Pesce 'ndrina
Encyclopedia
The Pesce 'ndrina is a clan of the 'Ndrangheta, a criminal and mafia-type organisation in Calabria
, Italy
. The 'ndrina is based in Rosarno
on the Tyrrhenian coast
.
plain. Jointly with the Bellocco clan
and in collaboration with the Piromalli-Molè 'ndrina
they controlled the public contracts for the construction of the container terminal
in the port of Gioia Tauro
.
After the construction of the port, the Piromalli-Mole and Pesce-Bellocco clans controlled activities tied to the port, the hiring of workers, and relations with port unions and local institutions, according the a report of the Italian Antimafia Commission
. They who would guarantee peace and order on the docks in return for a ‘security tax’ of US$1.50 per for each transshipped container.
The clan is also alleged to have secured lucrative public building contracts related to the Salerno-Reggio Calabria highway.
While in jail, Pesce used Radio Olimpia, a local radio station that operated an unlicensed transmitter from premises in Pesce’s fiefdom Rosarno, to send coded messages. Police listening in on a conversation between Pesce and his wife heard him talking about record requests. Pesce told his wife, after scribbling down the name of a tune: "If it's positive you send me [this] song on the radio tonight. If it's negative you send me another."
, Como
, Sondrio
, Brescia
, Bergamo
, Treviso
, Alessandria
, Naples
and Reggio Calabria
. The cocaine was imported from Colombia, Brazil, Spain and the Netherlands, heroin from the Balkans and ecstasy from the Netherlands.
On April 28, 2010, the clan was hit in a police operation, known as Operation All Inside, that led to the arrest of 30 people accused of Mafia association. Another 10 for whom arrest warrants were issued were still on the run. One of the most important bosses to escape was Francesco Pesce, known as "Cicciu testuni" and the son of Antonino, who was arrested on August 9, 2011, in the area around the port of Gioia Tauro.
On April 21, 2011, Italian police seized around 190 million euros worth of assets of the clan. Among the impounded properties were 40 businesses in the transport, agriculture and trade sectors, 44 apartments, four villas, 60 parcels of land, 164 cars and even two football teams, Interpiana and Sapri
. The police was able to carry out the investigation into the highly secretive 'Ndrangheta organisation thanks to the collaboration of turncoat, Giuseppina Pesce, the daughter of clan boss Salvatore Pesce.
On September 20, 2011, 11 members of the clan were convicted at the All Inside trial. The bosses of the clan, Vincenzo Pesce and Francesco Pesce, known as "Cicciu testuni", were sentenced to 20 years in prison. The testimony of the pentita Giuseppina Pesce was important element in the trial.
Calabria
Calabria , in antiquity known as Bruttium, is a region in southern Italy, south of Naples, located at the "toe" of the Italian Peninsula. The capital city of Calabria is Catanzaro....
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. The 'ndrina is based in Rosarno
Rosarno
Rosarno is a comune in the province of Reggio Calabria in the Italian region of Calabria. It is about southwest of Catanzaro and about northeast of Reggio Calabria. Rosarno stands on a natural terrace cloaked in olive plantations and vineyards on the left bank of the river Mesima, overlooking...
on the Tyrrhenian coast
Tyrrhenian Sea
The Tyrrhenian Sea is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the western coast of Italy.-Geography:The sea is bounded by Corsica and Sardinia , Tuscany, Lazio, Campania, Basilicata and Calabria and Sicily ....
.
Powerful 'Ndrangheta clan
The Pesce clan is one of the most powerful clans in the 'Ndrangheta. Activities range from drug trafficking, extortion and the control of nearly all commercial businesses in the Gioia TauroGioia Tauro
Gioia Tauro is a comune in the province of Reggio Calabria, in Calabria , on the Tyrrhenian coast. It has an important port, situated along the route connecting Suez to Gibraltar, one of the busiest maritime corridors in the world....
plain. Jointly with the Bellocco clan
Bellocco 'ndrina
The Bellocco 'ndrina is a clan of the 'Ndrangheta, a criminal and mafia-type organisation in Calabria, Italy. The 'ndrina is based in Rosarno, on the Tyrrhenian coast.-Powerful 'Ndrangheta clan:...
and in collaboration with the Piromalli-Molè 'ndrina
Piromalli 'ndrina
The Piromalli 'ndrina is one of the most powerful clans of the 'Ndrangheta, a criminal and mafia-type organisation in Calabria, Italy. The 'ndrina is based in Gioia Tauro on the Tyrrhenian coast. The Piromalli's are allied with their relatives of the Molè family, also from Gioia Tauro. Often they...
they controlled the public contracts for the construction of the container terminal
Container terminal
A container terminal is a facility where cargo containers are transshipped between different transport vehicles, for onward transportation. The transshipment may be between container ships and land vehicles, for example trains or trucks, in which case the terminal is described as a maritime...
in the port of Gioia Tauro
Gioia Tauro
Gioia Tauro is a comune in the province of Reggio Calabria, in Calabria , on the Tyrrhenian coast. It has an important port, situated along the route connecting Suez to Gibraltar, one of the busiest maritime corridors in the world....
