Antonio Iovine (; born September 20, 1964, in

San Cipriano d'Aversa San Cipriano d'Aversa () is an Italian commune and municipality in the Province of Caserta, region of Campania, located about northwest of Naples and about southwest of Caserta. The town is located on the territory of Agro aversano, a rural area ...

) is a powerful Italian Camorrista and one of the bosses of the

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 cla ...

from

Casal di Principe Casal di Principe (Campanian: or simply ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Caserta in the Italian region of Campania, located about northwest of Naples and about southwest of Caserta. It has a population of approximately 21,000 ...

in the

province of Caserta The province of Caserta () is a province in the Campania region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Caserta, situated about by road north of Naples. The province has an area of , and a population of 907,442. The Palace of Caserta is located nea ...

between

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

and

Lazio Lazio ( , ; ) or Latium ( , ; from Latium, the original Latin name, ) is one of the 20 Regions of Italy, administrative regions of Italy. Situated in the Central Italy, central peninsular section of the country, it has 5,714,882 inhabitants an ...

. His nickname is ("the baby"), because of his baby face when he was made a capo at a very young age.Morire di rifiuti
L’Espresso, June 6, 2007

Fugitive

He has been on the "

most wanted list A most wanted list is a list of criminals and alleged criminals who are believed to be fugitive, at large and are identified as a law enforcement agency's highest priority for capture. The list can alert the public to be watchful, and generates ...

" of the Italian ministry of the Interior since 1996 and since 2002 for murder and other crimes, until his arrest in November 2010. On August 10, 1999, an international warrant was issued against him, to be arrested for extradition. He is close to

Francesco Schiavone Francesco Schiavone (; born 3 March 1954) is a member of the Camorra, the Caserta organized crime syndicate, and the head of the Casalesi clan from Casal di Principe in the province of Caserta. He has been dubbed ''Sandokan'' after a popular 197 ...

alias Sandokan, the head of the Casalesi clan. Iovine's daughter, Filomena (Milly), is engaged to be married with Ivanoe Schiavone, the son of Sandokan.Antonio Iovine, 'o ninno, delfino di Sandokan e sodale di Zagaria
Corriere del Mezzogiorno, November 17, 2010

Business mind

Antonio Iovine is considered the ‘minister of garbage’ of the Camorra. In

Campania Campania is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy located in Southern Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian Peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islan ...

, the Camorra controls the entire cycle of garbage disposal, running the dumps, waste transport companies and other businesses, raking in US$880 million a year, according to Anti-mafia prosecutors.Naples' trash crisis tied to mob, toxic waste
The Associated Press, February 23, 2008 Investigators suspect Antonio Iovine's ability to evade arrests is thanks in part to mob infiltration of local government.Mafia bosses held meetings in police station
The Guardian, September 29, 2007 He is regarded as the business mind of the organisation. Iovine is also considered to be the one behind the clan’s expansion beyond the boundaries of Campania. Investigators believe that Iovine was the Camorra's deal-maker, recycling the illicit revenue from illegal activities such as drug trafficking and protection rackets, into the legal economy, in particular the cement business.

Trial in absentia and later arrest

He was sentenced to life on June 19, 2008, after 10-year trial—named the

Spartacus Trial The Spartacus Trial (Italian: Processo Spartacus) was a series of criminal trials, each specifically directed against the activities of the powerful Casalesi clan of the Camorra. The trial was opened at the Corte d'Assise of Santa Maria Capua Vet ...

—against 36 members of the Casalesi clan charged with a string of murders and other crimes.Mafia godfathers jailed for life in landmark murder trial
''The Daily Telegraph'', June 20, 2008«Processo Spartacus», 16 ergastoli ai Casalesi
Corriere del Mezzogiorno, June 20, 2008 When still a fugitive boss, Iovine and his close ally, Michele Zagaria, were considered to be in charge of the Casalesi clan. Zagara was arrested December 7, 2011. Iovine was arrested on November 17, 2010, in

, in a small villa in Casal di Principe, the gang's heartland north of Naples.Italy police arrest top Camorra mafia boss
BBC News, November 17, 2010 He was unarmed and, after a first attempt to get away over a terrace, offered no resistance.Camorra Boss Antonio Iovine Arrested
Corriere della Sera, November 18, 2010 Crime writer

Roberto Saviano Roberto Saviano (; born 22 September 1979) is an Italian writer, journalist, and screenwriter. In his writings, including articles and his book ''Gomorrah (book), Gomorrah'', he uses literature and investigative reporting to tell of the economic ...

, who following the publication of his bestselling book '' Gomorrah'' about the Camorra has been threatened and needs a permanent police escort since 2006, said about the arrest: “I’ve been waiting for this day for 14 years. Antonio Iovine’s arrest is a fundamental step forward in the fight against organised crime. Iovine is an entrepreneur gang boss, capable of managing hundreds of millions of euros. I hope that a thorough clear-out will now be possible." Following three years of careful pressuring by prosecutors, Iovine decided to become an informant (

pentito ''Pentito'' (; lit. "repentant"; plural: ''pentiti'') is used colloquially to designate collaborators of justice in Italian criminal procedure terminology who were formerly part of criminal organizations and decided to collaborate with a public ...

) and collaborate with magistrates on May 22, 2014. His detailed knowledge of the Casalesi clan's connections to politicians, civil servants and businessmen, and how the clan conducted its business transactions, will have deep ramifications in Italy and "an entire generation" of accomplishes risks being "swept away". Saviano went as far as saying that it "will change the course of history in our country." Iovine's decision to become a government witness might have been caused by the harsh 41 bis prison regime in an isolated high-security prison unit as part of his life imprisonment sentence.Si pente il superboss di Gomorra: Antonio Iovine, padrino del clan dei Casalesi
La Repubblica, May 22, 2014

References

External links

Top mafia boss Antonio Iovine arrested
BBC News, November 19, 2010 (video) {{DEFAULTSORT:Iovine, Antonio 1964 births Living people People from the Province of Caserta Camorristi Casalesi clan Pentiti