Verdicts expected in the mammoth trial against the ‘Ndrangheta mafia

The verdicts in a mammoth trial against the ‘Ndrangheta mafia will be handed down in Italy today. It is considered the most dangerous and economically powerful mafia organization. More than 300 people are accused.

For years, Maria Joel Conochiella has been involved with Libera, a nationwide association that fights against organized crime. In her homeland in the southern Italian region of Calabria, she is the provincial representative of Vibo Valentia – home to the powerful Mancuso clan of the ‘Ndrangheta.

Maria still remembers well a day shortly after the major raids against the criminals at the end of 2019. On December 24th, she says, the community took to the streets to show support to the men and women of law enforcement, the judiciary and the City of Catanzaro, led by Prosecutor Gratteri.

That was an important message at the time. “Because in this small area we were used to completely different images. People applauded the boss, people showed respect for the local colonel. Instead, this community showed something completely different that day,” says the activist.

The state’s declaration of war against ‘Ndrangheta

The state had declared war on the ‘Ndrangheta. The then public prosecutor Nicola Gratteri played a significant role. He didn’t let up and always had to live under police protection. He also wrote numerous books, often with Antonio Nicaso, who is considered a mafia expert worldwide. The ‘Ndrangheta’s capital is its relationships.

“The mafia is not a criminal organization made up only of violent men,” says Nicaso. “The ability to build and maintain relationships and adaptability are two fundamental characteristics.” The mafia, he believes, must be able to function as a system and manage these types of relationships in a territory.

At the trial in Calabria, not only the clan members of the powerful Mancuso family are in the dock, but also politicians, tax officials, notaries, police officers and entrepreneurs. Most of them have not been noticed by the police so far. These are the henchmen who ensured that the ‘Ndrangheta discreetly but effectively infiltrated the economic and political system in many countries, including Germany.

Second largest mafia trial in history

According to Nicaso, who also works as a university lecturer, the ‘Ndrangheta is the only mafia capable of cloning its organizational structure even far from its areas of origin. For example, she goes to Germany – not only to invest, but also to recreate this typical organizational model that is rooted in the area and where you have relationships with people who are outside the organization, but who are responsible for it their power logic is appropriate.

Thousands of hours of witnesses have been questioned since the beginning of 2021 in a converted high-security courtroom in the Calabrian city of Lamezia Terme. Prosecutors are demanding sentences totaling almost 5,000 years for the more than 300 defendants. This makes the mafia trial the second largest in Italian history.

In addition, for the first time, several members of the ‘Ndrangheta were willing to testify. This is serious because the vow of silence is strictly followed in this organization. The witnesses told of intimidation actions in which cars were set on fire, shops were vandalized or opponents were beaten.

Stifling presence of organized crime

Maria from the Libera association knows everyday life in her homeland; she speaks of the suffocating presence of organized crime that affects everyone’s daily life. One of Libera’s goals is to make it clear how powerful this presence is. So that, according to Maria, positive anger can arise.

An anger that forces you to act. A state that intervenes. And a process that holds those responsible accountable. This is precisely why the verdicts are so important for many Italians.