tagged w/ Sacra Corona Unita
-
Organized crime is the biggest business in Italy, according to the latest study by the country's shopkeepers association, Confesercenti.
That Italy's mafias do a booming business, particularly the drug-related variety, is common knowledge. But the effect on the country's legitimate businesses such as tourism and food production had not been as clear until the Confesercenti released the figures, which are staggering.
Italy's four organized-crime syndicates -- Sicily's Cosa Nostra, the Camorra in Naples, Calabrian 'Ndrangheta, and the Sacra Corona Unita in Puglia -- together make up a "huge holding company with a total [sales] turnover of about 130 billion euros [about $165 billion] and profits approaching 70 billion euros [about $90 billion]," after investments and expenses, according to the study.
They are, effectively, the biggest company in Italy. "Everyday, organized crime takes some 250 million euros (about $317.5 million) away from retailers and businessmen," the study said. "The equivalent of 10 million euros [about $12.7 million] an hour, or 160,000 euros [about $203,000] a minute."Organized crime is the biggest business in Italy, according to the latest study by the... more
-
