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Catania Mafia Family
The Catania Mafia family, currently also referred to as the Santapaola-Ercolano Mafia clan, is a crime family of the Cosa Nostra that dominates organized crime activities in the city of Catania and its province. The Catania Mafia quietly evolved into one of the most powerful and violent factions within the Cosa Nostra. Rooted in family ties and political connections, the organization emerged from the shadows in the mid-20th century under the leadership of Giuseppe Calderone, only to become a militarized empire under his former ally and eventual successor, Benedetto Santapaola. What began as a local effort to control gambling dens and extort businesses soon escalated into a ruthless criminal dynasty, whose influence reached deep into the economic and institutional fabric of Catania. Today, the Catania Mafia remains a powerful force, still controlled by the Santapaola-Ercolano clan. The organization has adapted to modern times, maintaining influence through extortion, drug trafficki ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Giuseppe Calderone
Giuseppe “Pippo” Calderone (Catania, 1 November 1925 – Catania, 8 September 1978) was an influential Sicilian mafioso from Catania, eventually becoming the capo of the Catania Mafia family. He became the ‘secretary’ of the Interprovincial Commission, formed around 1975 at his instigation. Its purpose was to coordinate the provincial Mafia commissions and avoid conflicts over public contracts that crossed provincial borders. Calderone was killed in 1978, on the orders of Totò Riina. Early years According to Pippo’s brother Antonino Calderone (who became a pentito in 1987) the first Mafia family in Catania was started by Antonio Saitta in 1925. He had been prosecuted by Mussolini’s ''Iron Prefect'', Cesare Mori. One of his daughters was the mother of Giuseppe and Antonino Calderone. Another uncle had helped the Mafia get back on its feet after World War II, organizing the black market in contraband cigarettes.Stille, Excellent Cadavers, p. 229 Cosa Nostra's co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Malta
Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two official languages are Maltese language, Maltese and English language, English. The country's capital is Valletta, which is the smallest capital city in the EU by both area and population. It was also the first World Heritage Site, World Heritage City in Europe to become a European Capital of Culture in 2018. With a population of about 542,000 over an area of , Malta is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, tenth-smallest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population density, ninth-most densely populated. Various sources consider the country to consist of a single urban region, for which it is often described as a city-state. Malta has been inhabited since at least 6500 BC, during the Mesolith ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
De Stefano 'ndrina
The De Stefano 'ndrina, or the De Stefano family or De Stefano-Tegano family, is one of the most powerful clans of the 'Ndrangheta, a criminal and mafia-type organisation in Calabria, Italy. The 'ndrina hailed from the Archi neighbourhood in Reggio Calabria. Several of its members were included in the list of most wanted fugitives in Italy. According to prosecutor Salvatore Boemi, the De Stefanos are the representation of the manager-criminal controlling a crime multinational with joint ventures with Raffaele Cutolo from the Camorra and Nitto Santapaola and Francesco Ferrera from Cosa Nostra in Catania. Origins The De Stefano brothers, Paolo, Giovanni, Giorgio and Orazio would come to prominence as members of the 'Ndrangheta clan of Domenico Tripodo, the old boss ( capobastone) of Reggio Calabria, who had acquired considerable financial resources through tobacco smuggling. Within two years (as a result of the first 'Ndrangheta war in 1974-1976) they moved from being simple 'Ndr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mallardo Clan
The Mallardo clan is a Camorra clan operating from the town of Giugliano in Campania, north of the city of Naples. The Mallardo clan is also one of the clans that belongs to the Secondigliano Alliance, that is considered by the authorities as the most powerful Camorra group that is still active. History The clan was founded by Francesco Mallardo, son of Domenico Mallardo, a small-time cigarette smuggler, who was murdered outside his home in Giugliano, near Piazza Annunziata, on 2 August 1967. According to later statements from justice collaborators, the killing was carried out by one of the sons of Alfredo Maisto, the dominant Camorra boss in the northern Naples area, along with two accomplices. Francesco Mallardo and his younger brother Giuseppe were still teenagers and left fatherless. Francesco, soon entered a life of crime, starting with petty thefts, later moving on to robberies and prostitution rings. Giuseppe initially tried to pursue an honest living by working in an upho ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Licciardi Clan
The Licciardi clan () is a powerful Neapolitan Camorra clan that operates in the remote areas of Naples, specifically in the Secondigliano district and its stronghold of Masseria Cardone. Its sphere of influence extends to Scampia, Chiaiano, Miano and San Pietro a Patierno. Leadership * 1980s-1994: Gennaro Licciardi, known as ''a scigna''. (Died in prison in 1994) * 1994-2008: Vincenzo Licciardi. (Arrested in 2008) * 1994–present: Maria Licciardi, known as ''La Madrina''. History In the mid-eighties, Gennaro Licciardi, known as "a scigna-la scimmia", "the monkey" was the capozona in the district of Secondigliano for the Giuliano clan of Forcella. At that time, Licciardi was the second-in-command to boss Luigi Giuliano. The outskirts of the Secondigliano district was considered to be unimportant by the other Camorra bosses. A few years later, Gennaro Licciardi formed a fully independent clan that managed to turn the area into a strategic hub for the storage and traffick ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Casalesi Clan
