“Mafia political exchange vote in Cercola”, this is how the boss’s daughter showed up at the town hall to collect the electoral certificates

The De Micco-De Martino Camorra clan had got its hands on the administrative elections in Cercola (Naples) last year by buying votes at 30 euros in the first round and 20 euros in the run-off in the popular Caravita neighbourhood, and among the 15 suspects of a The investigation for the mafia political exchange vote also includes the Pd candidate for mayor […]

The De Micco-De Martino Camorra clan had got its hands on the administrative elections in Cercola (Naples) last year by buying votes at 30 euros in the first round and 20 euros in the run-off in the popular Caravita neighbourhood, and among the 15 suspects of a investigation into mafia political exchange vote there is also the PD mayoral candidate Antonio Silvano, who emerged defeated at the polls. This is what emerges from the 240 pages of an order carried out this morning by the Carabinieri of Cercola and Torre del Greco, at the end of investigations coordinated by the DDA of Naples – prosecutors Henry John Woodcock and Stefano Capuano, prosecutor Nicola Gratteri – for which the trojan installed on the cell phones of some suspects.

Six people are in prison, a seventh under house arrest, following the decision of the investigating judge who accepted much of the prosecutor’s office’s accusatory system. Giusy De Micco, unelected candidate in Cercola for Green Europe (list in support of Silvano), sister of Sabino De Micco, municipal councilor of Naples for Fratelli d’Italia, also in prison, ended up in prison. According to the accusations found by the interceptions where reference is made to the purchased preferences, the two brothers and the father would have allocated the sum of 1800 euros for the purchase of a package of 60 votes. And there is also an interception where reference is made to a hypothesis of future support for the League at the next European electionsfurther demonstrating the ‘transversality’ of the Camorra when it deals with politics.

The investigation started with a report from the municipal police of Cercola, which received Gratteri’s applause: they notice that Antonietta Ponticelli, exponent of Green Europe and daughter of a boss serving a life sentence, showed up at the electoral office with 30 delegations for the collection of the same number of electoral certificates with a report of loss. It was later discovered that some proxies were false. The Caravita neighborhood was already at the center of a previous investigation for a political-mafia exchange vote which concerned the 2020 regional elections. On that occasion, the clan beat a man near the polls because he was canvassing for a candidate who was not welcome. “The buying and selling of votes in this neighborhood is a practice” we read in a passage of the ordinance. In the cell Salvatore Capasso, Giuseppina De Micco, Giusy De Micco, Pasquale De Micco, Sabino De Micco, Antonietta Ponticelli, the 75-year-old Giovanni De Micco, father of Sabino and Giusy, is under house arrest.

For the Naples prosecutor, Nicola Gratteri, the “investigation” is “important for a type of crime that can outrage public opinion and us professionals“. The investigations started from the report received from the local police to the Carabinieri of the Cercola Tenenza: “Honour to their great sense of institutions. It takes courage, especially in small towns.” These arrests have come to pass.”thanks to the speed of the complaint and the promptness of the public prosecutorbecause the events would have taken place in a few days and everyone did their part.”