The Basilischi () was an

organized crime Organized crime is a category of transnational organized crime, transnational, national, or local group of centralized enterprises run to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally thought of as a f ...

group based in

Basilicata Basilicata (, ; ), also known by its ancient name Lucania (, , ), is an administrative region in Southern Italy, bordering on Campania to the west, Apulia to the north and east, and Calabria to the south. It has two coastlines: a 30-kilometr ...

Southern Italy Southern Italy (, , or , ; ; ), also known as () or (; ; ; ), is a macroregion of Italy consisting of its southern Regions of Italy, regions. The term "" today mostly refers to the regions that are associated with the people, lands or cultu ...

, officially formed in 1994 by Giovanni Luigi Cosentino in

Potenza Potenza (, ; ; , Potentino dialect: ''Putenz'') is a ''comune'' in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata (former Lucania). Capital of the Province of Potenza and the Basilicata region, the city is the highest regional capital and one of ...

. According to the national anti-mafia prosecutor's office, the areas with Basilischi strongholds are those of

Policoro Policoro ( Lucano: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Matera, in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata. With some 18,000 inhabitants, is bounded by the towns of Rotondella, Scanzano Jonico and Tursi. Situated on the coast, i ...

, Montalbano Jonico,

Pisticci Pisticci ( Metapontino: ; ) is a town comune in the province of Matera, in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata. Pisticci is the fourth most populous town in the region and the most populous in the province after Matera. It is known for being ...

, Scanzano Jonico, the Val d'Agri and the Vulture region. On 22 April 1999, 84 orders for pre-trial custody were issued by the Prosecutor's Office in Potenza. That started what became known as the "maxi-trial", which jailed the main figures of the Basilischi and demonstrated their existence and strength in Basilicata. The maxi-trial concluded in 2007, with a 700-page summation by the judges and the sentencing of 26 people for mafia association to a total of 242 years in prison. In a ruling dated 30 October 2012, the Court of Appeal of Potenza confirmed the existence of the Basilischi.''La mafia dell'antimafia prima parte'' pag. 646
/ref> The conviction of many high-profile members of the clan caused the group to become fractured and fall further under the influence of the more powerful

Calabria Calabria is a Regions of Italy, region in Southern Italy. It is a peninsula bordered by the region Basilicata to the north, the Ionian Sea to the east, the Strait of Messina to the southwest, which separates it from Sicily, and the Tyrrhenian S ...

n-based

'Ndrangheta The 'Ndrangheta (, , ) is a mafia-type organized crime, criminal syndicate originating from the Calabria region of Italy. Gratteri & Nicaso, ''Fratelli di Sangue'', pp. 65–68 This body, also referred to as the Commission in reference to the ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Basilischi 1994 establishments in Italy 1999 disestablishments in Italy Organised crime groups in Italy Secret societies related to organized crime Italian Mafia