmonised data on femicides makes comparisons with other European countries difficult.

But statistics compiled by the World Bank for 2021 show a rate of 3.9 murders of women per one million people in Italy, well below the 6.8 in France and 8.0 in Germany.

https://www.barrons.com/news/italy-home-of-the-mafia-now-one-of-europe-s-safest-countries-79896c40

[img]https://preview.redd.it/a2lahx14u8k11.png?auto=webp&s=8b6d8926c39f283e9d935fb55b297f2f02212db5[/img]

The murder level have been pretty stable for years now. We have to go back to 2004-2005. An estimated 160 people were killed in gangland fighting in Naples in those two years. The Camorra will never stop though they will keep struggling violently for control of the streets.

Camorra ambush in the Lattari Mountains, “Ciruzz 'o biond” killed

A 61-year-old man, Ciro Gargiulo , known as “Ciruzz 'o biond”, was probably killed by rifle bullets. The man, with a history of drug charges, defined as the "king of smoking", was apparently killed in a Camorra ambush on land he owned. The murder took place in via San Giorgio, a road between the municipalities of Lettere and Casola. His son would have taken him to hospital. Investigations underway by the police.

160 people in 2 years is a lot , but from start of 2024 situation in Naples is crazy, there is like 9 or 10 murders in last 2 months.

The several big mafia wars in the 80s were particular brutal (Cutolo, Casalesi, Reggio Calabria war, Santapaola, Corleonesi), there were days of up to 7 gang murders in Palermo alone.

Carmine Martino 52 years old was arrested for this murder, also around 200 police officers and soldiers are deployed to try and stop current war in Naples.

A lot of murders, but I doubt it's a war, if a guy gets out of line that's enough to take him out with these guys.

The prosecutor of Naples Nicola Gratteri meets the leaders of the Dia: the objective is to attack the assets of the Camorra
From
editorial board

Investigative topics and the strategies to be adopted for the prevention and fight against organized crime: these are the topics that the Naples prosecutor Nicola Gratteri addressed during his visit to the Dia in Naples where he held a conversation with the director, the general of the army corps Michele Carbone and the center chief Claudio De Salvo .
During the meeting, particular emphasis – reports a note – was given to the assessments of ongoing activities and prevention measures for the attack on assets illicitly accumulated by organized crime.

Another related theme was the use of specific tools by the Dia to combat the criminal presence in the economy, such as reports of suspicious transactions, which, even recently, have allowed important results, such as the seizure of approximately 55 million euro ordered by the Court of Santa Maria Capua Vetere and carried out last month, an operation which saw the synergy between the Public Prosecutor and the director of the Dia.
The anti-mafia magistrate, with director Carbone, then met the staff of the Operations Center to whom he expressed heartfelt thanks for their efforts in the difficult territory of the District and wanted to make all the members of the joint structure feel the closeness of the entire Power of attorney.

Ambush on the neighborhood narco, injured due to the disputed "base".
Blood in Monterosa, detectives fear a rift in the Abbinante clan. Winds of feud in Scampia, the internal purge track takes off

by Luigi Sannino

Sun 25 February 2024 09:28

NAPLES. At the basis of the ambush against Giancarlo Possente there would be reasons internal to the drug dealing environments in the Monte Rosa district, probably a disputed place according to the investigators who know the area best. But not only that: the day after Scampia's double wounding it emerged with certainty that Pasquale Parziale was by chance near the 43-year-old, the only target of the shooting. Just think about the number of bullets that hit the victims: 5 for the 43-year-old, one for the other.

According to informant Luigi Rignante , Giancarlo Possente is leader of several drug squares in Scampia.

Gennaro Belaeff was arrested for this murder. Pasquale Sesso was professional high-end watch thief at international level, he was killed because he wanted to stop paying percent to Camorra. They also ambushed his brother but he survived.

Another hit.

Moments of terror in the late afternoon today, Friday 1 March 2024, in Scafati where a Camorra ambush occurred in the street: the well-known criminal Marcello Adini was injured. The events took place around 6pm near the San Pietro district.

Ambush in Scafati, known criminal injured
Around 6pm, close to the San Pietro neighbourhood, several gunshots were fired from a moving car at eye level towards the well-known criminal Marcello Adini, who was released from prison only three days ago after his acquittal for the murder of Armando Faucitano.

