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Suburra sandwich: Mafia Capitale kingpin opens pub in Rome

Buzzi offers panini with underworld names such as Gomorra, Suburra and Mondo di Mezzo.

Salvatore Buzzi, a central protagonist in the notorious 'Mafia Capitale' case, is opening a pub in Rome, reports Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera.

"In this place everyone pays: friends, relatives and acquaintances" - the 65-year-old businessman told news agency Adnkronos - "while the prosecutors pay double and the judges pay triple."

Buzzi is reportedly offering a selection of provocatively-titled sandwiches including the Suburra (after the Netflix underworld series set in Rome) and the "Libanese" (the nickname of Franco Giuseppucci, ex-boss of the Banda della Magliana crime gang).

Salvatore Buzzi's new pub in Rome. Photo Adnkronos.

The salads on offer at the pub in the south-east Tor Vergata suburb include the "Scrocchiazzeppi" (after the Romanzo Criminale character) and "Genny" (of Gomorrah fame).

Also on the menu is the Er Terribile hotdog and the Buzzi Burger, reports Italian newspaper La Repubblica.

What was the Mafia Capitale case?

The Mafia Capitale case, otherwise referred to as Mondo di Mezzo, came to light in December 2014.

The trial - the result of the biggest investigation into organised crime in Rome's modern history - included 46 defendants when it opened at Rome's criminal courts in November 2015.

The case centred on the criminal infiltration of Rome's city hall and focused primarily on the embezzlement of funds destined for emergency housing for immigrants and camps for Roma people, as well as other sectors such as waste management, recycling and parks maintenance.

The two key figures in the case were the notorious criminal Massimo Carminati, a former member of the Nuclei Armati Rivluzionari (NAR) neofascist terrorist group as well as the Banda della Magliana; and his alleged right-hand man Salvatore Buzzi who was caught on wire-tap in 2013 boasting that the criminals made €40 million a year from immigrant funds, a racket "more profitable than drug trafficking."

Jail terms

In 2017 Carminati and Buzzi were sentenced to 20 years and 19 years respectively for their roles in the corruption case, however the jail sentences were subsequently reduced by the appeals court: 14 years and six months for Caminati, and 18 years and four months for Buzzi.

In 2019 the court of cassation rued that the Mafia Capitale case was a 'criminal' rather than a 'Mafia-style' organisation, resulting in a new appeal process and re-evaluation of the jail terms.

In 2020 Buzzi was released from house arrest, and Carminati from jail, after a judge ruled that the maximum amount of time they could be deprived of their freedom before a definitive verdict on their cases had run out.

In March 2021 the court of cassation sentenced Buzzi to 12 years, 8 months and 20 days in prison - a verdict he has appealed to the supreme court.

Cover image Salvatore Buzzi. Photo Il Riformista.
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