At the November 17 hearing in the ongoing trial before the Torre Annunziata Court against six defendants accused of having managed the criminal date trade for years, the Prosecutor's Office concluded its closing argument with requests for very heavy sentences.
This is the proceeding that, from December 2021 to today, has engaged the panel in 36 hearings, in an attempt to reconstruct the network that allegedly devastated a valuable stretch of the Sorrento Peninsula in order to fuel the illegal market for the most destructive mollusc in the Mediterranean.
The prosecutor's requests
According to the prosecution's reconstruction, the organization's leader was a chief promoter and organizer, for whom the prosecutor requested a 10-year and 10-month prison sentence for criminal association with environmental aggravating circumstances, environmental disaster, receiving stolen date shells, and trafficking in harmful food substances.
For four other defendants, considered the "operational teams" of the date harvesters, a sentence of 9 years and 2 months each was requested. They were allegedly responsible for mechanically crushing the rocks, uprooting the dates and irreversibly damaging the marine habitat.
Five years, however, is the sentence sought against the "intermediary" who – according to the prosecution – handled the commercial relationships between illegal fishermen and buyers in Puglia, ensuring a constant flow of illicit goods.
The judicial precedent: already 15 convictions
Today's trial is only the latest strand of a major investigation launched in 2016.
Already in 2022, twelve members of the same organization had been sentenced to six years each under a summary trial. Subsequently, on appeal, they obtained a redetermination of their sentences through a concordat agreement, formalized on May 23, 2025.
Another affiliate had been sentenced on September 28, 2023 to 2 years and 20 days: his trial is currently in the second degree.
Two other defendants, acting as intermediaries and regular buyers, had chosen to plea bargain (2 years and 4 months) in 2022.
The accusation: “A stable and professional organization”
The Prosecutor's Office's investigations have confirmed the existence of a full-fledged criminal organization composed of 21 people, operating since July 2016 between Castellammare di Stabia, Vico Equense, Sorrento, Meta, Piano di Sorrento, and Massa Lubrense.
A structured group, with roles and shifts, dedicated resources, specialized fishermen, and a widespread sales network. The business was twofold:
date shells (Lithophaga lithophaga), the collection, possession and sale of which have been prohibited since 1998;
Rovigliano clams, contaminated with hydrocarbons and heavy metals because they were fished in the prohibited area at the mouth of the Sarno River, which is highly polluted and dangerous to public health.
The environmental disaster: "destroyed ecosystem, irreversible damage"
The picture painted by the zoology, ecology, and geology experts who assisted the Prosecutor's Office is dramatic.
Between July 2016 and November 2020, the actions of the date harvesters are said to have caused an environmental disaster along over six kilometers of coastline: Capo di Sorrento, Banco di Santa Croce, Punta Scutolo, Punta Campanella, La Solara, Le Mortelle, Vervece, Scoglio dell'Isca and other protected sites of the Punta Campanella Marine Protected Area and the Banco di Santa Croce Limited Beach Area.
The limestone rocks were crushed with double-ended hammers to extract the mollusks. The result:
total destruction of benthic organisms up to 10-15 meters deep;
irreversible alterations of the marine ecosystem, with desertification of areas of high biodiversity;
permanent loss of the geological asset, with the death of millions of organisms and microorganisms;
protected habitat compromised, in violation of the Habitats Directive and the Natura 2000 Network.
The quantities seized
During the investigations, impressive quantities of illegal products were seized:
2.508,9 kg of sea dates;
675 kg of contaminated clams.
The final stage of the process
The Court adjourned the proceedings until December 22, 2025, when the defense will speak and the long-awaited ruling will be issued. This outcome could close one of the most serious chapters of environmental devastation in the Mediterranean.
Changes and revisions to this article
- Article updated on 18/11/2025 at 12:58 - Typo corrected
- Article updated on 18/11/2025 at 13:09 - Typo corrected
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