Mafia, vote trading and drugs, 29 arrests in the Taranto area

The Taranto Financial Police carried out 29 precautionary custody orders, 26 in prison and three under house arrest, signed by the investigating judge of the Lecce court Angelo Zizzari at the request of the prosecutor Milto Stefano De Nozza of the DDA, with accusations ranging from the association of mafia style to drug trafficking and vote swapping.

At the center of the investigation, which involves a total of 60 people, is an alleged clan operating in the municipality of Statte.

Among the people who ended up in prison were the mayor of Statte Francesco Andrioli and the councilors Ivan Orlando and Marianna Simeone, accused of aggravated mafia-political electoral exchange, who allegedly accepted the promise of Davide Sudoso, considered promoter of the criminal group, and Giulio Modeo (son of Antonio, known as the "Mexican", one of the main protagonists of the Taranto crime scene in the 1980s) to procure votes (during the October 2021 local elections) in exchange for money, meal vouchers and favors for the clan.