'Ndrangheta

The  **'Ndrangheta** is a Mafia-type organized crime group based in Calabria, Italy. Despite not being as famous abroad as the Sicilian Mafia, and having been considered more rural than the Neapolitan Camorra and the Apulian Sacra Corona Unita, the 'Ndrangheta became the most powerful crime syndicate in Italy in the late 1990s and early 2000s. While commonly tied together with the Sicilian Mafia, the 'Ndrangheta operates independently from them, though there is contact between the two, due to the geographical proximity and shared culture and language between Calabria and Sicily.

A US diplomat estimated that the organization's narcotics trafficking, extortion and money laundering activities accounted for at least 3% of Italy's GDP in 2010. Since the 1950s, the organization has spread towards Northern Italy and worldwide. According to a 2013 "Threat Assessment on Italian Organised Crime" of Europol and the Guardia di Finanza, the 'Ndrangheta is among the richest (in 2008 their income was around 55 billion dollars) and most powerful organised crime groups at a global level.

## History

### Origin and etymology

In 1861 the prefect of Reggio Calabria already noticed the presence of so-called *camorristi*, a term used at the time since there was no formal name for the phenomenon in Calabria

* The Camorra was the older and better known criminal organization in Naples.

Since the 1880s, there is ample evidence of 'Ndrangheta-type groups in police reports and sentences by local courts. At the time they were often being referred to as the *picciotteria*, *onorata società* (honoured society) or *camorra* and *mafia*.

These secret societies in the areas of Calabria rich in olives and vines were distinct from the often anarchic forms of banditry and were organized hierarchically with a code of conduct that included omertà – the code of silence – according to a sentence from the court in Reggio Calabria in 1890.

An 1897 sentence from the court in Palmi mentioned a written code of rules found in the village of Seminara based on honour, secrecy, violence, solidarity (often based on blood relationships) and mutual assistance.

In the folk culture surrounding 'Ndrangheta in Calabria, references to the Spanish Garduña often appear. Aside from these references, however, there is nothing to substantiate a link between the two organizations.

### Modern history

Until 1975, the 'Ndrangheta restricted their Italian operations to Calabria, mainly involved in extortion and blackmailing. Their involvement in cigarette contraband expanded their scope and contacts with the Sicilian Mafia and the Neapolitan Camorra. With the arrival of large public works in Calabria, skimming of public contracts became an important source of income. Disagreements over how to distribute the spoils led to the First 'Ndrangheta war killing 233 people.

The prevailing factions began to kidnap rich people located in northern Italy for ransom. A high-profile target was John Paul Getty III, kidnapped for ransom in 1973.

The Second 'Ndrangheta war raged from 1985 to 1991. The bloody six-year war between the Condello-Imerti-Serraino-Rosmini clans and the De Stefano-Tegano-Libri-Latella clans led to more than 600 deaths. The Sicilian Mafia contributed to the end of the conflict and probably suggested the subsequent set up of a superordinate body, called La Provincia, to avoid further infighting.

In the 1990s, the organization started to invest in the illegal international drug trade, mainly importing cocaine from Colombia.

Deputy President of the regional parliament of Calabria Francesco Fortugno was killed by the 'Ndrangheta on 16 October 2005 in Locri. Demonstrations against the organization then ensued, with young protesters carrying banderoles reading "Ammazzateci tutti!", Italian for "Kill us all". The national government started a large-scale enforcement operation in Calabria and arrested numerous 'ndranghetisti including the murderers of Fortugno.

The 'Ndrangheta has expanded its activities to Northern Italy, mainly to sell drugs and to invest in legal businesses which could be used for money laundering. In May 2007 twenty members of 'Ndrangheta were arrested in Milan. On 30 August 2007, hundreds of police raided the town of San Luca, the focal point of the bitter San Luca feud between rival clans among the 'Ndrangheta. Over 30 men and women, linked to the killing of six Italian men in Germany, were arrested.

On 9 October 2012, following a months-long investigation by the central government, the City Council of Reggio Calabria headed by Mayor Demetrio Arena was dissolved for alleged ties to the group. Arena and all the 30 city councilors were sacked to prevent any "mafia contagion" in the local government.
This was the first time a government of a capital of a provincial government was dismissed. Three central government-appointed administrators will govern the city for 18 months until new elections. The move came after unnamed councilors were suspected of having ties to the 'Ndrangheta under the 10-year centre-right rule of Mayor Giuseppe Scopelliti.

