Italian Mafia tied to Islamic terrorists

AP ^ | April 21, 2004

[ambrose]

Italian Mafia tied to Islamic terrorists

Associated Press

ROME - Italian mobsters and Islamic terrorist groups have forged links in arms and drug trafficking, Italy's top anti-Mafia investigator said.

Pierluigi Vigna, Italy's national anti-Mafia prosecutor, singled out a Naples mob known as the Camorra, which deals in arms and drugs, among other rackets.

"There are ties without doubt," Vigna told reporters Monday at a briefing at the Foreign Press Association. "We have evidence that Camorra groups are implicated in exchange of arms for drugs with terrorist groups," Vigna said.

Asked if these were Islamic terrorist groups, he replied, "Muslim terrorist groups."

He said judicial secrecy prevented him from describing the evidence.

But Vigna suggested that the collaboration might have begun when a Camorra member who converted to Islam met fellow Muslims jailed in Italy.

He didn't identify any of the inmates or elaborate on how they may have worked together.

Vigna, who wants his office to handle terror probes as well as organized crime investigations in Italy, said there were already examples of mobsters working with foreign groups - such as Italian criminals dealing with Colombian FARC guerrillas in cocaine trafficking.

Vigna said prosecutors in Sicily and Calabria, both strongholds of organized crime, have excluded that mobsters there have made alliances with foreign groups trafficking in illegal immigrants.

[Bigg Red]

I am so shocked! NOT!

[TruthShallSetYouFree]

Et tu, Tony?

[gcruse]

Well, there goes the Mafia's reputation.

[ambrose]

Reputation? The Mafia consists of bloodthirsty criminals. Leave it to Hollyweird to turn them into some kind of honorable pseudo-heroes.

[Paulie]

Interestingly, my wife and I were talking (toungue-in-cheek)just last night on how Bush needs to recruit the Italian mob to root out all the cells here in the US. We can count on the mafia not to worry about political correctness, and they'll get the job done.

I guess there goes that idea...

[Lion in Winter]

I bet you a dollar to a donut that the albanian mob in Italy is in this as well.

[Prince Charles]

I'm not surprised. The KLA killers in Albania -- in league with al Qaeda -- were the main drug traffickers into Europe even before BJ Clinton fought his "Wag The Dog" campaign on their behalf. Now, the islamic albanians are ever stronger. Doubtless, La Cosa Nostra in Italia are being supplied by them.

[gcruse]

Yes, I know. 'Twas a joke, son.

[BMC1]

I've wondered the same thing. The mob was very useful in WWII.

It was a good idea but I guess it won't work now.