Umberto Bellocco (; 17 December 1937 – 22 October 2022) was an Italian criminal and a member of the

'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 ...

, a mafia-type organisation in

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 ...

. He was the capobastone and founder of the Bellocco 'ndrina from the 1960s until his arrest in 1993.

Biography

At the beginning of the 1980s, he was involved in setting up the

Sacra Corona Unita (; ; acronym: SCU), also known as the Fourth Mafia, is a Mafia-type criminal organization from the Apulia region in Southern Italy, and it is especially active in the areas of Brindisi, Lecce, and Taranto. Origin of the name Informer Cosimo ...

(SCU), a

mafia "Mafia", as an informal or general term, is often used to describe criminal organizations that bear a strong similarity to the Sicilian Mafia, original Mafia in Sicily, to the Italian-American Mafia, or to other Organized crime in Italy, organiz ...

-type organization in

Apulia Apulia ( ), also known by its Italian language, Italian name Puglia (), is a Regions of Italy, region of Italy, located in the Southern Italy, southern peninsular section of the country, bordering the Adriatic Sea to the east, the Strait of Ot ...

, to counter the growing influence of the

Camorra The Camorra (; ) is an Italian Mafia-typeMafia and Mafia-type orga ...

. On his instigation Giuseppe Rogoli imported the codes, structure, and initiation rites of the 'Ndrangheta to be used by the SCU. Sciarrone, ''Mafie vecchie, mafie nuove'', p. 174 Gratteri & Nicaso, ''Fratelli di Sangue'', p. 155 Bellocco was arrested in June 1983 in

Lecce Lecce (; ) is a city in southern Italy and capital of the province of Lecce. It is on the Salentine Peninsula, at the heel of the Italian Peninsula, and is over two thousand years old. Because of its rich Baroque architecture, Lecce is n ...

. He was sentenced to three years for illegal possession of firearms. In the subsequent years he faced multiple charges for extortion, drug trafficking, and Mafia association. At some point he was charged with and acquitted of 14 murders. He was sentenced to 14 years for drug trafficking. In July 1988 he was released because the terms for detention expired, and became a fugitive.In libertà re della 'ndrangheta; era accusato di 14 omicidi
La Repubblica, 16 July 1988 Bellocco became a member of '' Camera di Controllo'', a provincial commission of the 'Ndrangheta formed to avoid further internal conflicts at the end of the Second 'Ndrangheta war in September 1991.Sentenza procedimento penale Olimpia
Tribunale di Reggio Calabria, 19 January 1999 Bellocco was arrested again on 18 February 1993
La Repubblica, 18 February 1993
The Independent, 18 February 1993 and was in prison. He was succeeded as acting boss by his cousins Gregorio Bellocco, arrested in February 2005, and Giuseppe Bellocco, arrested in July 2007.Un cartello della ndrangheta gestiva il traffico della coca nel nord Italia
Nuova Cosenza, 19 January 2006 Bellocco died on 22 October 2022, at the age of 84.Rosarno, morto il boss Umberto Bellocco: era al 41bis dal '93

References

* Gratteri, Nicola & Antonio Nicaso (2006).
Fratelli di Sangue
', Cosenza: Luigi Pellegrini Editore * Sciarrone, Rocco (1998).
Mafie vecchie, mafie nuove: radicamento ed espansione
', Rome: Donzelli Editore, {{DEFAULTSORT:Bellocco, Umberto 1937 births 2022 deaths Bellocco 'ndrina 'Ndranghetisti People from Rosarno People from the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria