Basilischi
The Basilischi (Italian: [baziˈliski]) is an organized crime group based in Basilicata, Southern Italy, officially formed in 1994 by Giovanni Luigi Cosentino in Potenza. According to the national anti-mafia prosecutor's office, the areas with Basilischi strongholds are those of Policoro, Montalbano Jonico, Pisticci, Scanzano Jonico, the Val d'Agri and the Vulture region.[1][2][3][4]
On 22 April 1999, 84 orders for pre-trial custody were issued by the Prosecutor's Office in Potenza. That started what became known as the "maxi-trial", which jailed the main figures of the Basilischi and demonstrated their existence and strength in Basilicata.[5] The maxi-trial concluded in 2007, with a 700-page summation by the judges and the sentencing of 26 people for mafia association to a total of 242 years in prison. In a ruling dated 30 October 2012, the Court of Appeal of Potenza confirmed the existence of the Basilischi.[6]
The conviction of many high-profile members of the clan caused the group to become fractured and fall further under the influence of the more powerful Calabrian-based 'Ndrangheta.[5]
References
- ^ "Antonio De Lisa- I Basilischi lucani – La quinta mafia d'Italia".
- ^ "Ascesa e caduta dei Basilischi, la mafia italiana che voleva imitare la 'ndrangheta". 14 June 2016.
- ^ "Mafia: la Basilicata è sempre assediata". 2017.
- ^ "Mafia, 'ndrangheta, camorra: la mappa dei clan". 5 February 2015.
- ^ a b Sergi, Anna. "Fifth Column: Italy's Fifth Mafia, the Basilischi".
- ^ La mafia dell'antimafia prima parte pag. 646