The 43-year-old would have been grazed in the arm and it is not yet known whether he ran away or went to a health facility for treatment. The criminal appears to have been standing on the street corner with three other people at the time of the ambush. One of the bullets lodged in the sign of the gourmet delicatessen Do Re Si Mangia at number 242 where Adini was having a frugal meal at the time. The police intervened on site and started investigations to identify those responsible. Also hunting for the injured criminal.

Probably revenge for the murder he was acquitted for.

Yep four days ago they also arrested another suspect Carmine Alfano.

Armando Faucitano

INVESTIGATION
03 marzo 2024 alle 13:40
Mafia infiltration, Sardinia increasingly at risk

In Assemini, the ghost headquarters of a company from which the Naples Prosecutor Gratteri had 55 million euros seized

The colors of the building are anonymous, like that four-storey building erected during the brick boom period on the outskirts of what was once the Las Vegas of Campidano. Number 78 is Corso Asia, at the crossroads between Assemini and Macchiareddu, between the industrial enclave and the city of punishment, the Uta prison. The late afternoon light is faint in this air corridor which at least every half hour pierces the eardrums of those poor unfortunates who live on the axis with runway 14 of Elmas airport.

Silent bells

The bells are there, some, however, have always been silent. The last fingerprints imprinted on the button are those of the reporter who dared to break into the quiet calm of that apartment where the secrets of one of the most significant judicial seizures against companies under investigation for collusion with the Camorra ever carried out in Sardinia are hidden. The name of the company is the personal-fiscal history of a team whose pedigree is not the stuff of catechism. There is the birth name, Entei SpA, there is the corporate evolution summarized: “Etica SpA”. Behind the ethical-Aristotelian call to the common good, however, there is nothing philosophical. It is the anagram translation of “Environmental Technologies International SpA (Etica SpA). One name, a whole program: even international environmental technologies.

Close encounter

When you try the close encounter card you expect that after the first press on the bell they will answer you with a universal slang, but nothing. Not even the politeness of a “good morning, sorry we're busy”. Absolute silence behind that little gate that protects a tax office that has been deserted for some time. After all, the gentlemen of "Ethics" really have something to do these days, after the black "soul" of the Camorra and organized crime, that state terror called Nicola Gratteri, Attorney General of Naples, asked and obtained the seizure of all the financial and economic assets of this company with the tax residence close to the Sa Nuscedda stream, the mouth towards Santa Gilla, in the land of Assemini.

55 million seized

Not a seizure like many others, but the beauty of 55 million euros. An avalanche of money ended up in the state safe beforehand, complete with a commissioner, until the judicial process was completed. The prevention measure written by the Court of Santa Maria Capua Vetere on 16 January is a sort of criminal record of sixty pages, with as many hypothetical charges and crimes that have already been on trial for some time. The accusation is substantiated in a myriad of disputed and recalled facts. The Judges' order is explicit: «the preventative seizure is ordered to the detriment of D'Amico Antonio and his family unit of all company shares and corporate assets in their availability». At stake are direct and indirect relationships with the most powerful clan in Campania, the Casalesi. In the seizure order the reference to "excellent" names of the most influential clan bosses is recurrent, starting from the number one: Michele and Pasquale Zagaria, both guests of the 41 bis of Sassari. The context is explicit: a potential criminal wedged between white-collar workers and laborers capable of influencing contracts and works with a glance in every public-private ravine where the Camorra has insinuated itself in Campania, but not only. The story, as often happens in these environments, is all waste and reclamation, landfills and sewage sludge which suddenly become gold for the collateral and direct coffers of organized crime, according to what the seizure order tells us. The corporate structure is complex, but the fiscal heart of the company is right in Corso Asia in Assemini. The Anti-Mafia Investigation Directorate scores its big coup precisely in the Sardinian enclave of this group, which over the years has decentralized powers, money and assets in favor of its direct family members. For the seizure against "Etica", the joint-stock company based in the metropolitan city of Cagliari, however, the Judges refer directly to him, the founder, Antonio D'Amico: «seizure of the entire share capital and complex of capital goods and any other goods intended for business activity recorded in the specific mandatory accounting records constituting the company compendium, as well as the deposits and bank accounts of Environmental Technologies International, registered office in Assemini Corso Asia 78, having as its corporate purpose " construction of public works for the transport of fluids". The questions are an obligatory step: why does a company of this importance have its registered office in the extreme outskirts of Assemini, a few kilometers from the Uta prison, already full of Camorra members on the move? Is there a correlation? Or otherwise, why did Antonio D'Amico relocate the legal affairs of Ethics to this anonymous Sardinian enclave? There is no answer to all this in the judicial documents, but it is clear that many documents are still kept under lock and key. One piece of data, however, emerges from the customer portfolio of this company subjected to seizure: on the company website the names are those you would never expect.

