Italian judge sentences AC Milan, Inter ultras in case linked to mafia infiltration
MILAN, June 17 (Reuters) - An Italian judge on Tuesday sentenced 16 Inter and AC Milan hardline 'ultra' soccer fans to prison terms ranging from two to 10 years for crimes including murder, extortion and criminal association with links to the 'Ndrangheta mafia.
The verdicts followed a fast-track trial held behind closed doors in a high security court attached to Milan's San Vittore prison. The case resulted from the arrest of 19 people last September following an investigation by Milan prosecutors and the office of the national anti-mafia prosecutor.
A second trial, which involves three other AC Milan ultras, will deliver its verdict on June 19.
Prosecutors argued that the ultra groups acted as "private militias" with criminal influence far beyond the stadium, alleging infiltration by both the mafia and far-right extremist groups.
Around 200 AC Milan fans demonstrated outside the court in solidarity with their fellow ultras before the verdicts were handed down.
Judge Rossana Mongiardo sentenced Andrea Beretta, former leader of Inter Milan's ultras, to 10 years in prison. He had confessed to the murder in September of Antonio Bellocco, a leading figure in the 'Ndrangheta and a fellow Inter ultra.
After his arrest, Beretta became a state witness and cooperated with investigators, contributing to a lower sentence than might otherwise be applied in a murder case.
Luca Lucci, the historic leader of AC Milan's ultras, who is also under investigation in a parallel case for international drug trafficking, was sentenced to 10 years in prison plus four years of probation on charges of criminal association and attempted murder.
At the end of the trial, the defence lawyers had dismissed the prosecution's charges as "a house of cards".
In a fast-track trial, cases are heard by a judge behind closed doors without witnesses. Defendants get their sentences reduced by a third if they agree to the process.
The judge also ordered an immediately enforceable provision of 50,000 euros ($58,000) each payable to Inter and Milan, plus an additional 20,000 euros to Italy's Serie A soccer league. Any further damages will be assessed separately in civil proceedings.
Leaders of the ultras, together with the 'Ndrangheta mafia, ran ticket scams and protection rackets on drink stands and car parks around the city's San Siro stadium, which both clubs share, prosecutors said.
According to investigators, the case discovered in Milan is not the only one in Italy where crime bosses and the far-right are tapping into the muscle and money-spinning activities of hardline 'ultra' soccer fans.
Similar issues have been uncovered in Greece where police have made dozens of arrests as they investigate the alleged links between violent sports fans and criminal gangs.
($1 = 0.8657 euros)
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
an hour ago
- The Sun
BBC and TNT Sports ‘snub Boris Becker for Wimbledon pundit role' even though tennis icon can return to UK after prison
BORIS BECKER has reportedly been snubbed by broadcasters for a role as a pundit at Wimbledon. The tennis icon can apply to re-enter the UK following his prison sentence for hiding millions in assets and loans to avoid paying debts. 2 2 Becker, 57, was released after eight months of his 30-month sentence in December 2022. The Daily Mail have reported that he would be eligible to apply to come back to the UK through the Home Office as per the terms of his conviction and deportation. Despite being able to potentially return, he has not been offered a role for Wimbledon. The report claims that the BBC have "resisted the temptation" to bring the German back into the fold. This is despite the 2025 edition of the tournament marking the 40th anniversary of his first Wimbledon title. Becker was aged just 17 when he became the men's singles champion in 1985. He had been a regular member of the BBC's tennis coverage since 2002. He has returned to TV screens since his release from prison, as he was a pundit for TNT Sports during the French Open earlier this month. However, it is understood that TNT have "no plans" to have Becker represent them at Wimbledon. Meanwhile, Becker is releasing a book later this year about his time behind bars. He has previously spoken about his potential return to SW19. He said: "I'm working hard with the authorities to have all the applications ready to be back for next year. "I miss Wimbledon. It's part of my life. It's in my DNA. "I don't think anyone alive knows Wimbledon as well as I do. But let's see who I'm working for there. "After October 2024, I can be given permission from the Home Office. They decide, I don't decide." The BBC will unveil their pundit line-up next week, but it will not include Nick Kyrgios after he was AXED.
