Umberto Ammaturo
Encyclopedia
Umberto Ammaturo is an Italian criminal and a member of the Neapolitan
Camorra
. He specialized in cocaine
trafficking from South America. He was included in the list of most wanted fugitives in Italy until his capture in May 1993. A month later he decided to become a pentito
, a state witness breaking the omertà
, or code of silence.
, the seafront area in Naples
. He was first arrested in 1962. In 1965, the handsome Ammaturo met Pupetta Maresca
a former beauty queen who had made international headlines in the 1950s when she killed the murderer of her husband, a Camorra boss named Pasquale Simonetti, in revenge. She had met a lot of sympathy among ordinary Neapolitans for her deed. Maresca bore him twins.
He received serious police attention when he was arrested again in 1972 with Nunzio Guida, the Camorra’s leader in Milan
. In 1974 he was caught smuggling cocaine through the diplomatic bag
of the consul
of Panama
. Two years later he feigned to be ill with cancer and was sent to a hospital from which he escaped.
During the war between the Nuova Camorra Organizzata
(NCO) and the Nuova Famiglia
(NF) in 1980-1983, Ammaturo and Maresca sided with the NF against Raffaele Cutolo
. In 1982, Ammaturo and Maresca were arrested and charged with killing the forensic psychiatrist Aldo Semerari
who had helped Ammaturo in previous years to escape prison feigning insanity. He was initially acquitted, but confessed the murder when he decided to become a state witness.
through a Swiss bank account. According to the DEA
, Ammaturo was one of the chief financiers of the Shining Path
guerilla movement in Peru
.
In 1987, he evaded for the third time and moved to South America. In August 1990, he was arrested in Governador Valadares
near Belo Horizonte
(Brazil
), and spent three months in jail in Brasilia
awaiting extradition. However, he managed to escape, after paying some US$ 100,000 in bribes.
In March 1992, nine of his associates were arrested following the discovery of 10 kg of cocaine which had arrived from Colombia
. The cocaine was soaked into clothes which were then smeared with solvents to distract sniffer dogs; the clothes would then be treated in Castellamare di Stabia and the cocaine reconstituted. A drug smuggling operation of an even bigger scale was discovered in July 1992, involving the importation of 300 kg of cocaine from Colombia via Peru.
(Peru) and extradited to Italy. In June 1993, he decided to collaborate with the Italian justice and became a pentito
, breaking the omertà
, or code of silence. In retaliation his brother Antonio was killed. His testimony resulted in 40 arrests in May 1994, amongst others of Michele Zaza
and Luigi Giuliano
.
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
Camorra
Camorra
The Camorra is a Mafia-type criminal organization, or secret society, originating in the region of Campania and its capital Naples in Italy. It is one of the oldest and largest criminal organizations in Italy, dating to the 18th century.-Background:...
. He specialized in cocaine
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
trafficking from South America. He was included in the list of most wanted fugitives in Italy until his capture in May 1993. A month later he decided to become a pentito
Pentito
Pentito designates people in Italy who, formerly part of criminal or terrorist organizations, following their arrests decide to "repent" and collaborate with the judicial system to help investigations...
, a state witness breaking the omertà
Omertà
Omertà is a popular attitude and code of honour and a common definition is the "code of silence". It is common in areas of southern Italy, such as Sicily, Apulia, Calabria, and Campania, where criminal organizations defined as Mafia such as the Cosa Nostra, 'Ndrangheta, Sacra Corona Unita, and...
, or code of silence.
Early life
Ammaturo started as a smuggler in Santa LuciaBorgo Santa Lucia
Borgo Santa Lucia is an historical rione of Naples, Italy. The area rises around the street of the same name and takes that name from the parish sanctuary of Santa Lucia a mare, of which the presence is attested since the 9th century, on the river of the sea, in spite of legend that would have it...
, the seafront area in Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
. He was first arrested in 1962. In 1965, the handsome Ammaturo met Pupetta Maresca
Pupetta Maresca
Assunta Maresca better known as known as Pupetta was a former beauty queen who became a well-known figure in the Camorra...
a former beauty queen who had made international headlines in the 1950s when she killed the murderer of her husband, a Camorra boss named Pasquale Simonetti, in revenge. She had met a lot of sympathy among ordinary Neapolitans for her deed. Maresca bore him twins.
He received serious police attention when he was arrested again in 1972 with Nunzio Guida, the Camorra’s leader in Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
. In 1974 he was caught smuggling cocaine through the diplomatic bag
Diplomatic bag
A diplomatic bag, also known as a diplomatic pouch is a kind of receptacle used by diplomatic missions. The physical concept of a "diplomatic bag" is flexible and therefore can take many forms e.g. an envelope, parcel, large suitcase or shipping container, etc...
of the consul
Consul
Consul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Empire. The title was also used in other city states and also revived in modern states, notably in the First French Republic...
of Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
. Two years later he feigned to be ill with cancer and was sent to a hospital from which he escaped.