High-sounding references

In the “ Reference ” chapter they write: our references are the most evident testimony to our experience, competence and seriousness. And then down a mass of high-sounding names, from the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, complete with the banner of Palazzo Chigi, to the Sardinian Abbanoa, from the Pugliese aqueduct, the one that sent sewage sludge from all of Puglia to Sardinia, to the neighboring Lucano aqueduct , from the Municipality of Caltanissetta to that of Perugia, from the Campania Region to the Calabria Region. It is not known in what capacity Abbanoa and the Presidency of the Council of Ministers appear in this parterre, but it is certainly a chapter that needs to be clarified, without wasting too much time.

Sardinia «vulnerable»

This affair is the latest in chronological order which opens up disturbing scenarios regarding potential risky infiltrations in Sardinia. The latest six-monthly report from the Anti-Mafia completely overturns the scenario of the past, that of an impregnable Sardinia. The passage is explicit as never before: «In Sardinia, over time, projections of the so-called traditional mafias dedicated to investments aimed at laundering and reinvesting the proceeds illicitly accumulated in other Regions have been found. This assumption is also confirmed by the Attorney General of the Republic of Cagliari during his speech at the inauguration of the 2023 judicial year, according to which the Sardinia Region "appears vulnerable to the penetration of mafia organizations, in particular, from Campania and Calabria. The latter, moreover, appear to be strongly interested in the laundering of money of illicit origin and in the re-use of illicit capital, phenomena facilitated by the great investment opportunities that Sardinia offers in the tourism and commercial sector". In other words: sending another 100 mafia bosses to the Sardinian "Cayenne", to the Uta prison, would be a lethal blow for the island, yet another.

Anti-Camorra blitz in Torre Annunziata, 12 arrests

Anti-drug operation in the province of Naples against the Gionta and Gallo-Cavalieri clans

NAPLES The soldiers of the Carabinieri Group of Torre Annunziata have carried out an order for the application of the precautionary measure in prison issued by the investigating judge of the Court of Naples, at the request of the District Anti-Mafia Directorate, against 12 people, considered seriously suspected, for various reasons, of the crimes of mafia-type criminal association as well as association aimed at illicit trafficking of narcotic substances. In particular, the investigations revealed the alleged participation of two suspects, respectively, in the Gallo-Cavalieri clan and in the Gionta clan, which operate in the Torre Annunziata area. Furthermore, the alleged existence of a parallel organization dedicated to drug trafficking was discovered, attributable to the Gallo-Cavalieri clan and intended to supply the drug dealing squares of Torre Annunziata.

three billion euros lol

Nicola Gratteri: ''The Camorra has evolved, today it is a leader in cryptocurrencies''
09 March 2024
The Chief Prosecutor of Naples: "There are two Camorra groups, the 'economic' one, which moves on the dark web and the one which dedicates itself to 'laying down'"
The dark web is the new frontier of the Camorra, " an evolved Camorra ". Word of the chief prosecutor of Naples Nicola Gratteri, who - during a training course for journalists organized by the Campania unitary union at the "Bixio" barracks, in Monte di Dio - spoke about the Campania mafia.

“ Only a few days ago - the magistrate recalled - we closed an investigation which, at a national level, went almost unnoticed, despite its importance: an investigation into the international laundering of something like three billion euros that passed through Italy , Latvia and Lithuania through a global network of shell companies. An investigation that describes well what the evolution of the mafias will be ”.

On the risks linked to the distorted and illicit use of IT resources, the Naples Prosecutor's Office has equipped itself with a task force of specialized magistrates on the subject, who - explained the prosecutor - " to penetrate these phenomena must think exactly like hackers do . Specialists are needed. And, in our case, it is not easy to have them, because the public administration pays little ."

“ In Naples - added Gratteri - there are two Camorra groups: the first, very advanced, is strong in entrepreneurship and has conquered the tertiary and large-scale distribution markets. 'economic' Camorra, which moves on the dark web; then there is the one who dedicates herself to doing 'bending', an unthinkable phenomenon in Calabria that the 'Ndrangheta would never allow because it must live by social consensus. In Calabria these young men who shoot wildly would disappear into thin air the next day ”.

