The hands of Cosa Nostra on agricultural land in the Agrigento area. Five people already convicted for mafia association they ended up in prison on charges of extortionillicit competition with threat and violenceaggravated by mafia method and of having facilitated the mafia association. According to what was reconstructed during the investigations it was hypothesized that «pervasive control and the illicit management of agro-pastoral activities” in the territory Santa Margherita del Belice, Montevago And Sambuca di Sicily (in the province of Agrigento) up to the border with Countess Entellina (in the Palermo area).
According to what emerged from the investigationsthe suspects would have made use of the intimidating force resulting from being recognized as top exponents of the mafia mandate of Santa Margherita di Belice. In this way they would have implemented a incisive control over the agro-pastoral economy of the area and on the use of agricultural funds of the Belicino hinterland. In particular, several episodes have been ascertained in which the suspects would have forced the owners and managers of agricultural land to cede the availability of large areas of land to be used for illegal grazing of livestockimposing the payment of negligible fees which, in some cases, wouldn’t even have been paid.
The control of agricultural land would have resulted, in some cases, even in a ban on carrying out collateral agricultural activities that altered the free grazing of the flocks, thus effectively imposing a stringent predominance on real estate others, also functional to the maximization of profits arising from dairy production. «In this context – explain the investigators – it was also recorded the absence of explicit threatsthe suspects being able to impose their will by resorting to silent intimidating attitudeswhich he sometimes echoed ability to subjugate arising from theirs recognized criminal role as well as the multiple episodes of damage (fire, cutting of crops and theft of livestock) – committed by unknown persons – suffered over the years by owners who had decided to use the land for crops that would have limited the grazing of flocks».
The investigations also made use of the statements of some victims who opposed the «control system» of the sector, also bringing to light some episodes in which, following the threshing operated by the owners, the foodstuffs would have been improperly acquired and packaged by investigated, without paying any compensation. The measure was notified to the boss in prison Pietro Campo72 year old considered among the loyalists of Matteo Messina Money who he would have met in recent years while on the run. They also ended up in prison Giovanni Campo33 years; Piero Guzzardo45 years old and Pasquale Ciaccio, 58 years old, also already convicted in the past for mafia. The 42-year-old was instead subjected to house arrest Domenico Bavetta.