Times
2 hours ago
- Times
Katie Boulter wins after revealing ‘disgusting' online abuse
Katie Boulter has experienced an outpouring of support from other players after revealing the extent of the abuse she receives on social media. Boulter, the British No2 and world No39, spoke out about the death threats and toxic online comments that have been directed at her and her family, saying that the abuse came mainly from gamblers who had lost money on her matches. Her fellow players have related their own experiences and joined her in demanding further action from the authorities. In an interview with the BBC, Boulter gave examples of the 'disgusting' abusive messages, including one telling her to buy 'candles and a coffin for your entire family', with a reference to her 'grandmother's grave if she's not dead by tomorrow', one stating she should 'go to hell' as she had cost the perpetrator money from a bet, and another stating 'hope you get cancer'. The WTA and the ITF, the governing bodies for the women's game, introduced a service 18 months ago called Threat Matrix, aimed at protecting players and their families from targeted online hate, and that service has revealed the degree to which unwanted messages come from disenchanted gamblers. BBC SPORT In 2024, 458 players were targeted with direct abuse or threats and five players received 26 per cent of the total abuse identified. Angry gamblers were calculated to be responsible for 40 per cent of abusive messages in that 12-month period. 'A lot of comments are very emotional responses and a lot of them reference gambling, saying you lost them a lot of money,' Boulter, 28, said after winning her first-round match at the Nottingham Open. 'I do find a lot of it is based on that. It's a new area that we're trying to improve. 'I'm past the point of worrying what people actually say to me, it's more about stopping it from happening. It's so important for young girls to not be so focused on social media, to not care as much what people think. It can be pretty tough as a young woman and someone trying to find their way. My goal was to raise awareness, because there's a lot of it.' Boulter's fellow British players at Nottingham identified with the problems she had spoken about. Fran Jones, who caused a surprise by beating Harriet Dart 7-5, 6-4, welcomed the subject being brought to wider attention. 'Every player experiences it. Some probably deal with it better than others,' Jones said. 'I know Boults has struggled badly with some of the stuff. I think even here she had a difficult experience at one point. A couple of the other higher-profile British players have struggled with that sort of thing as well. I know WTA are trying to use Threat Matrix to counter it, but these people find ways around the [prohibited] wording. I don't think it's an easy fix.' Dart expressed exasperation that social media companies were not doing more to identify the perpetrators of online abuse. 'What's quite scary is that we think this is normal because the amount of abuse we all get is pretty mind-blowing,' she said. 'This isn't just a tennis issue, it's a global issue. We live in the 21st century and how we're not IDing people [who send abuse] on social media, it's pretty horrific.' There was widespread support for Boulter from across the sport. 'I looked on my phone this morning and there were hundreds of messages of people reacting,' she said. 'Every person was telling me to disregard it, how much they appreciate me bringing this subject to light. I don't think people are aware of it, how much it happens to players.' The Arsenal and England Women striker Alessia Russo said Boulter's experience was a familiar one and added that she will step away from social media during this summer's European Championship. 'Every player might have a different story about that side of the game but it's one that can be really damaging,' Russo, 26, said. 'I have faced it in the past and I think most players here have. When I was younger I probably got sucked into it more. I read it more than I should have and listened to it more than I should have.' On the court, Boulter raced to a 6-2, 6-2 victory in only 1hr 14min over Lulu Sun, the world No44 from New Zealand. Chasing a third consecutive Nottingham Open title, at a venue only a short drive away from her family home in Leicestershire, Boulter was quickly into her stride, winning the first four games against Sun, who beat Emma Raducanu on her way to the quarter-finals at Wimbledon last year. In the second round she will face Sonay Kartal, the British No3 and world No50, who enjoyed a comfortable 6-3, 6-4 win against Leolia Jeanjean, the world No94 from France.
