Italy’s biggest mafia trial in more than 30 years aims to curb ‘Ndrangheta crime syndicate
- They are accused of a web of crimes dating back to the 1990s, both bloody and white-collar, including murder, drug trafficking, extortion, money laundering and abuse of office
- The current trial, expected to last at least a year and likely longer, features 355 defendants, more than 900 prosecution witnesses and an unprecedented number of collaborators
Italy’s largest mafia trial in more than 30 years opened on Wednesday, as prosecutors seek to strike a blow against the ‘Ndrangheta crime syndicate, whose tentacles reach worldwide.
They are accused of a web of crimes dating back to the 1990s, both bloody and white-collar, including murder, drug trafficking, extortion, money laundering and abuse of office.
Anti-mob prosecutor Nicola Gratteri said it was an “important day”, telling reporters outside court the trial would “give the idea of what the Calabrian mafia is today – no longer a mafia of shepherds dedicated to kidnapping, but a major criminal corporation”.
He later sat in the front row of the courtroom as Judge Tiziana Macri began reading out the names of the defendants, none of whom attended in person but who participated via video conference, their faces shown on dozens of televisions fitted over lines of grey desks.
In Italy, so-called “maxi-trials”, which include scores of defendants and countless charges, are seen as the best judicial resource against the country’s various organised crime groups, of which the ‘Ndrangheta is now considered the most powerful, controlling the bulk of cocaine flowing into Europe.