Antonio Scopelliti
Encyclopedia
Antonio Scopelliti was an Italian
prosecuting magistrate
, murdered by the 'Ndrangheta on behalf of the Sicilian Mafia.
He was a prosecutor at the Italian Supreme Court
(Corte di Cassazione). While on holiday visiting his family in Calabria, he was ambushed on a road on August 9, 1991. At the time he was preparing to argue the government’s case in the final appeal of the Maxi Trial
against Cosa Nostra for the Supreme Court. The reason for the killing was to hold up the trial so that the Mafia bosses' legal terms of detention would expire and they would be freed.
The crime still remains unsolved. Two trials were held at the Court of Reggio Calabria against Mafia boss Salvatore Riina
and thirteen of the so-called Sicilian Mafia Commission
, and a second trial against Bernardo Provenzano
and nine other bosses of the Commission, including Filippo and Giuseppe Graviano
, Raffaele Ganci
, Giuseppe Farinella
, Antonino Giuffrè
and Nitto Santapaola. All were convicted at first instance in 1996 and 1998 and subsequently acquitted in the Court of Appeals in 1998 and 2000 because the testimonies of the seventeen government witnesses were conflicting.
His daughter Rosanna Scopelliti is the national coordinator of Ammazzateci tutti (Italian
for "Kill Us All"), an Italian Antimafia social movement
against the 'Ndrangheta.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
prosecuting magistrate
Magistrate
A magistrate is an officer of the state; in modern usage the term usually refers to a judge or prosecutor. This was not always the case; in ancient Rome, a magistratus was one of the highest government officers and possessed both judicial and executive powers. Today, in common law systems, a...
, murdered by the 'Ndrangheta on behalf of the Sicilian Mafia.
He was a prosecutor at the Italian Supreme Court
Court of Cassation (Italy)
The Supreme Court of Cassation is the major court of last resort in Italy. It has its seat in the Rome Hall of Justice.The Court of Cassation exists also to “ensure the observation and the correct interpretation of law” by ensuring the same application of law in the inferior and appeal courts...
(Corte di Cassazione). While on holiday visiting his family in Calabria, he was ambushed on a road on August 9, 1991. At the time he was preparing to argue the government’s case in the final appeal of the Maxi Trial
Maxi Trial
The Maxi Trial was a criminal trial that took place in Sicily during the mid-1980s that saw hundreds of defendants on trial convicted for a multitude of crimes relating to Mafia activities, based primarily on testimony given in as evidence from a former boss turned informant...
against Cosa Nostra for the Supreme Court. The reason for the killing was to hold up the trial so that the Mafia bosses' legal terms of detention would expire and they would be freed.
The crime still remains unsolved. Two trials were held at the Court of Reggio Calabria against Mafia boss Salvatore Riina
Salvatore Riina
Salvatore "Totò" Riina is a member of the Sicilian Mafia who became the most powerful member of the criminal organization in the early 1980s. Fellow mobsters nicknamed him The Beast due to his violent nature, or sometimes The Short One due to his diminutive stature...
and thirteen of the so-called Sicilian Mafia Commission
Sicilian Mafia Commission
The Sicilian Mafia Commission, known as Commissione or Cupola, is a body of leading Mafia members to decide on important questions concerning the actions of, and settling disputes within the Sicilian Mafia or Cosa Nostra...
, and a second trial against Bernardo Provenzano
Bernardo Provenzano
Bernardo Provenzano is a member of the Sicilian Mafia and is suspected of having been the head of the Corleonesi, a Mafia faction that originated in the village of Corleone, and de facto capo di tutti capi of the entire Sicilian Mafia until his arrest in 2006.His nickname is Binnu u tratturi...
and nine other bosses of the Commission, including Filippo and Giuseppe Graviano
Giuseppe Graviano
Giuseppe Graviano is an Italian mafioso from the Brancaccio quarter in Palermo. He is currently serving several life sentences....
, Raffaele Ganci
Raffaele Ganci
Raffaele Ganci is a member of the Mafia in Sicily from the Noce neighbourhood in Palermo. He was considered to be the right hand man of Cosa Nostra boss Totò Riina and sat on the Sicilian Mafia Commission.-Riina loyalist:...
, Giuseppe Farinella
Giuseppe Farinella
Giuseppe Farinella is a Sicilian mafioso, boss of the San Mauro Castelverde family and a one-time member of the Sicilian Mafia Commission....
, Antonino Giuffrè
Antonino Giuffrè
Antonino "Nino" Giuffrè is an Italian mafioso from Caccamo in the Province of Palermo, Sicily. He became one of the most important Mafia turncoats after his arrest in April 2002....
and Nitto Santapaola. All were convicted at first instance in 1996 and 1998 and subsequently acquitted in the Court of Appeals in 1998 and 2000 because the testimonies of the seventeen government witnesses were conflicting.
His daughter Rosanna Scopelliti is the national coordinator of Ammazzateci tutti (Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
for "Kill Us All"), an Italian Antimafia social movement
Social movement
Social movements are a type of group action. They are large informal groupings of individuals or organizations focused on specific political or social issues, in other words, on carrying out, resisting or undoing a social change....
against the 'Ndrangheta.