NApoli – Not just drugs, extortion, and territorial control. The Mazzarella clan's criminal universe also included cyber fraud.
This is revealed by wiretaps contained in the more than 25-page order signed by investigating judge Gianluigi Visco, which led to the arrest of XNUMX bosses and associates of the powerful criminal cartel, thanks to a comprehensive investigation by the Naples Flying Squad coordinated by the District Anti-Mafia Directorate.
Among the conversations intercepted by the investigators, a dialogue from August 3, 2023, stands out between Eduardo Buonerba, believed to be affiliated with the clan, and some interlocutors. At the center of the discussion was the so-called "credit card fraud", attributed to Raphael Caldarelli, grandson of Buonerba himself.
The tone is that of a clan grappling with internal disagreements caused by a deal gone wrong, which – according to what emerges – also resulted in the beatings of "boys" involved in the scam.
"Lello (Raffaele Caldarelli, ed.) came to me... about his nephew's money. The credit card issue," Buonerba says. The financial damage caused by the scam had led to retaliation and tensions among various figures in the criminal network.
To find a solution, Caldarelli had proposed to "take the money from Lulù", that is Vincenzo Caldarelli, another individual linked to the clan and active in the Case Nuove neighborhood.
The climate, however, remains tense. In another conversation on the same day, Buonerba discusses with Salvatore DiCaprio of the possibility of "fixing" the situation. A solution that would still have entailed a cost for the members involved: "You can fix it... but it costs us...", Buonerba admits.
The mediation attempt also involves well-known figures from the criminal environment, such as Anthony Bonavolta, said "Lift”, who according to DiCaprio would have “stepped in” to resolve the dispute. This interference, however, further complicates matters. Buonerba confides that he even had to turn off his phone to avoid further trouble: “It created a huge problem for me… I had to turn it off.”
The story ends with an attempt at clarification at the top, literally. "Let's go straight to the seventh floor," says DiCaprio, referring to the apartment of Luciano Barattolo, a historic exponent of the clan, in the building on Via Miccoli, in the Connonlo area, a symbolic place of the Mazzarella leadership.
This story, which emerged in the investigation that uncovered a deep-rooted and widespread criminal system, shows how the Mazzarella clan has been able to update its illicit profit tools, combining "traditional" activities with more modern ones such as digital fraud.
This confirms how the Camorra adapts to its environment, continuing to profit from every form of weakness: from poverty in neighborhoods to flaws in computer systems.
Article published on 12 July 2025 - 20:05
