The ''Camera di Controllo'' (Board of Control), is a collegial body of the
'Ndrangheta
The 'Ndrangheta (, , ) is a prominent Italian Mafia-type organized crime syndicate and secret society, criminal society based in the peninsular and mountainous region of Calabria and dating back to the late 18th century. It is considered one of ...
, a
Mafia
"Mafia" is an informal term that is used to describe criminal organizations that bear a strong similarity to the original “Mafia”, the Sicilian Mafia and Italian Mafia. The central activity of such an organization would be the arbitration of ...
-type organisation in Calabria. It is also known as ''La Provincia'' (the Province) or ''Camera di Compensazione'' (compensation board). It is composed of leading 'Ndrangheta members to decide on important questions concerning the organization and settling disputes.Paoli, ''Mafia Brotherhoods'', pp. 61-62 Gratteri & Nicaso, ''Fratelli di Sangue'', pp. 65-68
History
Although the 'Ndrangheta organisation did know centralized structures – such as the '' crimine'' – that weakly coordinated activities of the various
'ndrine
The 'ndrina (, plural: ; , plural: ) is the basic unit of the 'Ndrangheta of Calabria, made up of blood relatives, and is the equivalent of the Sicilian Mafia’s "family" or ''cosca''.Varese, How Mafias Migrate'Gratteri & Nicaso ''Fratelli di s ...
, it was not until the end of the
Second 'Ndrangheta war
The Second 'Ndrangheta war was an internal struggle in the 'Ndrangheta, a criminal organisation in Calabria (southern Italy). The conflict raged from 1985–1991 in Reggio Calabria. Practically all the 'ndrine in the city of Reggio Calabria group ...
that raged from 1985 to 1991 that the ''Provincia'' or ''Camera'', a more powerful and centralized body, was established. The bloody six-year war between the Condello- Imerti- Serraino- Rosmini clans and the De Stefano- Tegano- Libri-Latella clans left more than 600 deaths.
The
Sicilian Mafia
The Sicilian Mafia, also simply known as the Mafia and frequently referred to as Cosa nostra (, ; "our thing") by its members, is an Italian Mafia- terrorist-type organized crime syndicate and criminal society originating in the region of Sici ...
contributed to the end of the conflict and probably suggested the subsequent set up of a superordinate body, similar to the Sicilian Mafia Commission, to avoid further infighting. 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
The Aspromonte is a mountain massif in the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria ( Calabria, southern Italy). The literal translation of the name means "rough mountain". But for others the name more likely is related to the Greek word Aspros ( � ...
Gioia Tauro
Gioia Tauro () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria (Italy), on the Tyrrhenian coast. It has an important port, situated along the route connecting Suez to Gibraltar, one of the busiest maritime corridors in ...
) and one central ''mandamento'' for the city of
Reggio Calabria
Reggio di Calabria ( scn, label= Southern Calabrian, Riggiu; el, label= Calabrian Greek, Ρήγι, Rìji), usually referred to as Reggio Calabria, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, is the largest city in Calabria. It has an estimated pop ...
.
Function
According to the
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 ...
Pasquale Barreca the ''Provincia'' had "the authority of a true hierarchical superordinate power." Its primary function is the settlement of inter-family disputes. Any controversy between the various clans has to be submitted to the Commission before violence can be used. Smaller conflicts within the same 'Ndrangheta group are still left to the jurisdiction of the local family boss. If a decision of the Commission is ignored, all the '' locali'' – all the ''ndrine'' in a specific town or territory – are expected to line up against the one who violated the decision.
However, so far the Commission has not succeeded in ending all violent conflicts, such as the one between the Cordì and the Cataldo clans in
Locri
Locri is a town and ''comune'' (municipality) in the province of Reggio Calabria, Calabria, southern Italy. Its name derives from that of the ancient Greek region of Locris. Today it is an important administrative and cultural centre on the Ion ...
. Nevertheless, since the end of the Second 'Ndrangheta war a sharp decrease in homicides in Reggio Calabria province suggests that the peacekeeping role played by the ''Provincia'' is functioning to some extent.
Members of the Commission
The membership of the first ''Provincia'' or Commission varies according to different testimonies of 'Ndrangheta turncoats (
pentiti
''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 ...
