Over 500 mafia members on the run, says Italian police
January 30, 2020

Rome – There are almost 500 members of Italian Mafia groups who are on the run from justice, Italian police data released on Thursday.

The deputy head of the Italian police, Vittorio Rizzi, said the total number of fugitives is 498, including 55 for whom international arrest warrants were issued via Interpol, and 134 who belong to the fearsome ‘Ndrangheta Mafia.

The data was published in conjunction with an international police conference on the ‘Ndrangheta called I-Can (Interpol Cooperation against `Ndrangheta).

“We need a global approach to combat a worldwide threat,’’ Rizzi said about the ‘Ndrangheta.

The conference is taking place in Reggio Calabria, the main city of Calabria, the impoverished southern region from which the ‘Ndrangheta originates.

“The Calabrian mob is the world’s most powerful crime group, operating in 32 countries across Europe, Africa, the Americas and Oceania, and the main broker on the world drug market,’’ Italian police said.

Report says part of the ‘Ndrangheta’s strength comes from its highly secretive structure, with members bound by family ties.

“This makes it particularly difficult to penetrate by law enforcement authorities.

“Out of almost 1,200 Mafia turncoats working with authorities, 42 per cent come from the Neapolitan Camorra, 22 per cent from Sicily’s Cosa Nostra, and only 15 per cent from the ‘Ndrangheta,’’ police said.

They also said the top of the ‘Ndrangheta’s hierarchical structure is made up of the “Santa,” a secret committee whose members “are not known even to the bosses” further down in the chain of command.

(dpa/NAN)

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