Italian police staged a massive
operation on Tuesday to break up a mafia organization that used
violence and intimidation on victims in the city of Latina, some
60km south of Rome, sources said.
Some 25 people were arrested in the operation and seven of
them have been charged with mafia association.
The sources said the suspects were members of a clan of Roma
ethnicity, the Di Silvios, that operated in Latina's Campo
Boario quarter.
They face criminal charges that include election corruption,
according to the sources.
The Di Silvios allegedly tried to buy elections in 2016 in
Latina and nearby Terracina.
They allegedly got many drug addicts to vote for candidates
who did not make it, police said, with each vote costing 30
euros.
Some 250 police officers were involved in the operation.
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