All Blog Posts Tagged 'Calabria' (46)

Intro written by Angelo Carmelo Gallitto



The Calabrian “Honoured Society”, well known as “’Ndrangheta”, is the equivalent of Sicilian Mafia in Calabria region, south Italy. However its origin is unknown, it emerged later than other Italian organizations, maybe because Calabria was more isolated than others even inside south eastern…

By David Amoruso

As far as powerful Mafia bosses go, Giuseppe Ursino (photo above) is as low-key as they come. So much so that when he was convicted of trafficking cocaine for the ‘Ndrangheta and sentenced to over a decade in prison Thursday, it was the first criminal conviction of his life.

“Pino” Ursino was born…

By David Amoruso

Alleged ‘Ndrangheta boss Gabriele “El Italiano” Biondo made an initial appearance in federal court in Boston on Thursday in connection with a 1,500-kilo cocaine shipment. Biondo is an Italian national who was extradited to the United States from Spain. He is alleged to have been in close contact with…

By David Amoruso

The murdered brother of a Calabrian Mafia turncoat had asked to be released from the government’s witness protection program. 51-year-old Marcello Bruzzese was shot dead on Christmas Day last year, when he arrived at his home in the historical center of Pesaro.

The killing had all the indications of…

By David Amoruso

A domestic dispute? It’s not the first thing one thinks of when a reputed Mafia boss is shot dead in his home. Still, that’s what happened to 87-year-old Toronto mob leader Rocco Zito (photo above) on January 29, 2016. His son-in-law, Domenico Scopelliti, was sentenced last week to 10 years in prison for…

By David Amoruso

He had disappeared in 2016. Like so many of his colleagues, Calabrian Mafia boss Giuseppe “Peppe” Pelle chose to live the life of a fugitive rather than spend it behind bars. From his hideaway in the Calabrian mountains he oversaw a large network which controlled regional politics.

The mountainous…

By David Amoruso

Every underworld has its first major crime boss. That man – or woman – who ascends to the top of the heap and controls organized crime in the city. For Hamilton, Ontario, that man was Rocco Perri. During the years of Prohibition, he became known as the “King of the Bootleggers.”

Born in…

By David Amoruso

It’s an interesting debate: Do you grant a convicted murderer the right to say goodbye to a dying loved one, even though the convict…

By David Amoruso

The power of the ‘Ndrangheta, Calabria’s Mafia, seems to have no limits. Authorities in Italy have arrested around 170 people, including two mayors, in Italy and Germany in a largescale operation aimed at the Farao-Marincola ‘Ndrangheta clan. Assets worth over €50 million euros were also seized. “We have…

By David Amoruso

You can run, but not forever. After spending 23 years as a most wanted fugitive Rocco Morabito was arrested at a hotel in Montevideo, Uruguay, on Sunday. The 50-year-old Calabrian Mafia boss had been living in a luxurious…

By Gangsters Inc. Editors

Angelo Gigliotti (photo above) was sentenced to 20 years in prison today for his role in a Calabrian Mafia-connected cocaine trafficking ring. The 36-year-old had been found guilty following a …

By Gangsters Inc. Editors

Gregorio Gigliotti was sentenced to 18 years behind bars on Tuesday for narcotics trafficking and firearm offenses. The 61-year-old man used his family’s Queens-based Italian restaurant as a front for importing 55 kilos of cocaine from Costa Rica hidden among produce. Gigliotti’s operation was allegedly linked to…

By Gangsters Inc. Editors

The mayor of Bova Marina, a village in Reggio Calabria, was arrested today in a police operation against the Calabrian Mafia’s involvement in the area’s garbage hauling industry, Italian news agency ANSA reported. Mayor…

By David Amoruso

Marcello Pesce, one of the Calabrian ‘Ndrangheta’s most powerful bosses, was arrested in a dawn raid on Thursday. He had been on the run since 2010 and, in absentia, had been convicted of Mafia crimes. He can now begin serving his prison sentence of almost 17 years.

Like so many of his colleagues, …

By David Amoruso

One of Australia’s most powerful ‘Ndrangheta leaders passed away this weekend of natural causes. He was 87. Nicknamed “The Fox,” Bruno Romeo (photo above) was known as a cunning and deadly Mafia boss who ruled New South Wales after arriving there in 1951 from Plati, Italy. He is …

By Gangsters Inc. Editors

It was magical! When a soon-to-be bride and groom flew in by helicopter to their wedding in the Calabrian village of Nicotera, they could see their friends and family below. Everyone had gathered in the town square, which had been cordoned off for three hours prior to their arrival. The pair’s helicopter…

By David Amoruso

How much money does the Italian Mafia make? How many billions of dollars go up the chain through the organizations of Sicily’s Cosa Nostra, Campania’s Camorra, and Calabria’s ‘Ndrangheta? Criminology professor Francesco Calderoni did the math and came up with some very interesting numbers, numbers that many deem the most…

By Gangsters Inc. Editors

It was a tough day for father and son Gigliotti this Friday when a jury convicted them of trafficking over 50 kilos of cocaine into the United States in shipments of yucca. The pair used their Italian restaurant in Queens as cover for the smuggling operation.

60-year-old Gregorio was found guilty on all…

By Gangsters Inc. Editors

The Italian Mafia groups are often described as a shadow government, ruling in place of the legitimate one. But on Friday, Italian police said they had discovered a secret commission led by the Calabrian ‘Ndrangheta which…

By David Amoruso

“What have you done for your country as a good citizen?”

“Well…. I don’t know what you… what you mean by that?”

“When you’re looking back over the years now till that time when you became a citizen, and now standing twenty odd years after that, you must have in your mind some things that you have done that you can…