Italian police say they have first video footage of mafia initiation rites
Group of 40 suspected gangsters arrested in raids across the north of the country in what prosecutors are hailing as a key breakthrough
Secret mafia initiation rites have been caught on camera for the first time by Italian police, who arrested 40 suspected gangsters in raids across the north of the country.
In one scene, four males huddle together as words of a loyalty oath are repeated. "Right in this holy evening, in the silence of the night, under the light of the stars and under the splendour of the moon, I create the holy chain ... the holy society," one man says.
The arrests on Tuesday followed a two-year investigation using wiretaps and hidden cameras in locations known to be frequented by mobsters, police said. Suspects face charges of criminal association, illegal arms sales and extortion,
"For the first time the swearing-in ceremonies have been recorded live," Milan prosecutor Ilda Boccassini said following raids which put 37 people behind bars and another three under house arrest.
"For the first time we heard it from the voice of the mafia," instead of relying on details from police informants, she said.