Verdict reached in trial against Italy's most dangerous mafia

The court's verdict has been announced in the largest mafia trial of the last 30 years, targeting the 'Ndrangheta, an organized crime group based in the southern Calabria region.

The trial, also known publicly as "Rinascita Scott," held its first hearing in January 2021 in a specially constructed courtroom in the city of Lamezia Terme. It investigated the connections between high-level figures in politics, government, and the economy and the 'Ndrangheta, considered the most dangerous mafia in the world of organized crime.

According to reports in the Italian press, the reading of the verdict in the massive mafia trial, which involved 338 defendants and lasted 2 years and 10 months, took 1 hour and 40 minutes.

Convictions were handed down for 207 of the defendants, and it was stated that the total prison sentences given to the defendants exceeded 2,100 years.

It was noted that the individuals from politics and the security bureaucracy who received sentences were generally convicted for roles such as facilitating and assisting the criminal organization's activities.

Giancarlo Pittelli, who served two terms as a member of parliament for Forza Italia, a party currently in the ruling coalition, was sentenced to 11 years in prison for external complicity with a criminal organization.

Lieutenant Colonel Giorgio Naselli of the Italian Carabinieri was also sentenced to 2 years and 6 months in prison for leaking confidential official documents to the mafia.

Former Financial Police officer Michele Marinaro was sentenced to 10 years and 6 months in prison for leaking confidential documents and external involvement with the mafia.

Former Regional Council member Pietro Giamborino received a 1-year and 6-month prison sentence.

This trial was the largest mafia trial to be held in Italy since the major case against the Sicilian mafia organization "Cosa Nostra" between 1986 and 1992, in which 475 people were tried.

The prosecution had brought a total of 400 charges against the defendants, including "arms trafficking," "drug trafficking," "murder," and "membership in an organized crime group."

It is stated that the 'Ndrangheta has become Italy's most powerful and wealthiest mafia over the years thanks to its control of the European drug trade. It is noted that the Calabria-based 'Ndrangheta, against which Italian security forces have intensified operations in recent years, has a more complex and impenetrable structure than the Cosa Nostra in Sicily.

Press reports and commentary suggest that the trial, which lasted nearly 3 years in Lamezia Terme and concluded with today's sentencing hearing, has dealt a blow to the 'Ndrangheta's organization at the local level and within the state.

News Source: AA