During the war between the Nuova Camorra Organizzata
Nuova Camorra Organizzata
The Nuova Camorra Organizzata was an Italian Camorra criminal organization founded in the late 1970s by a Neapolitan Camorrista, Raffaele Cutolo, in the region of Campania. It was also known by the initials NCO...
(NCO) and the Nuova Famiglia
Nuova Famiglia
The Nuova Famiglia was an Italian Camorra criminal organization created in the 1980s to face Raffaele Cutolo's Nuova Camorra Organizzata....
(NF) in 1980-1983, Ammaturo and Maresca sided with the NF against Raffaele Cutolo
Raffaele Cutolo
Raffaele Cutolo is an Italian crime boss and the charismatic leader of the Nuova Camorra Organizzata , an organisation he built to renew the Camorra. Cutolo has a variety of nicknames including "'o Vangelo" , "'o Principe" , "'o Professore" and "'o Monaco"...
. In 1982, Ammaturo and Maresca were arrested and charged with killing the forensic psychiatrist Aldo Semerari
Aldo Semerari
Aldo Semerari was an Italian criminologist, psychiatrist and political diplomat of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta.-Background:...
who had helped Ammaturo in previous years to escape prison feigning insanity. He was initially acquitted, but confessed the murder when he decided to become a state witness.
Cocaine baron
In the 1980s, Ammaturo established a virtual monopoly of cocaine trafficking to Italy from Peru, where he benefited from the protection and collusion of important personalities. The particular success of Ammaturo was the result of his innovation to set up a triangular system of cocaine smuggling, involving several African countries as staging posts, rather than just using the traditional South American-European axis. He diversified his interests on a global scale, buying a tourist centre in SenegalSenegal
Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
through a Swiss bank account. According to the DEA
DEA
DEA is the commonly used acronym for the Drug Enforcement Administration, a United States law enforcement agency.DEA or Dea may also refer to:- Organizations :* DEA , UK development education charity...
, Ammaturo was one of the chief financiers of the Shining Path
Shining Path
Shining Path is a Maoist guerrilla terrorist organization in Peru. The group never refers to itself as "Shining Path", and as several other Peruvian groups, prefers to be called the "Communist Party of Peru" or "PCP-SL" in short...
guerilla movement in Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
.
In 1987, he evaded for the third time and moved to South America. In August 1990, he was arrested in Governador Valadares
Governador Valadares
Governador Valadares is a Brazilian city in the state of Minas Gerais. In 2006, its population was 260,405 inhabitants.It is an economical center of the middle Valley of the Rio Doce, making a significant influence on the east and northeast of Minas Gerais and local authorities of the state of the...
near Belo Horizonte
Belo Horizonte
Belo Horizonte is the capital of and largest city in the state of Minas Gerais, located in the southeastern region of Brazil. It is the third largest metropolitan area in the country...
(Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
), and spent three months in jail in Brasilia
Brasília
Brasília is the capital city of Brazil. The name is commonly spelled Brasilia in English. The city and its District are located in the Central-West region of the country, along a plateau known as Planalto Central. It has a population of about 2,557,000 as of the 2008 IBGE estimate, making it the...
awaiting extradition. However, he managed to escape, after paying some US$ 100,000 in bribes.
In March 1992, nine of his associates were arrested following the discovery of 10 kg of cocaine which had arrived from Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
. The cocaine was soaked into clothes which were then smeared with solvents to distract sniffer dogs; the clothes would then be treated in Castellamare di Stabia and the cocaine reconstituted. A drug smuggling operation of an even bigger scale was discovered in July 1992, involving the importation of 300 kg of cocaine from Colombia via Peru.
Arrest and repentance
Ammaturo moved to Peru and was arrested again on May 3, 1993, in LimaLima
Lima is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín rivers, in the central part of the country, on a desert coast overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Together with the seaport of Callao, it forms a contiguous urban area known as the Lima...
(Peru) and extradited to Italy. In June 1993, he decided to collaborate with the Italian justice and became a pentito
Pentito
Pentito designates people in Italy who, formerly part of criminal or terrorist organizations, following their arrests decide to "repent" and collaborate with the judicial system to help investigations...
, breaking the omertà
Omertà
Omertà is a popular attitude and code of honour and a common definition is the "code of silence". It is common in areas of southern Italy, such as Sicily, Apulia, Calabria, and Campania, where criminal organizations defined as Mafia such as the Cosa Nostra, 'Ndrangheta, Sacra Corona Unita, and...
, or code of silence. In retaliation his brother Antonio was killed. His testimony resulted in 40 arrests in May 1994, amongst others of Michele Zaza
Michele Zaza
Michele Zaza was a member of the Neapolitan Camorra who was also initiated in the Sicilian Mafia. He was known as "’O Pazzo" due to his outspoken and improbable public pronouncements...
and Luigi Giuliano
Luigi Giuliano
Luigi Giuliano is a former Italian Camorrista who was the boss of the powerful Giuliano clan, based in the district of Forcella, Naples. He had multiple nicknames including "'o rre" and "Lovigno", which is an amalgamation of Luigi and love...
.