Michele Zagaria (; born 21 May 1958) is an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

Camorrista and one of the bosses of the

Casalesi clan The Casalesi clan is a clan within the Camorra, an Italian criminal organization, operating from Casal di Principe and San Cipriano d'Aversa in the province of Caserta between Naples and Latium. Formed by Antonio Bardellino, it is a confederatio ...

from Casal di Principe in the

province of Caserta The Province of Caserta ( it, Provincia di Caserta) is a province in the Campania region of southern Italy. Its capital is the city of Caserta, situated about by road north of Naples. The province has an area of , and had a total population of 9 ...

northwest of

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

. He was nicknamed , which translates to "twisted head", because of his violent reputation. He was on the "

most wanted list A most wanted list is a list of criminals and alleged criminals who are believed to be at large and are identified as a law enforcement agency's highest priority for capture. The list can alert the public to be watchful, and generates publicity ...

" of the Italian ministry of the Interior from 1995 until 2011, for Camorra association, murder, extortion, robbery and other crimes. On 8 February 2000, an international warrant was issued against him, to be arrested for extradition.

Criminal career

The criminal career of Michele Zagaria, began in the 1980s, alongside Alberto Beneduce and

Francesco Schiavone Francesco Schiavone (; born 3 March 1954) is a member of the Camorra, the Caserta organized crime syndicate, and the head of the Casalesi clan from Casal di Principe in the province of Caserta. He has been dubbed ''Sandokan'' after a popular 197 ...

. His first arrest dates back to 1988, when he was found with a 7.65 submachine gun—the weapon of choice for soldiers of the Camorra—in his car. Since then he was in and out of jail, until, on 6 December 1995, the so-called Spartacus investigation identified him as one of the heads of the Casalesi clan. Since then he vanished from public life.Caccia a Zagaria, la polizia scava sotto un negozio in cerca di un covo
Corriere della Sera, 19 November 2010 Zagaria is an atypical Casalesi boss. According to informants, he doesn't refuse a few lines of cocaine, a strict taboo within the clan. He insists on being treated like a priest: 'You should do what I say and not what I do.' He knows how to construct his image. Employees are allegedly received in extravagant villas and greeted with a tiger on a leash. Together with his brother Pasquale he has become the "king of tendering" in construction, getting public contracts for the high-speed train Tav, a new prison, the local rail line and a

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

radar base.Due padrini calibro 9
L’Espresso, 9 June 2008Michele Zagaria, il boss "vizioso"
, by

Roberto Saviano Roberto Saviano (; born 22 September 1979) is an Italian writer, essayist, journalist, and screenwriter. In his writings, including articles and his book '' Gomorrah'', he uses literature and investigative reporting to tell of the economic reali ...

, Corriere del Mezzogiorno, 30 June 2006 With Antonio Iovine, Zagaria represented the new face of management of the Camorra, forging strategic alliances with the Calabrian

'Ndrangheta The 'Ndrangheta (, , ) is a prominent Italian Mafia-type organized crime syndicate and secret society, criminal society based in the peninsular and mountainous region of Calabria and dating back to the late 18th century. It is considered one of ...

. According to

, the writer of Gomorrah about the Camorra, it was Zagaria's "business acumen" that had "enabled his companies to triumph throughout Italy". When it came to winning tenders by undercutting other companies, "Michele Zagaria and his construction firms know no rival".Mafia boss Michele Zagaria captured
The Guardian, 7 December 2011

Convictions and arrest

He was sentenced, ''in absentia'', to life on 15 January 2010, after 12-year trial—named the

Spartacus Trial The Spartacus Maxi-Trial(Italian: Processo Spartacus) was a series of criminal trials, each specifically directed against the activities of the powerful Casalesi clan of the Camorra. The trial was opened at the Corte d'Assise of Santa Maria Capu ...

—against 36 members of the Casalesi clan, charged with a string of murders and other crimes.Mafia godfathers jailed for life in landmark murder trial
The Daily Telegraph, 20 June 2008"Processo Spartacus", 16 ergastoli ai Casalesi
Corriere del Mezzogiorno, 20 June 2008 Zagaria was arrested on 7 December 2011, when police raided a secret bunker in

Casapesenna Casapesenna (Campanian: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Caserta in the Italian region Campania, located about northwest of Naples and about southwest of Caserta Caserta () is the capital of the province of Caserta in the ...

. "You won. Your state has won," Zagaria told police officers as he was arrested. He had been on the run for 16 years, living in his cramped quarters for years, emerging rarely. The arrest led to scenes of jubilation among the police officers. Some embraced; others gave the V for Victory sign and punched the air amid cries of "Long live the police. Long live legality."Catturato Michele Zagaria dopo assedio a Casapesenna
La Repubblica, 7 December 2011

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zagaria, Michele 1958 births Camorristi Casalesi clan Fugitives Living people People from the Province of Caserta