Antonio Nirta

Antonio Nirta (April 22, 1919 – September 1, 2015) was a boss of the 'Ndrangheta, a Mafia-type organization in Calabria, Italy. Together with his brothers Giuseppe, Francesco and Sebastiano, he ruled San Luca, a stronghold of the 'Ndrangheta.

'Ndrangheta in San Luca

The historical pre-eminence of the San Luca family within the 'Ndrangheta is such that every new group or '' locale'' must obtain its authorization to operate and every group belonging to the 'Ndrangheta "still has to deposit a small percentage of illicit proceeds to the ''principale'' of San Luca in recognition of the latter’s primordial supremacy."Paoli, ''Mafia Brotherhoods'', p. 29-30 San Luca, in the words of a study published in 2005 by Italy's domestic intelligence service, is "the cradle of he 'Ndranghetaand its epicentre".Silence on the streets of Calabria's mafia capital as deadly feud crosses borders
The Guardian, August 17, 2007

Since the mid-1970s, according to several pentiti, members of the Nirta family from San Luca and the Piromalli family from Gioia Tauro rotated among themselves the position of capo crimine.Paoli, ''Mafia Brotherhoods'', p. 60 Nirta and his brothers belonged to the high level of the organisation, the "maggiore".

Early criminal career

In 1935, at the age of 16, Nirta was already charged for coercion with the use of arms. In 1953, authorities considered him a danger for public order and in 1967 he was charged with criminal association, extortion and attempted murder.L’operaio forestale diventato miliardario
Giornale di Calabria, October 2, 2004

In October 1969, he participated in the infamous Montalto meeting near the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Polsi in the municipality of San Luca. The meeting was interrupted by the police, and was intended to discuss the future operation of the 'Ndrangheta and whether or not the organisation would back the Golpe Borghese, a planned right wing coup attempt by Junio Valerio Borghese, which fizzled out on the night of December 8, 1970. The Court in Locri sentenced Nirta to two years and seven months for criminal association because of his attendance of the meeting.

Mafia mediator

Antonio Nirta was also known as the "diplomat" of the clan, he mediated the peace between the De Stefano and the Imerti- Condello clans in the Second 'Ndrangheta war that raged from 1985-1991 and left some 600 dead. Nirta vouched for the De Stefanos, while Antonio Mammoliti vouched for the Imerti clan. , Nisio Palmieri, Dossier della Fondazione Cesar e dell’Associazione Sicurstrada per conto della Consulta Nazionale dei Consigli Regionali Unipol Assicurazioni He became a member of '' Camera di Controllo'', a provincial commission of the 'Ndrangheta formed at the end of the war in September 1991, to avoid further internal conflicts.Sentenza procedimento penale Olimpia
, Tribunale di Reggio Calabria, January 19, 1999

In 1993, the old patriarch Nirta again imposed a peace in the so-called San Luca feud – a war between the two clans Pelle-Vottari-Romeo and Strangio-Nirta from San Luca that had started in 1991 – with the help of the De Stefano clan from Reggio Calabria, which held for some time.E il boss rifiutò la tregua
La Repubblica, August 19, 2007Faida, la pax targata Di Stefano
Gazzetta del Sud, January 28, 2010

On August 8, 1993, Nirta was arrested in the small town of Benestare.Italy Seizes Mafia Suspect
The New York Times, August 8, 1993 He died at home on 1 September 2015.
Gazzetta del Sud, 2 September 2015

References

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Nirta, Antonio
1919 births
2015 deaths
People from San Luca
'Ndranghetisti