“ In Naples - said the former Catanzaro prosecutor - I distributed delegations and made the sections aware of illegal construction and pollution. I would like an acceleration on these issues. Illegal building is complicated, let's look for example at what happened in Ischia last year: everywhere people built in dangerous places. The mayors say they don't have the funds to demolish hundreds of illegal buildings, but I am committed to demolishing them. In Catanzaro I did the same by going to the regional councilor for the environment and telling him: 'There are 250 illegal apartments that have been ordered demolished by the judge'. It worked and they were shot down. My goal now is to try to do it in Naples ,” he concluded.

Source : Il Mattino

Romano converted to Islam.

Ex-mafioso Catello Romano opens the door: neglect of omerta
Ex-mafioso Catello Romano (33) is serving a thirty-year sentence for the murder of a politician. Behind bars he wrote a thesis about his gangster life and the Italian became world news because he confessed to three unsolved murders. 'My goal is to contribute to the understanding of the phenomenon of crime and its possible prevention.'
Crime
Erik Brouwer
Mar 10 2024 | 15:39


Catello Romano
The converted Muslim sat behind a computer in prison and wrote: 'My name is Catello Romano. I am 33 years old and have been in prison for almost half my life, fourteen years in a row. I committed terrible crimes and was convicted of murder on behalf of the Camorra. What follows is my criminal history.' These are the first words of the most spectacular Italian dissertation ever. The author: ex-Camorra member and serial killer Catello Romano. He is currently in custody in Padua and will not be released anytime soon. Not even now that he breaks the omerta and reveals how the Camorra operated in his town.

Catello Romano was born in 2001 and grew up in Castellammare di Stabia, a town of 14,000 inhabitants near Naples. His neighborhood of Scanzano is a Camorra stronghold. Retailers must pay protection money. The waste industry is completely controlled by the mafiosi. Many politicians and municipal officials cooperate with them. Agents receive money if they ignore their crimes or pass on information from secret documents. Catello's ordinary parents hated the Camorra and according to them, their son also had to realize that the mafiosi on their scooters were canaglia , scum. At first he seemed to listen and decided to become a police officer. According to him, things went wrong after his parents' divorce. He was laughed at and verbally abused on the street. Were the Romanos real Catholics?

Crazy mafia boss
Catello fell under the spell of the Camorra. His favorite film was Il camorrista from 1986 by Giuseppe Tornatore, about the deranged mafia boss Raffaele Cutolo. Catello calls him 'O Prufessore' (the Professor) in his thesis and he writes: 'The Professor was the first to occupy my inner world.'

The Professor was the leader of Nuova Camorra Organizzata, a gang that had to restore the former glory of the Neapolitan mafia. He was put on earth by God to save the Neapolitan people, could bring the dead to life and make people without legs walk again. Psychiatrists declared him psychotic and insane after his arrest, the judge sentenced him to life in prison in 1963 for many murders and he died behind bars in 2021.


One afternoon, Catello met a Camorra member eighteen years his senior named Renato Cavaliere. Catello describes him in his dissertation as 'my underworld buddy'. Renato introduced him to other Camorra members and explained how the organization worked in their town. The clan leader was Vincenzo D'Alessandro. Their clan was therefore called the D'Alessandro clan. Catello joined the Camorra, he started stealing, threatening, suddenly had the budget to dress well, bought Paciotti boots, a Prada jacket and a Rolex. He cherished his jackets and ties, had worked hard for them and 'made many sacrifices for them by taking on humble and difficult jobs'.

Non-criminal townspeople were afraid of him, the most beautiful girls from his town suddenly responded to his advances

Catello describes in his dissertation why the Camorra became extra attractive to him. He developed an increasingly poor relationship with his father, almost never saw his mother after the divorce and filled the 'void' by replacing real family with 'a new family'. He looked for role models and they were the mafiosi 'who were at the top of the hierarchy'. Catello didn't want to look like his father or follow in his footsteps, why would he? His life as a Camorra member seemed to have only advantages at first. Non-criminal fellow citizens were afraid of him, the most beautiful girls in his city suddenly responded to his advances, even in the clubs of Naples they came to him because of his 'new criminal identity'.

