The Naples District Anti-Mafia Directorate has closed its preliminary investigation into an alleged Camorra organization rooted in Cardito and surrounding municipalities, believed to be responsible for a complex system of extortion, drug trafficking, weapons management, and mafia-style territorial control.
The investigation, conducted by the Naples Public Prosecutor's Office and prosecutors Francesca De Renzis and Ilaria Sasso Del Verme, reconstructs the operations of an armed gang that, according to the prosecution, operated by exploiting the intimidating power of membership and the climate of subjugation and silence imposed on local traders and entrepreneurs.
The associative charge
The core of the prosecution's case is the crime of mafia-type association. The suspects are believed, in various capacities, to be promoters, organizers, and participants in a Camorra clan headed by Francesco Ullero, identified as the group's leader and promoter.
According to the DDA, the gang was stably organized, equipped with weapons, and structured around clearly defined roles. The goal was twofold: first, to gain control of economic activities through systematic extortion and drug dealing; second, to guarantee the livelihood of its members, including prisoners, and to ensure the group's impunity through a network of supporters and connivances.
Ullero is credited with the highest level of leadership: he allegedly issued directives, decided on criminal strategies, coordinated extortion, and organized drug trafficking, identifying drug dealing locations, the perpetrators, and the distribution of proceeds. According to the prosecution, the victims of extortion were sometimes summoned directly to his home.
Alongside the alleged clan leader, the investigation identifies individuals with organizational and operational roles. Some suspects are believed to have overseen the extortion operations and collected the money, feeding the common fund; others are believed to have been involved in managing the drug dealing centers, cutting and packaging the drugs, and storing and concealing the weapons.
A stable logistical structure would also emerge, with homes and commercial premises made available for operational meetings, drug storage, and meetings with members of other criminal groups in the area.
The disputed period runs from August 2021 to May 2022.
The extortion attempt at the betting shop
A second charge concerns attempted extortion aggravated by mafia methods. According to the Prosecutor's Office, one of the suspects allegedly showed up at a betting shop in Cardito, accosting the staff and then the owner with remarks deemed clearly intimidating and indicative of the clan's strength.
The action, aimed at enforcing the payment of sums of money for "protection," was apparently unsuccessful solely thanks to the victim's complaint. The incident, which occurred in August 2021, is believed to have served to fuel the Camorra organization's coffers and strengthen its dominance over the territory.
Extortion against a restaurateur
Another charge concerns extortion against the owner of a gourmet pizzeria in Cardito. In this case, the prosecution alleges extortion carried out using mafia-style methods, culminating in the handing over of a sum of money to the alleged clan leader.
Even in this episode, according to the DDA's reconstruction, the threats, although implicit, would have been capable of evoking personal and financial retaliation, inducing the victim to bend to the criminal group's demands.
The overall picture
Overall, the investigation outlines the existence of an organization capable of exercising widespread control over a portion of the territory north of Naples, through extortion, drug dealing, and weapons management, with a rigid internal structure and a clear division of tasks.
With the notice of conclusion of the preliminary investigation, the suspects now have the right to submit defense briefs, request questioning, or request further investigative measures, prior to the Prosecutor's Office's decisions regarding a possible request for indictment.
the defense team includes lawyers Teresa Frippa, Annibale Bove, Maria Di Cesare, Piero Vitale, Luca Camerlengo, Antonio Principe, Nicola Basile, Antonella Senatore, Giuseppe Gallo, Rocco Maria Spina, Dario Carmine Procentese, Arnaldo Lepore, Andrea Lampitelli, Anna Arcella, Nello Sgambato, Paolo Sperlongano and Maria Giovanna Ponticello.
List of suspects
AGAINST Vincenzo, born November 15, 1994
BARRA Nicola, born March 8, 1977
CAPASSO Antonietta, born August 29, 1965
CAPASSO Dario, born August 4, 1990
CHIANESE Rocco, born July 27, 1989
CIPOLLETTI Giovanni, born September 1, 1982
DE SIMONE Giuseppe, born November 9, 1980
IAVARONE Domenico, born September 8, 1994
MELE Enzo, born February 5, 1977
POLITO Carmine, born November 9, 1982
RONGA Antimo, born October 24, 1994
TORNATELLI Luigi, born February 22, 1968
ULLERO Carlo, born May 12, 1963
ULLERO Francesco, born September 10, 1954
(in the photo from top left: boss Francesco Ullero, Giuseppe De Simone, Enzo Mele, and Antonietta Capasso; bottom left: Nicola Barra, Domenico Iavarone, Vincenzo Avverso, and Carmine Polito)
Source EDITORIAL TEAM
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