The Fall of Silence: Sandokan of the Casalesi Clan Turns Informant

The wall of silence has collapsed. Francesco Schiavone, known as Sandokan, leader of the Casalesi, one of the most feared Camorra clans, has repented and started cooperating with the DDA prosecutors. The news - which had been talked about in the city for some days - was anticipated by the Cronache di Caserta edition. In these days, law enforcement, it is learned, went to Casal di Principe to propose to the clan leader's relatives, including his son Ivahnoe, to enter the witness protection program, confirming Sandokan's willingness to cooperate with the DDA of Naples. Sandokan the last to repent. In 2018 and in 2021, his son and brother had done so Arrested in 1998 and sentenced to life imprisonment in the Spartacus maxi-trial and for several murders, "Sandokan" was in maximum security prison. He is the last of the family to have repented: in 2018 it was done by his firstborn Nicola, who had taken over the reins of the clan. Then it was the turn of his brother Walter, in 2021. Now the father Francesco, the founder of the Casalesi clan, begins to reveal to the magistrates the secrets of the clan that had been buried for almost 30 years. The message The other sons Emanuele Libero, who will be released from prison next August, and Carmine, remain in prison, while Sandokan's wife, Giuseppina Nappa, is not in Casal di Principe. Sandokan's decision could also be a message to someone not to try to reorganize the clan, a way to put a tombstone on the aspirations of other possible successors. Francesco Schiavone's cooperation could shed light on some unresolved mysteries, such as the murder in Brazil in 1988 of the clan's founder Antonio Bardellino, or on the ties between the Camorra and politics. The diehards After the news of the super boss's decision to repent, the other historic leader of the Casalesi, Francesco Bidognetti, known as "Cicciotto e Mezzanotte", in prison since 1993, and Michele Zagaria, captured on December 7, 2011, after sixteen years of being a fugitive, remain steadfast in their will not to cooperate with the State. Among the Casalesi bosses who have decided to collaborate with justice is also Antonio Iovine, "o ninno", arrested in 2010 after 15 years of being a fugitive.