.
After the construction of the port, the Piromalli-Mole and Pesce-Bellocco clans controlled activities tied to the port, the hiring of workers, and relations with port unions and local institutions, according the a report of the Italian Antimafia Commission
Antimafia Commission
The Italian Antimafia Commission is a bicameral commission of the Italian Parliament, composed of members from the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate . The Antimafia Commission is a commission of inquiry into, initially, the “phenomenon of the Mafia”...
. They who would guarantee peace and order on the docks in return for a ‘security tax’ of US$1.50 per for each transshipped container.
The clan is also alleged to have secured lucrative public building contracts related to the Salerno-Reggio Calabria highway.
Leadership
The clan is headed by Antonino Pesce (born in 1953) and his brother Salvatore Pesce (born in 1961), both in jail. Salvatore Pesce was arrested on charges of international drug trafficking on November 30, 2005.While in jail, Pesce used Radio Olimpia, a local radio station that operated an unlicensed transmitter from premises in Pesce’s fiefdom Rosarno, to send coded messages. Police listening in on a conversation between Pesce and his wife heard him talking about record requests. Pesce told his wife, after scribbling down the name of a tune: "If it's positive you send me [this] song on the radio tonight. If it's negative you send me another."
Recent developments
In January 2006, 54 members of the Bellocco-Pesce clan were arrested in an operation against international drug trafficking. They were supplying the drug markets in MilanMilan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, Como
Como
Como is a city and comune in Lombardy, Italy.It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como....
, Sondrio
Sondrio
Sondrio is an Italian town and comune located in the heart of the Valtellina. Sondrio counts approximately 22,000 inhabitants and it is the administrative centre for the Lombard Province of Sondrio.- History :...
, Brescia
Brescia
Brescia is a city and comune in the region of Lombardy in northern Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, between the Mella and the Naviglio, with a population of around 197,000. It is the second largest city in Lombardy, after the capital, Milan...
, Bergamo
Bergamo
Bergamo is a town and comune in Lombardy, Italy, about 40 km northeast of Milan. The comune is home to over 120,000 inhabitants. It is served by the Orio al Serio Airport, which also serves the Province of Bergamo, and to a lesser extent the metropolitan area of Milan...
, Treviso
Treviso
Treviso is a city and comune in Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Treviso and the municipality has 82,854 inhabitants : some 3,000 live within the Venetian walls or in the historical and monumental center, some 80,000 live in the urban center proper, while the city...
, Alessandria
Alessandria
-Monuments:* The Citadel * The church of Santa Maria di Castello * The church of Santa Maria del Carmine * Palazzo Ghilini * Università del Piemonte Orientale-Museums:* The Marengo Battle Museum...
, Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
and Reggio Calabria
Reggio Calabria
Reggio di Calabria , commonly known as Reggio Calabria or Reggio, is the biggest city and the most populated comune of Calabria, southern Italy, and is the capital of the Province of Reggio Calabria and seat of the Council of Calabrian government.Reggio is located on the "toe" of the Italian...
. The cocaine was imported from Colombia, Brazil, Spain and the Netherlands, heroin from the Balkans and ecstasy from the Netherlands.
On April 28, 2010, the clan was hit in a police operation, known as Operation All Inside, that led to the arrest of 30 people accused of Mafia association. Another 10 for whom arrest warrants were issued were still on the run. One of the most important bosses to escape was Francesco Pesce, known as "Cicciu testuni" and the son of Antonino, who was arrested on August 9, 2011, in the area around the port of Gioia Tauro.
On April 21, 2011, Italian police seized around 190 million euros worth of assets of the clan. Among the impounded properties were 40 businesses in the transport, agriculture and trade sectors, 44 apartments, four villas, 60 parcels of land, 164 cars and even two football teams, Interpiana and Sapri
S.S.D. Sapri Calcio
Società Sportiva Dilettante Sapri Calcio, commonly known as Sapri, was an Italian association football club located in Sapri, Campania. It has played in Serie D in the last ten years...
. The police was able to carry out the investigation into the highly secretive 'Ndrangheta organisation thanks to the collaboration of turncoat, Giuseppina Pesce, the daughter of clan boss Salvatore Pesce.
On September 20, 2011, 11 members of the clan were convicted at the All Inside trial. The bosses of the clan, Vincenzo Pesce and Francesco Pesce, known as "Cicciu testuni", were sentenced to 20 years in prison. The testimony of the pentita Giuseppina Pesce was important element in the trial.