'Ndrangheta - the mafia that once terrified Italians

From a small gang, 'Ndrangheta expanded its territory in Italy through drug trafficking, kidnapping, and extortion, becoming a terror to the people.

The 'Ndrangheta was founded in the impoverished Calabria region of southern Italy in the 1860s. Early members of the gang are believed to have taken their name from the ancient Greek words "andros" and "agathos", meaning brave men.

'Ndrangheta members talk with lawyers in Belgium, June 2016. Photo: AFP

According to the FBI, the 'Ndrangheta was forced to accept the cocaine trade, which was less profitable, because the rival Cosa Nostra controlled the heroin market. The group also continued to increase its kidnappings for ransom. From 1970 to the mid-1990s, the 'Ndrangheta carried out some 200 kidnappings nationwide, including many high-profile ones.

The 'Ndrangheta reinvested its vast criminal profits into legitimate companies, further cementing its power and influence. From the 1980s, the balance began to tilt in the 'Ndrangheta's favour, as demand for cocaine increased and Cosa Nostra was cracked down on by the Italian government .

The 'Ndrangheta began to expand its drug trafficking network freely, establishing relationships with suppliers in South America, and controlling some of the world's most lucrative drug routes. The Italian parliament estimates that the 'Ndrangheta may dominate more than 80% of Europe's cocaine trade.

The gang has gradually expanded its network to more than 40 countries around the world, becoming one of the largest and most powerful criminal organizations in the world. The 'Ndrangheta operates in the United States, Canada, Australia, South America and most of Western Europe, by opening "local branches" closely linked to the headquarters in Calabria.

Italy's Anti-Mafia Investigation Directorate (DIA) calls the 'Ndrangheta "the absolute dominant force in the criminal world." According to the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), the organization generates $60 billion a year, equivalent to Croatia's GDP.

Nicola Gratteri, a prominent anti-mafia prosecutor, has called the 'Ndrangheta a "fearsome mafia network" that controls much of the area around the Tropea resort. Yet the authorities have received virtually no complaints from the public, demonstrating the extent to which the 'Ndrangheta threatens its victims.

If Cosa Nostra is organized in a pyramid from top to bottom, the 'Ndrangheta has a broader international structure, but is still essentially a "family gang", where members have strong ties and very few members defect.

The tentacles of the 'Ndrangheta and other Italian mafia organisations span the globe. Graphic: Europol

The organization's core group is la Mamma (The Mother), a group of seven key members in the town of San Luca, Reggio Calabria province, who is responsible for giving orders to the rest of the gang. The 'Ndrangheta divides the western, eastern and central administrative units of the province into several regions for management.

Prosecutor Gratteri said that to set up a branch, la Mamma’s approval was needed. Branch leaders would have to pay tens of thousands of euros a year to the Calabrian headquarters, in exchange for full autonomy abroad.

According to Europol, the 'Ndrangheta's overseas branches may copy the hierarchy in Italy, like franchise restaurants.

“Opening a ‘Ndrangheta branch abroad is like opening a McDonald’s restaurant,” explains Antonio Nicaso, an expert on Calabrian crime.

According to the organized crime research unit InSight Crime, most of the 'Ndrangheta's branches operate independently. This decentralized form of governance makes the entire organization resilient to the loss of a senior member.

Meanwhile, all branches benefit from the 'Ndrangheta's influence in the criminal world. "The drug trade requires a lot of trust between parties. The more trustworthy you are, the more you buy, and the 'Ndrangheta always pays on time," says mafia expert Sergio Nazzaro.

This management style makes it easier for new branches to penetrate the cocaine market, while old branches support access and underwrite drug shipments.

Police escort drug lord Rocco Morabito at the airport in Brasilia, Brazil's capital, May 25, 2021. Photo: Reuters

A leaked 2008 cable from the US diplomatic mission in Naples, Italy, offered an insight into the extent of the 'Ndrangheta's infiltration into life and politics . "If Calabria were not an Italian region, it would be a criminal state," the cable read.

Authorities in several European countries and Italy have recently launched a major crackdown on the 'Ndrangheta. On November 20, a court in the Calabria region sentenced 338 defendants to a total of 2,100 years in prison for more than 200 gang members in the largest trial in three decades.

But observers remain skeptical about the effectiveness of the crackdown, given the 'Ndrangheta's sophisticated international network and decentralized governance, and worry that prosecutors may not be able to strike a decisive blow to completely dismantle the criminal organization for a long time.

Duc Trung (According to Reuters, OCCRP, Politico, Euronews )

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