Umberto Bellocco
Umberto Bellocco (; 17 December 1937 – 22 October 2022) was an Italian criminal and a member of the 'Ndrangheta, a mafia-type organisation in Calabria. He was the capobastone and founder of the Bellocco 'ndrina from the 1960s until his arres ...
or his brother
Carmelo Bellocco
Carmelo is a given name. Notable people with the name include:
* Carmelo Anthony (born 1984), American basketball player
* Carmelo Antrone Lee (born 1977), Puerto Rican basketball player
* Carmelo Bene (1937-2002), Italian director, actor, phil ...
Francesco Commisso
Francesco, the Italian (and original) version of the personal name "Francis", is the most common given name among males in Italy. Notable persons with that name include:
People with the given name Francesco
* Francesco I (disambiguation), sever ...
or
Giuseppe Commisso
Giuseppe is the Italian form of the given name Joseph,
from Latin Iōsēphus from Ancient Greek Ἰωσήφ (Iōsḗph), from Hebrew יוסף.
It is the most common name in Italy and is unique (97%) to it.
The feminine form of the name is Gius ...
(Siderno)
*
Pasquale Condello
Pasquale Condello (; born 24 September 1950) is an Italian criminal known as a member of the 'Ndrangheta. He is also known as ("the supreme one") for his role at the top of the crime syndicate.Natale Iamonte (Melito di Porto Salvo)
*
Domenico Libri
Domenico Libri (; May 24, 1934 – May 1, 2006), also known as Don Mico, was an Italian criminal and a member of the 'Ndrangheta in Calabria. Libri was a fugitive since June 1989 and included in the list of most wanted fugitives in Italy until hi ...
Rocco Papalia
Rocco or Rocko is both a given name and a surname. Notable people with the name include:
First name
* Rocco Baldelli (born 1981), American Major League Baseball player and manager of the Minnesota Twins
* Rocco Botte (born 1983), American actor ...
Gioacchino Piromalli
Gioacchino is a masculine Italian given name, equivalent to the English Joachim. Notable people with the name include:
* Gioacchino Assereto (1600–1649), Italian painter
* Gioacchino Cocchi (1720–1804), Italian composer
* Gioacchino Colombo (1 ...
Domenico Serraino
Domenico is an Italian given name for males and may refer to:
People
* Domenico Alfani, Italian painter
* Domenico Allegri, Italian composer
* Domenico Alvaro, Italian mobster
* Domenico Ambrogi, Italian painter
* Domenico Auria, Italian archit ...
Luigi Ursino
Luigi Ursino (born February 16, 1933) is an Italian criminal and a member of the 'Ndrangheta, a mafia-type organisation in Calabria. He's the boss of the Ursino 'ndrina from Gioiosa Ionica, The family name is sometimes spelled Ursini.
The Ursino ...
(Gioiosa Ionica)
Operation Crimine
In July 2010, in a massive police operation dubbed "Il crimine", the head of the '' crimine'', Domenico Oppedisano was arrested. In the course of the investigation the '' capo crimine'' also appeared to be the nominal head of the ''Provincia''. Oppedisano represented the Tyrrhenian mandamento, while his No. 2, the ''Capo società''
Antonino Latella Antonino may refer to:
* Antonino (name), a given name and a surname (including a list of people with the name)
* Antonino, Kansas, an unincorporated community in Ellis County, Kansas, United States
See also
* Antoniano (disambiguation)
* Anto� ...
represented the Centre (the city of
Reggio Calabria
Reggio di Calabria ( scn, label= Southern Calabrian, Riggiu; el, label= Calabrian Greek, Ρήγι, Rìji), usually referred to as Reggio Calabria, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, is the largest city in Calabria. It has an estimated pop ...
) and
Bruno Gioffré
Bruno may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Bruno (name), including lists of people and fictional characters with either the given name or surname
* Bruno, Duke of Saxony (died 880)
* Bruno the Great (925–965), Archbishop of Cologn ...
