Italian police on Tuesday "detained some 50 people, including team managers, players and a suspected Calabrian mobster," accused of fixing dozens of football matches in the country's third division and its top semi-pro league, according to Steve Scherer of REUTERS. Andrea Grassi, investigator for Italy's SCO, an Italian anti-mafia police unit, said, "The probe demonstrates there was a heinous pact of corruption in the world of soccer. It shows the interest of criminal networks in the business generated by soccer and the legal betting industry." The investigation "began when police tapped the telephone of a member of the Iannazzo mob family in Calabria, discovering that he was arranging matches in order to make money by betting on them." The charges "included conspiracy to commit sporting fraud, which in some cases favored organized crime groups." The continuing investigation "also includes second division, or Serie B, games" (REUTERS, 5/19). The BBC reported the 'Ndrangheta crime syndicate "is believed to be behind some of the match-fixing." The syndicate "is a network of clans in Calabria -- in the 'toe' of Italy -- that dominates the country's cocaine trade." Local media said that "one police officer was also involved in the scandal" (BBC, 5/19). FOOTBALL ITALIA reported Italian Football Federation (FIGC) President Carlo Tavecchio declared "we’re not police." Clubs "involved include Pro Patria, Barletta, Brindisi, L’Aquila, Neapolis Mugnano, Torres, Vigor-Lamezia, Santarcangelo, Sorrento, Montalto, Puteolana, Akragas and San Severo." Tavecchio said, "This kind of betting is a crime, I’ve often said this in the past. ... Football is one of the things in this country which does not need these kinds of scandals. We want to protect the system, but we don’t have the means to do it, we’re not police" (FOOTBALL ITALIA, 5/19).
