Camorra, the DIA's warning: "The young people are ready for war for power"

The Camorra of today in Naples and its province, photographed by the DIA half-yearly report (January-June 2023), reveals a heterogeneous and evolving panorama.

The six-monthly report of the Anti-Mafia Investigation Directorate (DIA) outlines a complex and multifaceted picture of the Camorra in the period January-June 2023. The Campania criminal organization presents itself as a multifaceted entity, composed of different entities with different characteristics and modus operandi.

Large organizations persist but the younger generation is making its way, increasingly ruthless and always ready to use weapons to conquer space and neighborhoods and therefore business.

Naples and Caserta: The provinces of Naples and Caserta remain the bastions of the Camorra, with the presence of historic clans such as the Secondigliano Alliance and the Mazzarella Clan in Naples, and the Casalesi cartel in the Caserta area.

These organizations pursue classic mafia interests (drug trafficking, extortion, usury) but also make use of sophisticated strategies of infiltration into the socio-economic fabric.

The new generation and the new challenges

Youth violence: A worrying aspect is the increase in youth violence within Camorra feuds, with the use of weapons of war even by minors.
New Frontiers of Crime: Clans are showing increasing interest in high-profit, low-risk illicit activities, such as cryptocurrency trafficking and cybercrime.
The other provinces of Campania

Salerno: The province of Salerno presents a more fragmented criminal landscape, with the presence of local groups linked to the Campania and Calabrian clans, but also of new organisations dedicated to drug dealing and predatory crimes.

Benevento and Avellino: Benevento and Avellino are characterized by family-based clans active in drug trafficking and extortion against local businesses.
Infiltration into the economy:

Money laundering and illegal holdings: The DIA highlights the use of increasingly sophisticated methods for money laundering and the development of illegal holdings, especially by the Caserta clans. A worrying picture, but not without hope.

Despite the complexity and pervasiveness of the Camorra, the DIA Report also highlights the commitment of law enforcement in combating this organization. Continuous investigative and repressive operations have led to the arrest of numerous mafia members and the seizure of illicit assets.

The fight against Camorra requires synergic action between law enforcement, the judiciary and civil society, with particular attention to young people and the most vulnerable areas.

The DIA Report offers an alarming picture, but not without food for thought to identify more effective contrast strategies and to promote a culture of legality.