2024-04-15 17:30:25
(ANSA) – CATANIA, APR 15 – Over 300 carabinieri from the provincial command of Catania are carrying out in the provinces of the Etna capital, Syracuse and Teramo an order of personal precautionary measures issued by the investigating judge against 17 people under investigation for various reasons mafia association, trafficking and dealing of narcotic substances, disturbed freedom of auctions aggravated by the mafia method and corruption. The investigation – called ‘Athena’, coordinated by the District Attorney’s Office and conducted by the Carabinieri of the Paternò Company – was started after the complaint of a local entrepreneur threatened by some mafiosi to have him withdraw a plot of land from auction. What emerged from the investigative activity, in addition to the criminal dynamics and the top elements of the Morabito-Rapisarda group operating in Paternò and attributable to the Catania Laudani clan, were also the interests of the organization in the systematic control of judicial auctions of properties in the provinces of Catania and Syracuse . The gang involved the ‘physical’ intervention of its associates during the sales procedures to remove the participants, even with violence, and guaranteed its ‘customers’ the purchase or repossession of the goods. The ‘successful’ auctions would have brought the clan substantial profits, also shared with the Assinata group, a branch of the Santapaola-Ercolano family of Cosa Nostra of Catania, which certifies a ‘cohabitation’ pact between the clans. Also involved in one of the piloted auctions was a lawyer from Syracuse who, as sales delegate, during a judicial enforcement procedure apparently favored the awarding of an apartment to the son of the individual who had turned to the mafia association. The illicit activities of the Morabito-Rapisarda also include trafficking and retail dealing of drugs. During the investigations, the Carabinieri seized a total of approximately 71 kilograms of narcotic substances, including marijuana and cocaine, and arrested eight people in flagrante delicto. (HANDLE).
2024-04-15 17:30:25