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Crime Family
A crime family is a unit of an organized crime syndicate, particularly in the Sicilian Mafia and Italian-American Mafia, often operating within a specific geographic territory or a specific set of activities. In its strictest sense, a ''family'' (or '' clan'') is a criminal gang, operating either on a unitary basis or as an organized collection of smaller gangs (e.g., ''cells'', ''factions'', ''crews'', etc.). In turn, a family can be a sole "enterprise" or part of a larger syndicate or cartel. Despite the name, most crime families are generally not based on or formed around actual familial connections, although they do tend to be ethnically based, and many members may in fact be related to one another. Crime "families" tend to be associated more directly with their respective territories than the individuals to whom their members may or may not be related. Origins The origins of the term come from the Sicilian Mafia. In the Sicilian language, the word '' cosca'', which is the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Organized Crime
Organized crime is a category of transnational organized crime, transnational, national, or local group of centralized enterprises run to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally thought of as a form of illegal business, some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, terrorist groups, rebel groups, and Separatism, separatists, are politically motivated. Many criminal organizations rely on fear or terror to achieve their goals or aims as well as to maintain control within the organization and may adopt tactics commonly used by authoritarianism, authoritarian regimes to maintain power. Some forms of organized crime simply exist to cater towards demand of illegal goods in a state or to facilitate trade of goods and services that may have been banned by a state (such as illegal drugs or firearms). Sometimes, criminal organizations force people to do business with them, such as when a gang extorts protection racket, protec ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Calabria
Calabria is a Regions of Italy, region in Southern Italy. It is a peninsula bordered by the region Basilicata to the north, the Ionian Sea to the east, the Strait of Messina to the southwest, which separates it from Sicily, and the Tyrrhenian Sea to the west. It has 1,832,147 residents as of 2025 across a total area of . Catanzaro is the region's capital. Calabria is the birthplace of the name of Italy, given to it by the Ancient Greeks who settled in this land starting from the 8th century BC. They established the first cities, mainly on the coast, as Greek colonisation, Greek colonies. During this period Calabria was the heart of Magna Graecia, home of key figures in history such as Pythagoras, Herodotus and Milo of Croton, Milo. In Roman times, it was part of the ''Regio III Lucania et Bruttii'', a region of Roman Italy, Augustan Italy. After the Gothic War (535–554), Gothic War, it became and remained for five centuries a Byzantine empire, Byzantine dominion, fully recove ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Direzione Investigativa Antimafia
The Direzione Investigativa Antimafia (DIA), also known as the Anti-Mafia Investigation Division, is an Italian multi-force investigation body under the Department of Public Security of the Ministry of the Interior. Its main task is the fight against the mafia-related organized crime in Italy. History The DIA was established with the law decree n. 345 of 29 October 1991, following the intensification of the fight against the Sicilian Mafia in Italy, just before the killing of magistrate Giovanni Falcone, the main inspiration and promoter of the DIA, and was created with the urgent decree during the Andreotti VII government and Italian Minister of Justice Claudio Martelli as a police multi-force body (Carabinieri, Polizia di Stato and Guardia di Finanza). The DIA was established just before the ''Direzione Nazionale Antimafia'' ('National Anti-Mafia Directorate'), with its national anti-mafia prosecutor, and the ''direzioni distrettuali antimafia'' ('Districtual Anti-Mafia Di ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Metropolitan City Of Palermo
The Metropolitan City of Palermo (; ) is a metropolitan city in Sicily, Italy. Its capital is the city of Palermo. It replaced the province of Palermo and comprises the city of Palermo and 82 other ''comuni'' (: ''comune''). It has 1,194,439 inhabitants. History It was first created by the reform of local authorities (Law 142/1990) and then established by regional law on 15 August 2015. Geography The Metropolitan City faces the Tyrrhenian Sea on the north, while on the west it is bordered by the province of Trapani, on the south by the province of Agrigento and by that of Caltanissetta, to the east by the Metropolitan City of Messina and the province of Enna. The island of Ustica is also included in the metropolitan territory. Municipalities The Metropolitan City includes 82 ''comuni'' (: ''comune''): * Alia * Alimena *Aliminusa * Altavilla Milicia * Altofonte * Bagheria * Balestrate * Baucina * Belmonte Mezzagno * Blufi *Bisacquino * Bolognetta * Bompietro * Borgett ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Province Of Trapani
The province of Trapani (; ; officially ''libero consorzio comunale di Trapani'') is a Provinces of Italy, province in the autonomous island region of Sicily, Italy. Following the suppression of the Sicilian provinces, it was replaced in 2015 by the free municipal consortium of Trapani (Italian: ''libero consorzio comunale di Trapani''). Its capital is the city of Trapani. It has an area of and a total population of 411,396 as of 2025. There are 25 ''comuni'' (: ''comune'') in the province (see List of municipalities of the Province of Trapani, ''comuni'' of the province of Trapani). History The area now covered by the province was occupied successively by the Punic people, Carthaginians, Ancient Greece, Greeks and latterly by the Roman Empire, Romans. The port of Trapani, first known as Drepana, then Drepanon, was inhabited by the Sicani and the Elymians, Elymi becoming a prosperous Phoenicia, Phoenician trading centre by the 8th century BC. It was taken by the Carthaginians in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pietraperzia Mafia Family