Crucial date in his life: February 3, 2009. Renato and Catello met two other Camorra members that day: Salvatore Belviso and Raffaele Polito, the first cousin of clan boss Vincenzo D'Alessandro. Their mission was to kill Luigi Tommasino, a Democratic Party councilor in Castellammare. Catello was not told why, he only knew that Tommasino was around forty and he saw in a photo that Tommasino had a round head with only some hair on the sides.

Catello was given the task of following the council member and putting his schedule on paper. He did so and on February 3, 2009, the attack could hardly have gone wrong. The target was driving his Lancia Musa through Viale Europa in his town of Castellammare di Stabia at around half past four in the afternoon. Next to him sat his 13-year-old son Raffaele. Tommasino was passing by the Unieuro store as Renato and Catello rode by on a Piaggio Beverly scooter. They fired thirteen times with a Czech-made 9 caliber Luger pistol. Bullets landed in Tommasino's head. The councilor fell on the steering wheel of the Lancia, the car swerved to the left and crashed into the Unieuro shop window. His son Raffaele was not hit, that was not the intention, Camorra members do not kill family members. Journalists and carabinieri traveled to Viale Europa. The mayor burst into tears when he heard the news and urged all residents of his city to rise up against the Camorra 'to show that Castellammare di Stabia is not afraid of the mafia'.

Detectives concluded that the gunmen were professional sicari (hitmen). What was the motive and who gave the order? Tommasino was first described as 'not very visible' and 'not a strong personality'. He had a clean criminal record and was described by colleagues at city hall as 'an impeccable politician'. Tommasino had an office above the boutique where his wife worked behind the counter. Agents went there to confiscate diaries, files and computers. Tommasino's brother Giovanni gave an interview to channel TG1 and said: "Luigi was killed because he condemned the Camorra infiltration of his party."

Regretful
After the murder, Catello returned to his Scanzano neighborhood, Raffaele went into hiding in a farm that the clan rented in the province of Siena. A few weeks after the murder, Raffaele called the police. He declined to give his name, but did say, "I know the names of those who killed Tommasino." The shooters were Catello Romano from Castellammare and Renato Cavaliere from the same town, known in the D'Alessandro clan as The Uncle. Salvatore Belviso had helped with the preparation. The three suspects were arrested.


Catello told police he wanted to become a pentito , regretfully. Carabinieri took him to a hotel and dictated to Catello what was expected of him as a pentito. He would be placed in a protection program, but in return he had to be fully open. Names, places, murders, crimes. Catello pretended to tell all when he confessed to killing Luigi Tommasino, but he didn't know he was a city councilor. He described in detail how the preparation had gone and how he had first followed Tommasino for two weeks. He had not committed any other murders, this was really his first liquidation.

Catello had only pretended to cooperate with the police, climbed out the window and fled to his girlfriend

Two days later, an officer opened his room door. Where was the pentito? Catello had only pretended to cooperate with the police, climbed out the window and fled to his girlfriend. He spent the night with her and then looked for a hiding place. Agents only found him after a month in the Caserta region and then he could no longer pretend to be a pentito. Catello didn't want that at all, he was proud to belong to the Camorra and bravado told the detectives that he was withdrawing all his so-called confessions.

First hypothesis about Tommasino's murder: he was indeed murdered because of his anti-Camorra attitude. After a thorough investigation, the municipal councilor turned out to be less virtuous than expected. A detective pointed out the "dangerous connection" the politician had with "prominent members of the D'Alessandro family." Tommasino was a childhood friend of Pasquale D'Alessandro, brother of clan leader Vincenzo. On behalf of the D'Alessandro clan, the municipal councilor arranged for family members of Camorra to get jobs at companies that worked for the municipality. The collaboration went well for a long time, but at the beginning of 2009 he did not keep an agreement. A few weeks before the murder, Tommasino had a conversation with two entrepreneurs about a parking garage in the city center. The clan members were angry about this, the entrepreneurs had not contacted the D'Alessandros and the parking garage had to be checked by them. Tommasino probably had to die over this issue, as a warning to other politicians who break agreements.

Lifetime
The trial against Catello and the others started on November 23, 2010. He was 21 years old and received a life sentence. His underworld buddy Renato was 39 years old and received the same sentence. Salvatore was sentenced to eighteen years, Raffaele to twelve years for solving the murder through his phone call. The judge wrote in the judgment: 'The murderers acted with their faces uncovered, in the city center and in the name of the D'Alessandro clan. The order to kill Tommasino came directly from the boss Vincenzo D'Alessandro, whose consent was needed to carry out the liquidation.' The attack was committed in the center of the city, 'in front of the terrified eyes of hundreds of people'. That made it extra bad and traumatic.

