Scafati – Despite his 76 years of age and the special surveillance regime that officially classifies him as a "drug dealer," Mario Mainenti has never abandoned the drug trafficking sector.
This is what emerged from the latest raid by Carabinieri officers from the Scafati station, who raided the home of a longtime local crime boss. Upon entering, the officers caught the elderly boss and his wife, Fortunata Albano, busy packaging 28 grams of cocaine.
The substance, placed on the table, was ready to be divided into doses and released into the Scafatese drug market, a market that Mainenti would continue to manage despite his previous convictions and his residence permit.
The top role
Investigators consider Mainenti a leading figure in the Agro underworld, a drug-dealing colonel with a decades-long criminal career. His arrest in flagrante delicto seemed to confirm the investigative hypothesis of a still-thriving and centralized drug dealing ring under his direction.
For the Carabinieri, the discovery of the drug in that manner represented clear evidence of a violation of the special surveillance requirements and of the seventy-six-year-old's persistent social danger.
The twist in the courtroom
The case immediately went before a judge for a summary trial. The Public Prosecutor, emphasizing Mainenti's criminal record and the risk of reoffending, requested pre-trial detention for both spouses.
However, the defense line supported by attorney Gennaro De Gennaro reversed the scenario. Despite the seriousness of the evidence and the profile of the "special surveillance" suspect, the judge did not grant the prosecutor's request.
At the conclusion of the validation hearing, both Mario Mainenti and his wife were released. The couple will now face trial at liberty, a decision that surprised investigators given the caliber of the individuals involved.
Source EDITORIAL TEAM
Comments (1)
This article is very interesting, but I don't understand how someone so elderly can continue to engage in illicit business. I hope the authorities do more to stop this dangerous situation.