Telegraph
3 hours ago
- Telegraph
No jail sentence is long enough for the cowards who covered up for the Pakistani rape gangs
Thank heavens for Louise Casey. A report this week by the Baroness of Awkward Truths, which found that public bodies covered up horrific evidence about Pakistani-origin rape gangs 'for fear of appearing racist', has forced another humiliating reversal on Sir Keir Starmer. The smell of burning rubber is never far from our handbrake-turn Prime Minister, who has now accepted Casey's recommendation for a national inquiry. He had insisted that wanting such an investigation into those heinous crimes, the worst scandal in British history no less, was evidence you were marginally to the Right of Genghis Khan, or possibly even Tony Blair. Some 364 MPs shamefully voted against a statutory inquiry, including Safeguarding Minister Jess Phillips who couldn't do enough for the traumatised victims until she stabbed them in the front. Baroness Casey's findings brought back an emotional encounter I had as I was leaving an event earlier this year. 'Forgive me for asking, Miss Pearson, but what happened to the British men?' The silver-haired American in sports jacket and tie in front of me had a concerned look on his face. I had just appeared on a panel discussing the Pakistani rape gangs chaired by Mark Steyn, who had campaigned relentlessly for their victims when he was a presenter on GB News. Survivors Sammy Woodhouse and Samantha Smith, my fellow panellists, had told the international audience about the ordeal they, and thousands of other British girls, had lived through. Not just being raped and tortured as children, but later stigmatised as prostitutes, criminals and liars in their twenties when they finally plucked up courage to speak out. Sammy recalled that police in Rotherham colluded openly with her abuser, Arshid Hussain, buying his drugs and tipping him off when he was about to have his collar felt. When officers found Sammy in bed with 'Ash', a 24-year-old British Pakistani, they arrested her for possessing an offensive weapon (which was his). The serial rapist with a rumoured string of more than 50 under-age girls in his highly-profitable harem was not held by police. Sammy was 14 at the time and pregnant. Still a child, then, although childhood and the bubbly, bright little girl who dreamed of being a professional dancer were long gone. After those two brave, articulate women up on stage finished telling their stories of almost surreal depravity, Steyn's audience – Aussies, Kiwis, Canadians, Americans, Brits – sat in horrified silence. Not quite silence; a lot of people were crying. A question hung in the incredulous air. How could the UK have allowed such monstrosities to happen to its kids and then allow it to be covered up for years until victims-turned-campaigners, like the two Samanthas, fought tooth and nail to bring it to public attention? Clearly, that's what was bothering the American. He was desperate to understand why British men had not protected their girls. 'See, where I come from, if they'd done that we'd have picked up our guns and…' I nodded. (To be fair, in the UK, when the Pakistani groomers briefly targeted Sikh girls, outraged Sikh men picked up baseball bats and taught them a lesson.) What to say? How do you account for a warped ideology that has taken hold in your country, a fatal blend of cultural incompatibility on the one hand and institutional cowardice and fear of 'Islamophobia' on the other? 'Many of the girls were in care or they came from troubled homes, so often they didn't have fathers to help them,' I began falteringly. 'Sammy's dad did try to rescue his daughter from a house where she was trafficked and police threatened to arrest him, not the groomers.' 'What the hell?!,' exclaimed the American. 'Exactly. What the hell. It's really to do with political correctness,' I went on. 'The Labour Party, which ran most of the towns where the grooming gangs operated, became dependent on Muslim votes and they were very reluctant to have the Pakistani community criticised. So the white, working-class girls (' who must have been asking for it') were not believed even though what was happening to them was evil. And anyone who dared to speak up for them was damned as 'racist', which was hugely damaging obviously, so mainly people stayed silent. Essentially, white kids were sacrificed on the altar of multiculturalism. It was Votes for Girls, that was the deal.' (Revealingly, in an interview for this week's Planet Normal, Sammy Woodhouse told me that her abuser, 'Ash', was fully aware of the protected status he enjoyed as a British Pakistani Muslim, and happily exploited it. 