Catello was first imprisoned for six years in Catanzaro, the capital of Calabria. Italy's most dangerous mafiosi are guarded there as heavily as possible. His appeal was in 2016. Renato was now a sincere pentito and said: 'I was the leader. I was instructed by boss Vincenzo D'Alessandro to eliminate people who were hindering our interests, such as Tommasino. I ask his family for forgiveness for what I did. And they have a right to know the truth.”

The judge reduced his sentence to thirty years and Catello also received thirty years on appeal. They returned to their cells. Catello was visited there one morning by a man named Charlie Barnao, a professor from the University of Catanzaro who has been teaching the Sociology of Survival sub-study in Italian prisons for five years. Ex-criminals need to learn lessons by writing down their criminal history. Barnao previously helped Sicilian mafia boss Salvatore Curatolo, who was sentenced to life in prison, with his thesis on prison survival strategies and he worked with Camorra Godfather Sergio Ferraro, who had twenty years behind bars to write his thesis on 'socialization between mafia clans' . Both were awarded a sociology diploma and they were as happy with that as with a successful contract killing.

Catello's dissertation was entitled: Criminal Fascination . He described how his father often beat his mother and explained how the mafia became his new family. He wanted to be completely honest, so he confessed to crimes he had never told the police about.

On October 27, 2008, just before noon, two men were shot at in front of an abandoned bar on Via Castellammare near Castellammare di Stabia. They died instantly. Local journalists called it 'a brutal double murder'. Was the Camorra behind it? It certainly seemed that way.

Detectives cordoned off the area and interviewed witnesses. Two sicari appeared to have liquidated the two victims from a motorcycle. They did this 'in perfect Camorra style', it was reported the next day in the Corriere del Mezzogiorno . According to carabinieri from Castellammare, more than twelve shots had been fired. The names of the victims were announced after a few days. Carmine D'Antuono was 58 years old and lived in Castellammare. His nickname was O Lione, The Lion. He had a high position as a lieutenant in the mafia. His clan got into a conflict with the D'Alessandro clan and it escalated into a bloody war.

Name of the other victim: Federico Donnarumma. He was 42 years old, worked as a driver and was from Pimonte. No officer seemed to understand why he too had been shot. Donnarumma did have a criminal record, but that was for fraud and other relatively minor crimes. Wrong time in the wrong place? That's what it looked like. The perpetrators could never be found until Catello came clean in his dissertation.

Hole in the soul
He and the other shooter prepared for the murder for two weeks. Catello was given a photo of D'Antuono and memorized the characteristics of his future victim. He had never seen Donnarumma before, and the Camorra did not actually need her to die at all. Afterwards, Catello had a 'hole' in his soul that never healed. In his dissertation he describes it as 'the most violent, traumatic and irreparable event' in his life. Carmine D'Antuono had to die because he was a rival, he could still deal with that, but Donnarumma only died because he happened to be near D'Antuono and Catello wrote: 'I didn't understand it right after and I still can always don't understand. But I shot him too.”

Next murder he confessed to: of Nunzio Mascolo, a member of their own clan. He was murdered at night on December 6, 2008 in Castellammare. The command consisted of two people. They rode to the target on motorcycles and wore helmets. Mascolo didn't realize he was being chased until the last moment. He fell, but it was too late: 'a shower of lead was let loose on his body'. Catello fired nine shots from a 7.65 caliber pistol. The 36-year-old Mascolo was killed instantly.

In his thesis, Catello writes: 'Although I cannot prove it, I am certain that he did nothing to deserve death. In the infamous logic of the Camorra and of the underworld in general, it works like this: it is not even necessary that the victim has done anything. I learned on the spot that in that world you can die because of the envy of someone who, unfortunately for the victim, has some leverage to impose a death sentence.” Catello also makes it clear that his role was to pull the trigger and not to ask questions. That's just how it worked in the Camorra.

After his confessions and apparent conversion to Muslim, Catello was transferred to a slightly less heavily guarded prison in Padua. There he completed his dissertation. Catello said he went 'through a very difficult process' by reliving everything. He was not allowed to hold anything back, total honesty was expected of him and that often hurt.

