More than 230 convicted in Italian mafia trial

More than 330 criminals and their associates faced a range of charges including extortion, drug trafficking and theft, in a trial that lasted nearly three years.

More than 230 people were convicted in the mafia trial in the first case. — Giovanni Pronesti, a member of the Ndrangheta crime syndicate, is escorted by police shortly after his arrest in Reggio Calabria, Italy. Photo: AP

The Italian news agency ANSA reported that the judges took 1 hour and 40 minutes to read their verdict on Monday. The heaviest sentences were handed down to Saverio Razionale and Domenico Bonavota, two local mafia leaders in Calabria, who were both sentenced to 30 years in prison.

“Today’s verdict means that the entire province of Calabria has been freed from the top criminal group,” said Nicola Gratteri, one of Italy’s most prominent judges and the former lead prosecutor in the case.

Among those convicted was Giancarlo Pittelli, a lawyer and former politician for the Forza Italia party – a member of the national governing coalition – who was sentenced to 11 years in prison for mafia collusion.

Gratteri said the confirmation of the 'Ndrangheta's links to a network of professionals was a key aspect of the verdict. Meanwhile, Giorgio Naselli, the former local police chief, was sentenced to two years and six months.

However, the prosecution failed to obtain the harsh sentences it wanted in some cases, and about 100 of those tried were acquitted.

Monday’s preliminary ruling can be appealed by both the defense and the prosecution. The ‘Ndrangheta is considered by prosecutors to be Italy’s most powerful mafia group, easily eclipsing the more famous Sicilian gang Cosa Nostra, with influence extending across Europe and beyond.

The last time Italy tried hundreds of suspected mafiosi at once was in 1986 in Palermo in a case that marked a turning point in the fight against Cosa Nostra, marking the beginning of the group's dramatic decline.

Mai Anh (according to Al Jazeera)

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