Mafia News

Jun 11 2008

Police raids lead to Mafia arrests in the south

Published by mafia-news.com at 2:49 am under Italy

Cosenza/Caserta — Police on Wednesday arrested 32 Mafia suspects in several raids in southern Italy and seized almost 50 million euros worth of assets.

The arrests took place in the cities of Caserta in the region of Campania and Cosenza in the southern Italian region Calabria.

Police were targeting suspected members of the Mafia organisations known as the Camorra, and the ‘Ndrangheta.

In Caserta, police seized assets totalling 50 million euros from businessmen involved in the rubbish collection sector with alleged links to the powerful Casalesi clan.

The Casalesi clan suffered a blow in late February, when a group in charge of illegal rubbish trafficking was dismantled by police.

The Camorra reportedly runs the highly lucrative business of waste disposal in Campania, where the city of Naples is located.

Since late last yeat Naples has been hard hit by a rubbish collection crisis that provoked a stern warning from the European Union and a pledge from Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to resolve it.

The crisis dates back 15 years and has been caused by corruption and the Camorra’s grip on waste collection and disposal in the region.

Italian authorities have recently tried to take control of the refuse industry from the Camorra.

Meanwhile in the southern city of Cosenza, 32 people were arrested on Wednesday, suspected of Mafia association linked to extortion, homicide, drug trafficking and money laundering.

The group is allegedly tied to the ‘Ndrangheta Mafia organisation.

The alleged criminals had established businesses including a discotheque, with money from the illegal activities.

Police say they also had an operations base in Spain.

Italy’s four main criminal organisations are the Sicilian Mafia, the Camorra in Naples and the surrounding Campania region, the ‘Ndrangheta in the southern region of Calabria, and the Sacra Corona Unita in the southern Puglia region.