'Ndrangheta infiltration of political offices is not limited to Calabria. On 10 October 2012, the commissioner of Milan's regional government in charge of public housing, Domenico Zambetti of People of Freedom (PDL), was arrested on accusations he paid the 'Ndrangheta in exchange for an election victory and to extort favours and contracts from the housing official, including construction tenders for the World Expo 2015 in Milan. The probe of alleged vote-buying underscores the infiltration of the 'Ndrangheta in the political machine of Italy's affluent northern Lombardy region. Zambetti's arrest marked the biggest case of 'Ndrangheta infiltration so far uncovered in northern Italy and prompted calls for Lombardy governor Roberto Formigoni to resign.

In 2014, in the FBI and Italian police joint operation *New Bridge*, members of both the Gambino and Bonanno families were arrested, as well as ten members of the Ursino clan. Raffaele Valente was among the arrested. In Italian wiretaps, he revealed that he had set up a faction of the Ursino 'Ndrangheta in New York City. Valente was convicted for attempting to sell a sawed-off shotgun and a silencer to an undercover FBI agent for $5000 at a bakery in Brooklyn. He was sentenced to 3 years and one month in prison. Gambino associate Franco Lupoi and his father-in-law, Nicola Antonio Simonetta, were described as the linchpins of the operation.

In June 2014, Pope Francis denounced the 'Ndrangheta for their "adoration of evil and contempt of the common good" and vowed that the Church would help tackle organized crime, saying that Mafiosi were excommunicated. A spokesperson for the Vatican clarified that the pope's words did not constitute a formal excommunication under canon law, as a period of legal process is required beforehand.

On 12 December 2017, 48 members of 'Ndrangheta were arrested for mafia association, extortion, criminal damage, fraudulent transferral of assets and illegal possession of firearms. Out of the 48 arrested, four were forced to house arrest and 44 were ordered to jail detention. Two-time mayor of Taurianova, Calabria and his former cabinet member were among the indicted. It was alleged by investigators that the Calabrian clans had infiltrated construction of public works, control of real estate brokerage, food fields, greenhouse production and renewable energy.

On 9 January 2018, law enforcement in Italy and Germany arrested 169 people in connection with the 'Ndrangheta mafia, specifically the *Farao* and *Marincola* clans based in Calabria. Assets worth €50 million (£44/$59m) were seized. The indictment mentions that owners of German restaurants, ice cream parlours, hotels and pizzerias were forced to buy wine, pizza dough, pastries and other products made in southern Italy. The Farao clan was being led by life-imprisoned Giuseppe Farao, before the arrests, and was passing orders onto his sons. They controlled bakeries, vineyards, olive groves, funeral homes, launderettes, plastic recycling plants and shipyards. The waste disposal of the Ilva steel company based in Taranto was also infiltrated. Some of the charges were mafia association, attempted murder, money laundering, extortion and illegal weapons possession and trafficking. Italian prosecutor, Nicola Gratteri, said that the arrests were the most important step taken against the 'Ndrangehta within the past 20 years. 11 suspects were detained and accused of blackmailing and money laundering. They were deported back to Italy. Alessandro Figliomeni, former Mayor of Siderno, Calabria, was sentenced to 12 years in prison on 7 May 2018. He is alleged to be a member of the Commisso 'ndrina clan and served in the top hierarchy.

## Characteristics

Italian anti-organized crime agencies estimated in 2007 that the 'Ndrangheta has an annual revenue of about € 35–40 billion (US$50–60 billion), which amounts to approximately 3.5% of the GDP of Italy. This comes mostly from illegal drug trafficking, but also from ostensibly legal businesses such as construction, restaurants and supermarkets. The 'Ndrangheta has a strong grip on the economy and governance in Calabria. According to a US Embassy cable leaked by WikiLeaks, Calabria would be a failed state if it were not part of Italy. The 'Ndrangheta controls huge segments of its territory and economy, and accounts for at least three percent of Italy's GDP through drug trafficking, extortion, skimming of public contracts, and usury. Law enforcement is hampered by a lack of both human and financial resources.

