Italian police arrest 24 suspected mafiosi over Naples parking protection racket
Italian police have arrested 24 suspected members of the Camorra – the notorious Neapolitan mafia – on charges of drug trafficking, arms possession and running an illegal parking attendant scheme.
According to investigators, several of those arrested on Monday were reportedly affiliated with well-known Camorra families operating in the Fuorigrotta and Chiaia districts of Naples. Some were already serving jail sentences.
Investigators said the Troncone and Frizziero clans, in addition to involvement in the drug trade and cigarette smuggling, were behind a parking scheme in which drivers felt compelled by 'attendants' to pay extra fees in order to ensure their vehicles remain untouched when parked.
The practice is widespread in southern Italy and, according to a report by the Greens and Left Alliance political grouping, there are approximately 2,400 illegal parking attendants operating in Naples alone. Many of them are thought to be affiliated with Camorra clans, and the illicit trade allegedly generates more than €100m (£86m) a year.
In other areas, unauthorised attendants are forced to pay protection money to mobsters in order to be allowed to operate within territories controlled by the mafia.
'Illegal parking attendants essentially demand a protection fee, a pizzo, from drivers,' said Francesco Emilio Borrelli, an MP for the Greens and Left Alliance.
'They even ask you to pay when you park in areas that are already marked for payment. If you refuse, you are threatened, your car can be damaged or, even worse, you can be physically assaulted.'
Borrelli himself has been beaten and threatened on several occasions by illegal attendants in Naples. In one instance, he says, they even attempted to run him over with a car.
Borrelli said the problem is that, under the law, acting as an unauthorised parking attendant isn't considered a criminal offence. 'Offenders merely receive a token fine,' he added. 'If we don't change the law, these clans will continue to exploit citizens for their own profit.'
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Last year, the police discovered that during Napoli football matches, or for concerts at the Stadio Maradona, prices for parking in lots managed by unauthorised attendants fluctuated between €15 and €20, climbing as high as €30 during Champions League or high-profile league matches.
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