According to his professor, the end result is a Mario Puzzo-worthy autobiography of 170 pages full of 'chilling descriptions of the criminal environment, as well as musings on family, education, childhood, puberty, divorce, separation anxiety, drugs, violence and mafia history'. The foreword states: 'My goal is to contribute to the understanding of the phenomenon of crime and its possible prevention. I strongly believe that words are important and this autoethnographic text aims to change the world.'

Catello wanted to investigate why 'crime exerts such a deep fascination' on young people and why the mafia clan can replace 'the family of origin'. One of his explanations: 'It is their way of emancipating yourself and gaining social recognition. In this context, violence becomes a task and a way to demand respect.'

“I had this crazy strong desire to be someone, to be seen and to be part of something bigger and more important, to prove myself through cruelty.”

Reckless and stupid
At the beginning of his dissertation, Catello describes his friendship with Renato and other Camorra members: 'Through them I built a new alternative identity as a heavy boy, it was a mask with which I wanted to hide my vulnerability as a teenager, to survive in a violent and extreme world.' He was, in his own words, 'reckless' and 'stupid', had an 'idiotically strong desire to be someone, to be seen and to be part of something bigger and more important, to prove myself through cruelty and coldness in suppressing other men'.

He writes in detail about the first time he used a gun. He had to because he had to protect a clan member who was out on bail. Rival mafiosi wanted revenge and Catello's job was to prevent this. He must admit that he enjoyed moments like this for a long time and that made him do things that he can no longer imagine. After his first murders, he had to throw away his newly purchased expensive clothes 'as a precaution to hide traces of gun powder'. He had made the mistake of just wearing his Prada jacket and now he had to destroy it. He "suffered greatly and I complained for a long time." In fact, his clothes were so important to him that he went to his client to 'force' him to buy him a new jacket, 'something he did not do'.

Outpourings like this were not easy for Catello to write, but it had to be done. On one of the last pages he quotes Aldo Moro, the former Italian prime minister who was liquidated by Red Brigade terrorists and wrote just before his death that 'anyone who tells the truth should never regret it'. Catello agrees with these words and calls speaking the truth 'enlightening'. Calling on all virtuous people to "be courageous," he writes, "I have related the above in the hope that I have done something good for those I have wronged and for myself."

After his release, Catello wants to start over "as the Catello I was before everything I did" and he "hopes to put his life in order, once and for all." Through the thesis 'I bring the truth to the surface and, in a sense, as far as possible, I repay a debt to society'.

Catello graduated with honors and received his sociology degree in a small ceremony from his imam. His professor calls Catello "a brilliant student" who "received very good grades throughout his studies" and said: "He has put his life in order once and for all and analyzes the events of his past through a sociological research method, which also makes it a has a therapeutic function.'

The thesis is currently in the hands of the public prosecutor. The text is being studied by detectives and the local police boss is likely to reopen the investigation into the three mafia murders in 2008.

https://revu.nl/artikel/511089/ex-maffioso-catello-romano-doet-boekje-open-lak-aan-de-omerta

Anti-Camorra blitz in Caivano, the "protection" of the Angelino clan hit: 14 arrests including a policeman from San Cipriano

The investigations documented at least 36 cases of extortion from traders and entrepreneurs in the area

Caivano (Naples), 12 March 2024 – Anti-Camorra blitz at dawn in Caivano where the Carabinieri arrested 14 people, believed to belong to organized crime . The operation was conducted by the Carabinieri of the investigative unit of the Castello di Cisterna group to execute 13 custody warrants in prison and one under house arrest by the investigating judge of Naples, at the request of the District Anti-Mafia Directorate. The crimes contested, for various reasons, are mafia-type association, extortion and attempted extortion, crimes aggravated by the mafia method. At the center of the investigations are the Angelino clan's requests for protection money against entrepreneurs and traders in Caivano and the surrounding areas.

The investigations

An agent of the local police of the Municipality of San Cipriano (Caserta) is also among the 14 suspects arrested today by the Carabinieri of Castello di Cisterna. With the investigations, which concern the period between May and November 2023, the military found a real roundup of the economic realities of the territories (Caivano and surrounding areas) to be subjected to extortion: in fact, 36 extortion episodes were carried out or attempted from the documented Angelino clan. Some of the recipients of the precautionary measures are also held responsible for having favored the absconding of the head of the criminal group Antonio Angelino, known as "Tibiuccio", identified and arrested on 9 July 2023.

ambush in San Govanni a Teduccio (Naples), Salvatore Coppola, 66, a former turncoat, was shot dead with several bullets in the face