The alleged ringleaders of a mafia gang that infiltrated Rome's City Hall went on trial Thursday on a landmark day for Italy's battle against organised crime.

Massimo Carminati, a convicted gangster with a history of involvement with violent far-right groups, and 45 others are accused of operating a mafia-style network that used extortion, fraud and theft to divert millions of euros destined for public services into their own pockets.

The maxi-trial is scheduled to run until next summer. After Thursday's opening session in Rome's criminal court, hearings are to take place in the Rebibbia prison on the outskirts of the capital.

Prosecutors say the racketeering in Rome went on for years, helping to bring the city to the brink of financial collapse and contributing to the current sorry state of its infrastructure and many of its public services.

Among those on trial are local politicians, businessmen and city officials.

All are allegedly implicated in rigging tenders and other corrupt schemes designed to siphon off cash destined for services ranging from rubbish collection to the reception of newly arrived refugees.
Hundreds more, including former mayor Gianni Alemanno, have been investigated in a case dubbed "Mafia Capitale" by prosecutors in charge of the biggest anti-corruption operation Italy has seen since the "clean hands" campaign of the early 1990s led to half the country's lawmakers being indicted for taking bribes.

Much of the case is expected to be taken up with debate over whether the individuals involved in the corruption at City Hall can be said to have constituted a mafia-type organisation as defined by legislation designed to combat more traditional crime syndicates such as Sicily's Cosa Nostra, the Neapolitan Camorra and Calabria's 'Ndrangheta.

If the prosecution can prove that they did, Carminati and his alleged accomplices will face much tougher sentences than they would if found guilty simply of corruption.

Source: AFP