On the morning of September 6, the Carabinieri of Avellino knocked on the door of the Pagnozzi house, to execute a precautionary order intended for Paolo, son of Gennaro, known as the Jaguar, placed under house arrest at his home in San Martino Valle Caudina with a ban on communicating with people other than his family.
The second son of the deceased Pagnozzi Gennaro was charged with the role of instigator of the crimes of usury and extortion aggravated by the mafia method and by having favored the Pagnozzi Clan, of which, according to the District Anti-Mafia Directorate of Naples, Paolo Pagnozzi would be the regent.
Late this afternoon, however, the Court of Appeal of Naples, President Maria Vittoria Foschini, accepted the arguments of the defense team (lawyers Giuseppe Milazzo of the Nola bar, Immacolata Romano of the Naples bar and Giovanni Adamo of the Avellino bar) aimed at demonstrating the absolute non-involvement of the alleged boss of the Sammartinese underworld by highlighting that the wiretaps between Paolo and his uncle Gerardo Marino (assisted by lawyers Giuseppe Milazzo and Giovanni Adamo), imprisoned for these facts and then placed under house arrest by the same Judge following the preliminary hearing, although suggestive, could not in any way be considered circumstantial evidence to be used to support a precautionary measure.
During the long hearing held this morning before the Naples Court of Liberty, after the defense discussions and the filing of copious defense briefs, to which the Anti-Mafia Public Prosecutor Francesco Raffaele also replied, the panel in charge reserved its decision, filing its response only a few hours ago.
Now the charges against Paolo Pagnozzi are even more shaky and hang on a very thin thread consisting of the few phone calls in which he spoke with his uncle Gerardo Marino and other members of his family.
The dismay of Pagnozzi's lawyers, who claimed there was an absolute lack of serious evidence, in the face of three years of investigations involving telephone and environmental interceptions, searches and failed seizures, shadowing and statements made by the alleged offended parties, who they said were harassed and threatened by loan sharks, found safe refuge in the order for immediate release.
The question now is whether, after this fiasco, the Public Prosecutor's Office will intend to continue with a free-for-all trial or take a step back and ask for the case to be shelved.
Article published on 15 September 2023 - 21:38
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