The principal difference with the Mafia is in recruitment methods. The 'Ndrangheta recruits members on the criterion of blood relationships resulting in an extraordinary cohesion within the family clan that presents a major obstacle to investigation. Sons of '*ndranghetisti* are expected to follow in their fathers' footsteps, and go through a grooming process in their youth to become *giovani d'onore* (boys of honour) before they eventually enter the ranks as *uomini d'onore* (men of honour). There are relatively few Calabrian mafiosi who have opted out to become a pentito; at the end of 2002, there were 157 Calabrian witnesses in the state witness protection program. Unlike the Sicilian Mafia in the early 1990s, they have meticulously avoided a head-on confrontation with the Italian state.

Prosecution in Calabria is hindered by the fact that Italian judges and prosecutors who score highly in exams get to choose their posting; those who are forced to work in Calabria will usually request to be transferred right away. With weak government presence and corrupt officials, few civilians are willing to speak out against the organization.

## Organizational structure

Both the Sicilian Cosa Nostra and the 'Ndrangheta are loose confederations of about one hundred organised groups, also called "*cosche*" or families, each of which claims sovereignty over a territory, usually a town or village, though without ever fully conquering and legitimizing its monopoly of violence.

There are approximately 100 of these families, totaling between 4,000 and 5,000 members in Reggio Calabria. Other estimates mention 6,000–7,000 men; worldwide there might be some 10,000 members.

Most of the groups (86) operate in the Province of Reggio Calabria. The families are concentrated in poor villages as well as the main city and provincial capital Reggio Calabria.

San Luca is considered to be the stronghold of the 'Ndrangheta. According to a former 'ndranghetista, "almost all the male inhabitants belong to the 'Ndrangheta, and the Sanctuary of Polsi has long been the meeting place of the affiliates." Bosses from outside Calabria, from as far as Canada and Australia, regularly attend the meetings at the Sanctuary of Polsi.

The basic local organizational unit of the 'Ndrangheta is called a *locale* (local or place) with jurisdiction over an entire town or an area in a large urban center.

A *locale* may have branches, called  *'ndrina* (plural:  *'ndrine*), in the districts of the same city, in neighbouring towns and villages, or even outside Calabria, in cities and towns in the industrial North of Italy in and around Turin and Milan.

Sometimes *sotto 'ndrine* are established. These subunits enjoy a high degree of autonomy – they have a leader and independent staff. In some contexts the  *'ndrine* have become more powerful than the *locale* on which they formally depend.

Other observers maintain that the  *'ndrina* is the basic organizational unit. Each  *'ndrina* is "autonomous on its territory and no formal authority stands above the " *'ndrina* boss", according to the Antimafia Commission. The  *'ndrina* is usually in control of a small town or a neighborhood. If more than one  *'ndrina* operates in the same town, they form a *locale*.

### 'Ndrine

Blood family and membership of the crime family overlap to a great extent within the 'Ndrangheta. By and large, the  *'ndrine* consist of men belonging to the same family lineage. Salvatore Boemi, anti-mafia prosecutor in Reggio Calabria, told the Italian Antimafia Commission that "one becomes a member for the simple fact of being born in a mafia family," although other reasons might attract a young man to seek membership, and non-kin have also been admitted. Marriages help cement relations within each  *'ndrina* and to expand membership. As a result, a few blood families constitute each group, hence "a high number of people with the same last name often end up being prosecuted for membership of a given  *'ndrina*." Indeed, since there is no limit to the membership of a single unit, bosses try to maximize descendants.

At the bottom of the chain of command are the *picciotti d'onore* or soldiers, who are expected to perform tasks with blind obedience until they are promoted

* the next level of *cammorista*, where they will be granted command over their own group of soldiers.
* The next level, separated by the  *'ndrina* but part of 'Ndrangheta, is known as *santista*
* higher still is the *vangelista*, upon which the up-and-coming gangster has to swear their dedication to a life of crime on the Bible.
* The *Quintino*, also called *Padrino*, is the second-highest level of command in a 'Ndrangheta clan (name *Ndrina*), being made up of five privileged members of the crime family who report directly to the boss
* *capobastone* (head of command).

### Power structure

For many years, the power apparatus of the single families were the sole ruling bodies, and they have remained the real centers of power even after superordinate bodies were in 1991 as the result of negotiations to end years of inter-family violence.
Unlike the Sicilian Mafia, the 'Ndrangheta managed to maintain a horizontal organizational structure up to the early 1990s, avoiding the establishment of a formal superordinate body.

