Drug dealing ring dismantled in Berlingieri district: 11 arrests

Another major blow to the Camorra in northern Naples. Today, the State Police, acting on behalf of the District Anti-Mafia Directorate, executed a precautionary custody order issued by the investigating judge of the Naples Court against eleven people.

The suspects are held responsible, to varying degrees, for conspiracy to traffic drugs, aggravated by mafia methods, as well as drug dealing and extortion.

The operation is the result of an investigation conducted by the Secondigliano Police Station and the Naples Flying Squad.

The "historic" drug dealing square in the Berlingieri district

At the center of the investigation is the Berlingieri district, considered for years one of the main drug dealing hubs in the northern suburbs. In particular, investigators have reconstructed the activities of the so-called "111 square," a key hub for cocaine purchases.

According to what emerged, the group operated a structured retail sales system, both stationary and mobile. The drugs were sold directly on the street or delivered on demand, through a telephone booking system.

A widespread organization, capable of guaranteeing continuity and discretion in supplies.

The connection with the clans and the "tax" system

The investigations highlighted the strong link between the group and the clans of the area, in particular the Vanella Grassi clan and the Licciardi clan, historically hegemonic in Secondigliano.

The system also included a sort of "tax" imposed on drug dealers: the group was in fact obliged to obtain supplies from the clan, periodically paying money.

According to investigators, the head of the structure is Luigi Carella, known as “'a gallina,” a figure considered to be a point of reference in the organization.

An episode reconstructed by investigators is emblematic: one of the affiliates was reportedly picked up and beaten for not having paid the debt for the drugs he had received on time.

A business worth hundreds of thousands of euros

The drug dealing hub allegedly generated approximately €280 in revenue a year. This money was used not only to fuel drug trafficking, but also to support the clan's coffers and support inmates and their families.

An economic circuit typical of Camorra organizations, which reinvest illicit profits to strengthen their control over the territory.

Control of the territory and occupied gardens

The group had effectively taken over the neighborhood, even using public spaces such as the gardens on Via Monte Faito to hide drugs.

An occupation that took areas away from the citizens, transforming them into drug warehouses, with serious risks also for residents and children, who could have come into contact with doses and "packages" of cocaine.

Thirty years of activity dismantled

According to investigators, the targeted area was a drug dealing hub that had been operating for about thirty years. It was a deeply rooted operation, capable of surviving over time thanks to an organized system of sales, control, and counter-surveillance.

The precautionary measures carried out today therefore represent a turning point for the neighborhood, with the aim of interrupting one of the longest-running criminal activities in the area.

Precedents: The investigative pressure on Secondigliano

The operation is part of a broader repressive strategy that has severely impacted the clans in the northern area of ​​Naples in recent years.

Numerous raids had already targeted the branches of the criminal system linked to the Secondigliano Alliance, with investigations that have dismantled the drug dealing networks and the leaders of the groups linked to the Licciardis and the Vanella Grassis.

An ongoing offensive aimed at dismantling not only the top brass but also the local operational structures, such as drug dealing centers, the true economic engine of the organizations.