Carabinieri police in the southern town of Casal di Principe near Naples arrested on Tuesday 46 suspected members of the powerful Casalesi clan of local crime syndicate Camorra. Some of the suspects allegedly belonged to the Casalesi clan's Venosa-Schiavone faction and managed an online gambling racket, extorting 60% of proceeds from local retailers, particularly in the area of Caserta, according to investigators coordinated by the DDA anti-Mafia department in Naples.
The alleged ringleaders include jailed Camorra boss Francesco Schiavone (aka Sandokan).
The operation was carried out in the cities of Benevento, Caserta, Catanzaro, Cosenza, Naples, Parma and Viterbo.
The suspects face charges including Mafia association, possession of stolen goods, extortion, illicit competition through threats and violence, fictitious registration of assets, possession and trafficking of drugs and weapons.
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