Naples – Nicola Ferraro, a Caserta businessman and former regional councilor for the Udeur party, has been released. He was arrested on September 9th as part of a wide-ranging investigation by the Naples District Anti-Mafia Directorate. The Court of Review overturned the pre-trial detention order issued by the Naples preliminary investigations judge, ordering his release.
The investigation and the arrest
According to the prosecution, Ferraro was allegedly at the center of a corruption scheme aimed at rigging the awarding of waste management contracts in several municipalities in Campania and other regions, including Sicily.
LaDda he believed him capable of influencing public officials and local administrators, guaranteeing votes and contracts on behalf of the Casalesi clan.
The precedent with justice
Ferraro is no stranger to courtrooms. He previously served a sentence for external association with the Camorra, accused of collusion with the powerful Caserta clan.
According to anti-mafia magistrates, despite having already served his sentence, the entrepreneur continued to operate in the same way, maintaining a role as a hub between business, politics, and organized crime.
The judges' decisions
The prosecution's case, however, had already been partially scaled down by the same investigating judge who, last September, had not found Ferraro guilty of mafia association or the aggravating circumstance of mafia association for the other crimes contested.
It might interest you
The Naples Prosecutor's Office had appealed that decision, but in the meantime the Review Board overturned the precautionary measure, annulling it entirely, probably due to the lack of serious evidence of guilt.
The outcome was different for the other businessman involved, Giuseppe Rea, who was given a lighter sentence: from prison to house arrest.
The other figures involved
Giuseppe Guida, mayor of Arienzo (Caserta) and provincial coordinator of Forza Italia, also ended up in the investigation. He was arrested last September 9th and placed under house arrest because he was considered an integral part of the so-called "Ferraro system".
He, too, was released from prison. Meanwhile, in the municipality of Arienzo, the Prefecture of Caserta has sent an Access Commission to investigate possible Camorra infiltration within the local administration.
Future scenarios
The legal case is far from over. The Anti-Mafia Prosecutor's Office has already appealed the preliminary hearing judge's decision to exclude the mafia-related aggravating circumstance, and a hearing has yet to be scheduled. Several investigations remain ongoing, but for now, Nicola Ferraro, assisted by lawyers Mario Griffo and Giuseppe Stellato, has been released.
Comments (1)
It's interesting to see how certain legal cases are resolved, but I don't understand how an entrepreneur with such a past can be released so easily. People deserve more clarity on these legal processes and the judges' decisions.