Information of several witnesses has undermined the myth of absolute autonomy of Calabrian crime families, however. At least since the end of the 19th century, stable mechanisms for coordination and dispute settlement were created. Contacts and meetings among the bosses of the *locali* were frequent.

At least since the 1950s, the chiefs of the 'Ndrangheta *locali* have met regularly near the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Polsi in the municipality of San Luca during the September Feast. These annual meetings, known as the *crimine*, have traditionally served as a forum to discuss future strategies and settle disputes among the *locali*. The assembly exercises weak supervisory powers over the activities of all 'Ndrangheta groups. Strong emphasis was placed on the temporary character of the position of the *crimine* boss. A new representative was elected at each meeting. Far from being the "boss of the bosses," the *capo crimine* actually has comparatively little authority to interfere in family feuds or to control the level of interfamily violence.

At these meetings, every boss "must give account of all the activities carried out during the year and of all the most important facts taking place in his territory such as kidnappings, homicides, etc." The historical preeminence of the San Luca family is such that every new group or *locale* must obtain its authorization to operate and every group belonging to the 'Ndrangheta "still has to deposit a small percentage of illicit proceeds to the *principale* of San Luca in recognition of the latter's primordial supremacy."

Security concerns have led to the creation in the 'Ndrangheta of a secret society within the secret society: *La Santa*. Membership in the *Santa* is only known to other members. Contrary to the code, it allowed bosses to establish close connections with state representatives, even to the extent that some were affiliated with the *Santa*. These connections were often established through the Freemasonry, which the *santisti* - breaking another rule of the traditional code - were allowed to join.

Since the end of the Second 'Ndrangheta war in 1991, the 'Ndrangheta is ruled by a collegial body or Commission, known as *La Provincia*. Its primary function is the settlement of inter-family disputes. The body, also referred to as the Commission in reference to its Sicilian counterpart, is composed of three lower bodies, known as *mandamenti*. One for the clans on the Ionic side (the Aspromonte mountains and Locride) of Calabria, a second for the Tyrrhenian side (the plains of Gioia Tauro) and one central *mandamento* for the city of Reggio Calabria.

A new investigation, known as Operation Crimine, which ended in July 2010 with an arrest of 305 'Ndrangheta members revealed that the 'ndrangheta was extremely "hierarchical, united and pyramidal," and not just clan-based as previously believed, as said by Italy's chief anti-mafia prosecutor Piero Grasso.

## Activities

According to Italian DIA (*Direzione Investigativa Antimafia*, Department of the Police of Italy against organized crime) and Guardia di Finanza (Italian Financial Police and Customs Police) the "'Ndrangheta is now one of the most powerful criminal organizations in the world." Economic activities of 'Ndrangheta include international cocaine and weapons smuggling, with Italian investigators estimating that 80% of Europe's cocaine passes through the Calabrian port of Gioia Tauro and is controlled by the 'Ndrangheta. However, according to a report of the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) and Europol, the Iberian Peninsula is considered the main entry point for cocaine into Europe and a gateway to the European market. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) estimated that in 2007 nearly ten times as much cocaine was intercepted in Spain (almost 38 MT) in comparison with Italy (almost 4 MT).

'Ndrangheta groups and Sicilian Cosa Nostra groups sometimes act as joint ventures in cocaine trafficking enterprises.
Further activities include skimming money off large public work construction projects, money laundering and traditional crimes such as usury and extortion. 'Ndrangheta invests illegal profits in legal real estate and financial activities.

In early February 2017, the Carabinieri arrested 33 suspects in the Calabrian mafia's Piromalli 'ndrina ('Ndrangheta) which was allegedly exporting fake extra virgin olive oil to the U.S.; the product was actually inexpensive olive pomace oil fraudulently labeled. In early 2016, the American television program 60 Minutes had warned that "the olive oil business has been corrupted by the Mafia" and that "Agromafia" was $16-billion per year enterprise.

The business volume of the 'Ndrangheta is estimated at almost 44 billion euro in 2007, approximately 2.9% of Italy's GDP, according to Eurispes (European Institute of Political, Economic and Social Studies) in Italy. Drug trafficking is the most profitable activity with 62% of the total turnover.

Total turnover of the 'Ndrangheta in 2007
 Commercial enterprise and public contracts
 Extortion and usury
 Arms trafficking
 Prostitution and human trafficking
 Total