Mafia bust in Italy reveals family ties run deep in Australia

ITALIAN police have carried out a series of raids to smash a Mafia-led operation to smuggle cocaine to Australia - where police say South Australia is among six Australian Mafia “locales”.

How the Mafia’s tentacles have spread into SA

ITALIAN police have carried out a series of raids to smash a Mafia-led operation to smuggle cocaine to Australia that police say godfathers have now divided into six zones for trafficking drugs, extortion and money laundering.

And such is the entrenchment of Mafia links to Australia now, authorities say the country is virtually a state of Italy and it would be impossible to ever wipe out.

Authorities have uncovered a treasure trove of intelligence related to the fearsome Calabrian-based ‘Ndrangheta mafia group and their operations in Australia including members’ infiltration of key areas to assist in their trade, including transport and politics.

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The police operation last week with raids on more than a dozen homes in Calabria has seen 14 members of clans linked to ‘Ndrangheta arrested and charged with “criminal association linked to international drugs tracking”, namely to Australia and Canada, with eight refused bail and the remaining six placed under house arrest.

One of those refused bail is a police officer tasked with protection of a port but instead was allegedly providing guidance on evading controls and security of the port area for the arrival and forwarding of consignments of drugs.

The case was the culmination of five years of work by the Central Operational Service of the Italian National Police, a specialist Italian police squad from Calabria and the district’s Anti-Mafia Prosecutor’s Office and had already led to arrests in Italy and Australia.

Arms found by Italian police during an anti-mafia operation. Police nabbed two fugitive mobster bosses after discovering them "living like animals" in a mountain hideout. Source: AFP

A video grab released by Italian Police shows the arrest of two top fugitive members of the Calabria-based 'Ndrangheta mafia after finding the bunker they were hiding in in the province of Reggio Calabria. Source: Reuters

Giuseppe Crea sits in the hidden bunker where he was arrested. He faces 22-years in prison for Mafia association. Source: AP

AUSTRALIA’S MAFIA ‘ENTRENCHED’

Despite the success of arrests and uncovering intelligence on international operations through extensive listening devices, taps and surveillance, it may not assist the overall ‘Ndrangheta crime fight in Australia.

Italian police have now classed the mafia in Australia as so entrenched, they believe it would be impossible to stamp out completely with Australian police only able to make busts and arrests where they can.

“Australia is not a target nation anymore, it’s now like a state of Italy from a criminal perspective,” a senior Italian officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, told News Corp Australia.

“They are entrenched in their activities and have been for a long time. They have not got an expansion strategy with your country anymore, it’s not expansion its consolidation. Australia, Canada, Belgium, United States, Germany are all countries where these crimes are being consolidated.”

‘Ndrangheta work as strictly a family-based enterprise, affiliation having to be through blood relation. It’s a very closed mafia group because of the family links.”

Container ships pictured in the port of Gioia Tauro in Calabria, Italy. The police officer responsible for overseeing the site has been arrested for alleged ties to Mafia operations.

FAMILY EMPIRES

According to evidence gathered by authorities, the group had designated six “locales” in Australia for Calabrian-linked mafia, not necessarily by State but by powerbase for both extended family support and drug importation markets as well as large-scale construction contracts, paying of backhanders and racketeering.

Each locale has its own mob boss that reports directly to Italy. Notably Sydney, South Australia and Melbourne have their own ‘Ndrangheta locale, well entrenched with fathers handing businesses down to sons and cousins. It’s the family ties that bind Italian organised crime to Australia and its large diaspora.

“In Italy we have hundreds of state witnesses from the Camorra, quite a few from the Sicilian Mafia but we only have five or six from the ‘Ndrangheta because squealing on ‘Ndrangheta means squealing on your mum, your dad, your uncle your cousin for this reason. That’s why the threat is so high.

“To be frank to some extent you have a bigger problem than they have in Europe because in Europe the big Calabrian communities outside Italy are in Belgium, Germany and Spain but in Australia the community there is much older than say Germany because the migrants have been there, well, since the end of the 19th Century. And it’s not just drugs, but big tendering processes, real big money to be made from tenders like building a motorway in Australia and you get 1 per cent of the bid and make $10 million without pushing a gram.”

A mask crosses St. Mark's Square as police officers patrol on the occasion of the Venice Carnival, in Venice, Italy, Saturday, Jan. 30, 2016. People attended the Venice Carnival, celebrated Saturday under heightened security following the sexual assaults on New Year's Eve in Cologne and the ongoing terror threat in Europe. Authorities have increased surveillance throughout the city, including the number of officers on patrol, both under-cover and in uniform. (AP Photo/Luigi Costantini)

THIN BLUE LINE

Italian police still lament the loss of the Australian Federal Police presence in Italy, with the post closed in 2002 and responsibility of law enforcement liaison with the country now done by an AFP agent based in Belgrade in Serbia which also has to handle liaison with police in Russia, Croatia, all of the Balkans, Malta and Greece; 22 countries in all.

An AFP spokeswoman ruled out reopening the agency’s Italian bureau.

“The AFP office in Belgrade is able to effectively cover Italy from that location,” she said.

“It is not possible to have AFP officers in every country around the world. The AFP places its personnel strategically to reflect the most efficient approach possible.”

She would not reveal whether efforts to investigate Australian mafia links would be stepped up, saying the AFP did not comment on operational matters.

A spokesperson for Justice Minister Michael Keenan said: “The Government takes advice from our intelligence, security and law enforcement agencies who are best placed to make informed personnel decisions.”

Belonging to the Mafia is a stand-alone offence in Italy whereas in many other countries, including Australia, association with the group is not a criminal offence.

Originally published as Mafia bust in Italy reveals family ties run deep in Australia