'I'll just play the race card,' he used to say.) One thing I didn't mention to that American guy was the complicit role played by the media, notably the BBC, and others in the metropolitan bubble. Until 2013, when Andrew Norfolk of The Times revealed Sammy Woodhouse's story (with characteristic courage the Yorkshire lass waived her anonymity), the overwhelming evidence that Pakistani Muslim men preyed on 11-year-olds whom they disdained as 'white slags' was simply not admissible in polite society. (Even the heroic Norfolk, who sadly died a few weeks ago, initially held back on publishing because he feared the story was catnip to the far-Right). But Sammy had lifted the lid on child sex exploitation cases in her home town, prompting the Alexis Jay report which identified at least 1,400 victims in Rotherham alone. I vividly recall some of the hostile media reaction two years later to a previous take-no-prisoners Louise Casey report into opportunity and integration. The one in which the Baroness criticised public institutions that 'have ignored or even condoned regressive, divisive and harmful cultural and religious practices for fear of being branded racist or Islamophobic'. The Rotherham child abuse scandal, Casey concluded, was 'a catastrophic example of authorities turning a blind eye to harm in order to avoid the need to confront a particular community'. In the impeccably-liberal Prospect magazine, reviewer Oliver Kamm shuddered fastidiously. He condemned Casey's striking honesty as a 'vapid and ill-conceived intervention' which might have been designed to appeal to – quick, pass the smelling salts! – Farage and anti-immigrant tendencies. 'It warns that segregation and social exclusion are at 'worrying' levels,' Kamm complained. 'And it does so… without indicating what it would accept as countervailing evidence.' Such wilful blindness by members of a liberal elite to the problems posed by 'a particular community' continues to this day. Not long ago, in an interview for The News Agents podcast, former BBC maven Emily Maitlis attacked Rupert Lowe (ex-Reform MP, now an independent who has set up a separate inquiry with Sammy Woodhouse) for obsessing about Pakistani grooming gangs 'because probably you are racist and you don't believe there are white perpetrators'. It is Maitlis's sneering brand of superior ignorance, her arrogant stigmatising of critics of failed integration, that created the climate that allowed Pakistani perpetrators to continue violating the Samanthas and tens of thousands of other young girls with almost total impunity. Racism being a far worse crime than child-rape in the best circles, darling. The Home Office data which Maitlis drew on – saying most group-based child sexual offenders are white – always seemed absurd. (A quick look at the police mugshots for most grooming-gang trials quickly told you that white men, although heavily represented among paedophiles, were not the major villains in the trafficking of pre-teen and teenage girls.) How marvellous to see our Islamist-friendly Home Office thoroughly debunked in this new report from Baroness Casey. 'This audit found it hard to understand how the Home Office [2020] paper reached that conclusion, which does not seem to be evidenced in research or data.' Oops. Astoundingly, in our interview, Sammy Woodhouse recalled that 'in council safeguarding meetings, when I was a child who was being raped by a 24-year-old Pakistani man, there was an anti-racism co-ordinator'. That tells you everything you need to know about the priority of Labour authorities – and it sure as hell wasn't protecting innocent little girls. Keir Starmer must have had high hopes that Louise Casey would save him from the acute political embarrassment of the authorities in Muslim-voting Labour areas coming under scrutiny. (She had indicated she opposed a national inquiry.) What Labour really fears, I suspect, is that the discovery of a widespread cover-up of the industrial-scale rape of British children will pose existential questions about the ability of certain British Pakistani men to ever integrate into a society where women and girls are created equal. That's what Sammy Woodhouse thinks – she says any dual-national child-rapists must be deported. And which of us would disagree? 'I don't think this inquiry is going to get the justice that we need,' Sammy told me, 'because it's Labour investigating Labour. They're just chucking this out there to keep us quiet.' I pray that she's wrong, I pray that all her passionate campaigning for the ones who couldn't fight as she has fought pays off. Let's hope we will need to build new jails to house all the cowards who covered up for the rape gangs. Police, councillors, social workers, MPs, community leaders. Grown men who allowed little girls to endure such fathomless depravity. At least they will be sleeping less well tonight thanks to the Baroness of Awkward Truths.