, the ''Mastro generale'', the Ionic side.Preso il "Vangelo", capo assoluto scelto dalle cosche della 'ndrangheta , La Stampa, July 14, 2010Police Swoop to Round Up 'Ndrangheta Corriere della Sera, July 14, 2010
The existence of the ''Provincia'' was confirmed when in March 2010, the police managed to place a bug in the home of Giuseppe Pelle, an emerging boss and son of Antonio Pelle, also known as ''Ntoni Gambazza''. In just over a month hundreds of meetings were recorded between mafiosi, politicians, entrepreneurs, professionals, businessmen and middlemen of any kind, and even people with links to intelligence services."Sono bastate tre cimici per dare un duro colpo alla 'ndrangheta" La Repubblica, September 30, 2011 They also confirmed that Rocco Morabito and Giuseppe Pelle had succeeded their fathers and were in charge of managing the affairs of the 'Ndrangheta clans on the Ionic side of Calabria before they were arrested in April 2010 as a result of Operation Reale (Royal).La ‘ndrangheta muta pelle, regole e gerarchie Gazzetta del Sud, May 23, 2010
The
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 ...
Antonio Barbaro
Antonio Barbaro (died 1679) was a Venetian general and governor, a member of the patrician Barbaro family of Venice (now Italy). Barbaro lived at a time when Venice had a maritime empire in the Mediterranean. He served in Candia (now Heraklion), Cr ...
Pasquale Condello
Pasquale Condello (; born 24 September 1950) is an Italian criminal known as a member of the 'Ndrangheta. He is also known as ("the supreme one") for his role at the top of the crime syndicate.I nuovi assetti della ‘ndrangheta reggina Gazetta del Sud, April 18, 2011
To govern the 'Ndrangheta ''locali'' outside Calabria a so-called ''Camera di controllo'' is constituted. The investigation confirmed the existence of a ''Camera di controllo'' in Lombardy and
Liguria
Liguria (; lij, Ligûria ; french: Ligurie) is a Regions of Italy, region of north-western Italy; its Capital city, capital is Genoa. Its territory is crossed by the Alps and the Apennine Mountains, Apennines Mountain chain, mountain range and is ...
A ''Camera di Controllo'' also exists in Canada, according to "confidential information" of the police "which they believe to be reliable." It consists of six or seven
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...
-area men, who co-ordinate activities and resolves disputes among the
Siderno Group
The Siderno Group is a criminal association in Canada, Australia and Italy related to the 'Ndrangheta, a Mafia-type organization in Calabria. The association is labelled the "Siderno Group" because its members primarily came from the town of Sid ...
in
Southern Ontario
Southern Ontario is a primary region of the province of Ontario, Canada, the other primary region being Northern Ontario. It is the most densely populated and southernmost region in Canada. The exact northern boundary of Southern Ontario is dis ...
Rocco Zito
Rocco Zito (; August 19, 1928 – January 29, 2016) was an Italian-Canadian crime boss of the 'Ndrangheta in Canada, a Mafia-type organisation originating in Calabria, Italy. He was also a founding member of the Camera di Controllo in Canada in 1 ...
established a crimini or Camera di Controllo in Canada.Schneider, ''Iced: The Story of Organized Crime in Canada'', pp. 310 One of the members was Giuseppe Coluccio, before he was arrested and extradited to Italy.Life of luxury on hold National Post, August 16, 2008 Other members are
Vincenzo DeMaria
Vincenzo "Jimmy" DeMaria (; born 1954) is an Italian-Canadian businessman and alleged mobster originally from Calabria, Italy, now based in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. In 1982, DeMaria was convicted of murder, and upon his release in 1990, has si ...
Carmine Verduci Carmine Verduci (; May 12, 1959 – April 24, 2014) was an Italian-Canadian mobster from Oppido Mamertina, Calabria, based in Woodbridge, Ontario linked to the Greater Toronto Area 'Ndrangheta group called the Siderno Group. He also had a seat o ...
before his death, and Cosimo Stalteri before his death.
During a March 2018 trial of 'Ndrangheta members in the Greater Toronto Area in Canada, an agreed Statement of Fact indicated that "the Localiocal cellsoutside of Calabria replicate the structure from Calabria, and are connected to their mother-Locali in Calabria. The authority to start Locali outside Calabria comes from the governing bodies of the organization in Calabria. The Locali outside of Calabria are part of the same 'Ndrangheta organization as in Calabria, and maintain close relationships with the Locali where its members come from." The group's activities in the Greater Toronto Area were controlled by a group known as the 'Camera Di Controllo' (also known as La Provincia, according to the statement) which "makes all of the final decisions", according to the witness' testimony.
By mid-2019, Police in Italy and in Canada were convinced that "the 'Ndrangheta's Canadian presence has become so powerful and influential that the board north of Toronto has the authority to make decisions, not only in relation to Canada's underworld, but also abroad, even back in Siderno".