Capo crimine

A capo crimine is the elected boss of the crimine, an annual meeting of the 'Ndrangheta locali near the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Polsi in the municipality of San Luca during the September Feast.^[1]

At least since the 1950s, these annual meetings have traditionally served as a forum to discuss future strategies and settle disputes among the locali. The assembly exercises weak supervisory powers over the activities of all 'Ndrangheta groups. Strong emphasis was placed on the temporary character of the position of the crimine boss. A new representative was elected at each meeting.^[1]

Far from being the "boss of bosses", the capo crimine actually has comparatively little authority to interfere in family feuds or to control the level of interfamily violence.^[2]

From the beginning of the 1960s until the outbreak of the first 'Ndrangheta war in 1975, the position of capo crimine was held by Antonio Macrì from Siderno. Since the mid-1970s, according to several pentiti, members of the Nirta family from San Luca and the Piromalli family from Gioia Tauro rotated among themselves the position of capo crimine.^[3]

In July 2010, Italian police arrested the actual capo crimine: Domenico Oppedisano, an 80-year-old Ndrangheta boss from Rosarno. Investigations showed that he had been appointed at the marriage of two children of bosses in August 2009 and assumed power at a banquet held at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Polsi in September that year. In one wiretapped conversation he talked of 1,000 affiliates attending the meeting.^[4][5]

In the course of the investigation, dubbed "Il crimine", the capo crimine also appeared to be the nominal head of the 'Ndrangheta Commission, known as La Provincia.^[5][6]

References

• Paoli, Letizia (2003). Mafia Brotherhoods: Organized Crime, Italian Style, New York: Oxford University Press ISBN 0-19-515724-9 (Review by Klaus Von Lampe) (Review by Alexandra V. Orlova)