The Pietraperzia Mafia family is a crime family of the Cosa Nostra based in the city of Pietraperzia, a small town in the province of Enna, Sicily. According to an Anti-Mafia Monitoring Report in Lombardy, the family is present in Cologno Monzese, in the province of Milan, as well as in the provinces of Cremona and Bergamo. History The Pietraperzia Mafia family is known to have deep historical roots. On a map made in 1900 by one of the first Mafia researchers, Antonino Cutrera, a former public security officer, the city is already marked as a territory with a Mafia presence. This Mafia development took hold in part due to the State's negligent absence, where the only law was that of the Mafia, serving the interests of local landlords and protecting their people and property. A Mafia war broke out in Pietraperzia in the early 1920s between rival factions, resulting in dozens of deaths. With the rise of Fascism and the intervention of Prefect Cesare Mori, the power of the Pietrap ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Province Of Enna
The province of Enna (; Sicilian: ''pruvincia di Enna''; officially ''libero consorzio comunale di Enna'') is a province in the autonomous island region of Sicily, Italy. It was created in 1927, out of parts of the provinces of Caltanisetta and Catania. The capital was designated as Enna (then called Castrogiovanni), instead of Piazza Armerina, due to the influence of politician Napoleone Colajanni. Following the suppression of the Sicilian provinces, it was replaced in 2015 by the free municipal consortium of Enna (Italian: ''libero consorzio comunale di Enna''). Its capital is the city of Enna, located on a mountain and the highest provincial capital in Sicily. Located in the center of the island, it is the only landlocked province in Sicily. The province of Enna has an area of , and a total population of 152,387 as of 2025. Communes There are 20 '' communes'' in the provincThe top 10 most populous communes are: Demographics Main sights * Villa Romana del Casal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ramacca Mafia Family
The Ramacca Mafia family is a crime family of the Cosa Nostra, operating primarily in the town of Ramacca, Sicily. With roots tracing back to the 1950s under the leadership of Calogero Conti, the family established itself through activities such as extortion, infiltration of public contracts, and political influence. Over the decades, the Ramacca Mafia has maintained control over local economic interests while fostering alliances with powerful neighboring families and political figures to strengthen its grip on the territory. History Origins The mafia presence in Ramacca traces back to the 1950s with Calogero “Liddu” Conti emerging as its central figure. Described by key informants such as Antonino Calderone and Francesco Di Carlo, Conti was regarded as the head of the mafia in Ramacca and vice-representative of Cosa Nostra for the province of Catania. He also maintained significant ties with the Corleonesi, including Luciano Leggio, Toto Riina, and Bernardo Provenzano, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Caltagirone Mafia Family
The Caltagirone Mafia family, also known as the La Rocca Mafia clan, is a crime family of the Cosa Nostra based in the town of Caltagirone, Sicily. Founded in the early 1980s by Francesco "Ciccio" La Rocca, the Mafia clan rose to prominence through its involvement in various illicit activities, including extortion, drug trafficking, and political manipulation. History Until the early 1980s, criminal control over the city of Caltagirone and the surrounding area was exercised by the Catania Mafia family. However, the consolidation of a local criminal structure occurred in 1982, with Francesco "Ciccio" La Rocca, who succeeded in establishing an autonomous Mafia family rooted in the town of San Michele di Ganzaria, just outside Caltagirone. Francesco “Ciccio” La Rocca, born in 1938, became affiliated with Cosa Nostra in 1956 at the age of 18. From modest beginnings as a livestock farmer, he would rise to become an important Mafia boss. This move marked the beginning of local ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Catania Mafia Family
The Catania Mafia family, currently also referred to as the Santapaola-Ercolano Mafia clan, is a crime family of the Cosa Nostra that dominates organized crime activities in the city of Catania and its province. The Catania Mafia quietly evolved into one of the most powerful and violent factions within the Cosa Nostra. Rooted in family ties and political connections, the organization emerged from the shadows in the mid-20th century under the leadership of Giuseppe Calderone, only to become a militarized empire under his former ally and eventual successor, Benedetto Santapaola. What began as a local effort to control gambling dens and extort businesses soon escalated into a ruthless criminal dynasty, whose influence reached deep into the economic and institutional fabric of Catania. Today, the Catania Mafia remains a powerful force, still controlled by the Santapaola-Ercolano clan. The organization has adapted to modern times, maintaining influence through extortion, drug trafficki ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Metropolitan City Of Catania
The Metropolitan City of Catania () is a metropolitan city in Sicily, Italy. Its capital is the city of Catania. It replaced the province of Catania and comprises the city of Catania and 57 other communes. It has 1,068,563 inhabitants as of 2025, making it the 7th most populated metropolitan city in the country. History The Metropolitan City of Catania was first created by the reform of local authorities (Law 142/1990) and then established by the regional law 15 August 2015. Geography The metropolitan city borders with the Metropolitan City of Messina (the former province of Messina), the province of Enna, the province of Syracuse, the province of Ragusa and the province of Caltanissetta. Part of its territory includes the Metropolitan area of Catania. The metropolitan city faces the Ionian Sea to the east, the Metropolitan City of Messina to the north, the province of Enna and the province of Caltanissetta to the west, and the province of Siracusa and the province of R ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Province Of Caltanissetta
The province of Caltanissetta (; or ; officially ''libero consorzio comunale di Caltanissetta'') is a Provinces of Italy, province in the southern part of Sicily, Italy. Following the suppression of the Sicilian provinces, it was replaced in 2015 by the free municipal consortium of Caltanissetta (). The province contains 22 municipalities (''comuni''). Its coat of arms is a red crest and two green leaf stems on top with a laurel leaf on the right and a crown in the middle. The Salso, River Salso is the main river of the province; it is long and originates in the province of Palermo, and it flows into the Mediterranean in this province at the end of the Gulf of Gela. Bordering provinces and metropolitan cities In counterclockwise order: * Province of Agrigento, west * Metropolitan City of Palermo, north-west * Province of Enna, north * Metropolitan City of Catania, north-east * Province of Ragusa, east Geography The province extends to the central part of Sicily in the nort ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