The Casalesi clan is a clan within the Camorra, an Italian criminal organization, operating from San Cipriano d'Aversa in the province of Caserta. Formed by Antonio Bardellino, it is a confederation of clans in the Caserta area. The Casalesi clan is believed to be one of the most powerful groups within the Camorra, specialising in construction and keeping a lower profile than clans that focus on drug dealing.Mafia bosses held meetings in police station The Guardian, September 29, 2007 History In the 1980s, Bardellino realized that , not |
Inzerillo Mafia Clan
The Inzerillo Mafia clan () is a Sicilian Mafia clan, formerly among the most powerful in Sicily, that was considered the "aristocracy of Palermo's mafia" for at least half a century . The Inzerillo family was associated with the former American Mafia boss Carlo Gambino and his family. In the modern era, the Inzerillo clan had been associated with John Gambino through heroin trafficking, and also has links to the deceased former Gambino family boss, Frank Cali. History Founded in the 1960s, by Salvatore "Totuccio" Inzerillo, the Inzerillo Mafia clan was a historical ally of Stefano Bontade, and were organizers of large trafficking of morphine from the Far East. The Inzerillos were overwhelmed in the Mafia war that exploded between 1981 and 1983 in the streets of Palermo. Salvatore died machine-gunned by a Kalashnikov on 11 May 1981 in Palermo. After that, the Corleonesi under Salvatore Riina killed his brothers Santo (who died in Palermo) and Pietro (found dead in New J ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stefano Bontade
Stefano Bontade (23 April 1939 – 23 April 1981), born Stefano Bontate, was a powerful member of the Sicilian Mafia. He was the boss of the Santa Maria di Gesù Family in Palermo. He was also known as the ''Principe di Villagrazia'' (Prince of Villagrazia) − the area of Palermo he controlled − and ''Il Falco'' (the Falcon).Stille, ''Excellent Cadavers''pp. 52-54/ref> Stefano Bontade and his brother Giovanni Bontade, who would become a lawyer, studied at a Jesuit college. In 1964, at the age of 25, Stefano Bontade became the boss of the Santa Maria di Gesù Mafia Family when his father, ''Don Paolino'' Bontade, stepped down because of ill-health (he suffered from diabetes).Paoli, ''Mafia Brotherhoods''p. 43/ref> The Mafia went through difficult times at that moment. A bloody internal struggle (known as the First Mafia War) culminated in the Ciaculli Massacre in June 1963 that killed seven police and military officers sent to defuse a bomb in an abandoned Alfa Romeo Giulietta ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Giuseppe Di Cristina
Giuseppe Di Cristina (April 22, 1923 – May 30, 1978) was a powerful mafioso from Riesi in the province of Caltanissetta, Sicily, southern Italy. Di Cristina, nicknamed “la tigre’’ (the tiger), was born into a traditional Mafia family, his father Francesco Di Cristina and his grandfather were ''men of honour'' as well. In 1975 he became the head of Cosa Nostra in the Caltanissetta province and a member of the Interprovincial Commission of the Mafia. Three years later he was killed by a rival Mafia faction, the Corleonesi of Totò Riina and Bernardo Provenzano. His death was a prelude to the Second Mafia War, which would start in 1981 after the Corleonesi killed Stefano Bontade. Mafia heritage Di Cristina's grandfather Giuseppe Di Cristina was a giant strong man and a ''gabelloto'' – a leaseholder of an estate subletting land. When it was time to show who would succeed him, he chose the day of the procession of the saint San Giuseppe in Riesi. When the processi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Corleonesi Mafia Clan
The Corleonesi Mafia clan was a faction within the Corleone family of the Sicilian Mafia, formed in the 1970s. Notable leaders included Luciano Leggio, Salvatore Riina, Bernardo Provenzano, and Leoluca Bagarella. Corleonesi affiliates were not restricted to mafiosi of Corleone. During the Second Mafia War in the early 1980s, the Corleonesi clan opposed the faction of the Palermitans represented, among others, by Gaetano Badalamenti, Stefano Bontate and Salvatore Inzerillo. The victory of the Corleonesi, and in particular the rise of Totò Riina, marked a new era in the history of the Sicilian Mafia. Between 1992 and 1993, the Corleonesi initiated a season of attacks against the state, followed by the State-Mafia Pact. History Beginnings In February 1971, the Corleonesi clan's first boss, Luciano Leggio, ordered the kidnapping for extortion of Antonino Caruso, son of the industrialist Giacomo Caruso, and also that of the son of the builder Francesco Vassallo in Paler ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ramacca Mafia Family
The Ramacca Mafia family is a crime family of the Cosa Nostra, operating primarily in the town of Ramacca, Sicily. With roots tracing back to the 1950s under the leadership of Calogero Conti, the family established itself through activities such as extortion, infiltration of public contracts, and political influence. Over the decades, the Ramacca Mafia has maintained control over local economic interests while fostering alliances with powerful neighboring families and political figures to strengthen its grip on the territory. History Origins The mafia presence in Ramacca traces back to the 1950s with Calogero “Liddu” Conti emerging as its central figure. Described by key informants such as Antonino Calderone and Francesco Di Carlo, Conti was regarded as the head of the mafia in Ramacca and vice-representative of Cosa Nostra for the province of Catania. He also maintained significant ties with the Corleonesi, including Luciano Leggio, Toto Riina, and Bernardo Provenzano, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
