Anti-mafia raid in the funeral sector: cartel checks on companies between Arzano and Naples linked to clans.

A comprehensive anti-mafia raid on the funeral services sector was carried out in recent days as part of the prevention efforts promoted by the Municipality of Arzano in collaboration with the Carabinieri and the Local Police.

The operation, born from the synergy between the municipal administration led by Mayor Giuseppe Vitagliano, the Information Unit of the Carabinieri Group of Castello di Cisterna, and the Local Police Command of Arzano led by Colonel Luigi Maiello, involved a logistics hub located in Naples, on Traversa Nuova del Campo.

The Investigative Unit of the Naples Local Police, coordinated by Major Gabriele Salomone, who oversaw the inspection activities and operational surveys, also participated in the checks.

Multiple companies on the same site

The investigations revealed the presence and operation of several funeral homes, formally registered to different individuals and with different offices, but in reality concentrated within the same building complex and operating in Arzano and surrounding municipalities.
According to the investigations, the companies shared funeral vehicles, employees, operational facilities, and company premises. This situation prompted investigators to delve deeper into the relationships between the various businesses to verify the actual managerial autonomy of the companies involved.

The inequality of resources and personnel has been considered by the inspection bodies to be of particular concern from the perspective of market transparency and fair competition.

The anomalies that emerged during the checks

During the cross-checks, further elements deemed worthy of further investigation emerged.
These included the use of drivers without licenses and with criminal records, as well as the presence of the former legal representative of the Scafuro & Ferone company, a company previously banned by anti-mafia law and subsequently closed.

The former administrator himself is implicated in legal proceedings relating to the alleged false certification of anti-mafia qualifications, which, according to the prosecution, was issued in 2019. This incident is among the incidents cited in the documents that led to the dissolution of the Municipality of Arzano due to Camorra infiltration.

Insights into alleged links with the clans

The investigative activities also led to the identification of individuals linked to family and interpersonal relationships with organized crime circles in the area north of Naples, including individuals believed to be linked to the Ferone clan of Casavatore and relatives of prominent members of the local Camorra.

These very elements have led to the launch of further investigations aimed at verifying any attempts at infiltration into the funeral services sector, a sector historically considered particularly exposed to the interests of the clans.

Documents sent to the Prosecutor's Office and Prefecture

At the end of the operation, all the collected documentation and inspection findings were forwarded to the judicial authorities, the Naples Prefecture, and the relevant administrative offices.

The investigations will now determine whether there were any instances of evasion of industry regulations, possible fictitious intermediaries between the companies involved, and any interests linked to organized crime.
The initiative is part of broader strategies to combat mafia infiltration in local authorities and the most vulnerable economic sectors, confirming the strengthening of institutional monitoring activities in the northern Naples area.

PB