Pasquale Scotti
Encyclopedia
Pasquale Scotti is an Italian criminal and boss of the Camorra
—a Mafia-type organisation in Naples
and Campania
—involved in the Nuova Camorra Organizzata
(NCO), headed by Raffaele Cutolo
.
. Scotti and Casillo—who had close ties to the secret services—mediated between Cutolo and the regional leaders of the Christian Democrat party
, the military secret service and the Red Brigades
to obtain the release of the politician Ciro Cirillo
, who had been kidnapped in April 1981. Scotti also administered the assets of the NCO investing it in Italy and abroad.
Casillo was killed by a bomb in his car in January 1983, presumably to cover the secret negotiations by DC politicians to free Cirillo contravening to official policy of the Italian government to not negotiate with so-called terrorists. Scotti was behind the killing of Casillo’s mistress because she knew too much about the dealings of his erstwhile ally.
and the wave of arrest against the NCO in June 1983, Scotti tried to rearrange the organisation. He was arrested on December 17, 1983, in his fiefdom Caivano
where he controlled the rackets and trafficking in drugs, smuggled cigarettes and arms. His arrest involved a shoot out with the police in which Scotti was injured. During detention, fearing a vendetta of rival Camorristi, he decided to become a pentito
and collaborate with the authorities revealing different aspects of NCO. On Christmas Eve of 1984, he escaped from the hospital of Caserta where he had been hospitalized for a wound to the hand.
was issued against him, to be arrested for extradition.
In January 2005, he received a life sentence for a series of 26 murders in 1982-83 during the Camorra war between the NCO and the Nuova Famiglia
. In October 2011, while Scotti had been on the run for nearly 27 years, the Italian police issued a new photofit
on the basis of a mug-shot from the 1980s.
Speculations that Scotti is not alive anymore have been made. He either might have been killed by rival factions in the Camorra, or because he had turned state witness, or because he knew too much about involvement of politicians and secret services in the release of the kidnapped Cirillo. According to a 'Ndrangheta boss turned state witness, Franco Pino, Scotti died in 1984.
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:...
—a Mafia-type organisation 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...
and Campania
Campania
Campania is a region in southern Italy. The region has a population of around 5.8 million people, making it the second-most-populous region of Italy; its total area of 13,590 km² makes it the most densely populated region in the country...
—involved in 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), headed by 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"...
.
Camorra boss
He was described as a smooth and ruthless personality and one of the most able of the lieutenants of Cutolo together with Vincenzo CasilloVincenzo Casillo
Vincenzo Casillo was an Italian Camorrista and the second in command of the Nuova Camorra Organizzata , a Camorra organization in Naples. His nickname was "'o Nirone" .-Second in Command:...
. Scotti and Casillo—who had close ties to the secret services—mediated between Cutolo and the regional leaders of the Christian Democrat party
Christian Democracy (Italy)
Christian Democracy was a Christian democratic party in Italy. It was founded in 1943 as the ideological successor of the historical Italian People's Party, which had the same symbol, a crossed shield ....
, the military secret service and the Red Brigades
Red Brigades
The Red Brigades was a Marxist-Leninist terrorist organisation, based in Italy, which was responsible for numerous violent incidents, assassinations, and robberies during the so-called "Years of Lead"...
to obtain the release of the politician Ciro Cirillo
Cirillo kidnap
On April 27, 1981, the Red Brigades kidnapped the 60-year-old Christian Democrat politician Ciro Cirillo and killed his two-man escort in the garage of his Naples apartment building. At the time Cirillo directed reconstruction efforts in Campania devastated by the earthquake in the Irpinia region...
, who had been kidnapped in April 1981. Scotti also administered the assets of the NCO investing it in Italy and abroad.
Casillo was killed by a bomb in his car in January 1983, presumably to cover the secret negotiations by DC politicians to free Cirillo contravening to official policy of the Italian government to not negotiate with so-called terrorists. Scotti was behind the killing of Casillo’s mistress because she knew too much about the dealings of his erstwhile ally.
Arrest and escape
After the transfer of Cutolo to the prison island AsinaraAsinara
Asinara is an Italian island of in area. The name is Italian for "donkey-inhabited", but it is thought to derive from the Latin "sinuaria", and meaning sinus-shaped. The island is virtually uninhabited. The census of population of 2001 lists one man. The island is located off the north-western...
and the wave of arrest against the NCO in June 1983, Scotti tried to rearrange the organisation. He was arrested on December 17, 1983, in his fiefdom Caivano
Caivano
Caivano is a city and comune in the Province of Naples in the Italian region Campania, located about 14 km northeast of Naples....
where he controlled the rackets and trafficking in drugs, smuggled cigarettes and arms. His arrest involved a shoot out with the police in which Scotti was injured. During detention, fearing a vendetta of rival Camorristi, 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...
and collaborate with the authorities revealing different aspects of NCO. On Christmas Eve of 1984, he escaped from the hospital of Caserta where he had been hospitalized for a wound to the hand.
Fugitive or dead
Since 1985, he has been on the "most wanted list" of the Italian ministry of the Interior for murder and concealment of corpse and other crimes. On January 17, 1990, an international arrest warrantArrest warrant
An arrest warrant is a warrant issued by and on behalf of the state, which authorizes the arrest and detention of an individual.-Canada:Arrest warrants are issued by a judge or justice of the peace under the Criminal Code of Canada....
was issued against him, to be arrested for extradition.
In January 2005, he received a life sentence for a series of 26 murders in 1982-83 during the Camorra war between the 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....
. In October 2011, while Scotti had been on the run for nearly 27 years, the Italian police issued a new photofit
Photofit
Photofit is a technique used by the police for building up an accurate image of someone to fit a witness' description. Photographs, rather than drawings, of individual features are used to construct an image of a suspect....
on the basis of a mug-shot from the 1980s.
Speculations that Scotti is not alive anymore have been made. He either might have been killed by rival factions in the Camorra, or because he had turned state witness, or because he knew too much about involvement of politicians and secret services in the release of the kidnapped Cirillo. According to a 'Ndrangheta boss turned state witness, Franco Pino, Scotti died in 1984.