Francesco Schiavone head of the Casalesi crime family thought to have carried out more than 1,000 hits in the past 30 years sentenced
Casalesi crime family, which takes its name from the town of Casal di Principe near Naples, has been described as the successor of the Corleone family, which ruled Sicily in the 1980s. The bloodthirsty family is thought to have carried out more than 1,000 hits in the past 30 years to establish an iron grip on the area between Naples and Salerno. However, Francesco Schiavone, the head of the clan, will now spend the rest of his life in prison after being successfully convicted. Schiavone is nicknamed Sandokan after a popular 1970s television series starring Kabir Bedi. The ten-year Spartacus Trial, named in recognition of the need to fight a revolution in the Casalesi's territory, charged 36 members of the syndicate with a string of murders and other crimes. Sixteen of them will never be released. "This is the most important trial in the last 20 years," said Roberto Saviano, a best-selling author whose book about the clan, Gomorra, has recently been turned into a prize-win...