Mafia, Enzo Miucci, like his uncle Ciccillo: "He's an eternal father, a god. You don't mess with him."

“ Enzo Miucci is a god, an eternal father. You don't mess with him.” These are strong words used by Giuseppe Della Malva , a pentito from Vieste, who, before the District Anti-Mafia Directorate – as reported by the Gazzetta del Mezzogiorno – outlined the criminal profile of Enzino Miucci , 42, originally from Monte Sant'Angelo , nicknamed “U' Criatur.” Not a nickname chosen by the clan, but one given to him by the newspapers. For men of honor, he is Renzino , a feared and respected boss, today considered the operational and charismatic leader of the Li Bergolis-Miucci-Lombardone clan , direct heir to the historic “mountain dwellers” group.

The expression "eternal father" also appeared in the documents of the "Gargano" operation on the war between Li Bergolis and Primosa, in which case the reference was to the boss of bosses, Ciccillo Li Bergolis , Miucci's uncle, later killed in 2009 by unknown killers. Francesco, known as "Ciccillo" Li Bergolis, is the man who started it all, the clan's patriarch, with a criminal history that began in the 1960s and ended with his death in a farmhouse in Monte Sant'Angelo, executed by a gunshot to the face while he was repairing a car.

A childhood marked by blood

His criminal rise has its roots in the historic feud between the Li Bergolis and the Primosa-Alfieri families , which killed 35 people between 1978 and 2010. At just 9 years old, Enzino lost his father Antonio Miucci , murdered in broad daylight by a masked killer during the August bank holiday of 1993. A few months earlier, his uncle Matteo Miucci had also fallen under the blows of a lupara. A war between clans that tormented Monte Sant'Angelo for decades, leaving a long trail of unsolved crimes. In the end, the Li Bergolis prevailed, while the Primosa family was practically wiped out, reached and killed even in Northern Italy where they tried to take refuge.

Franco Li Bergolis's right-hand man

In the massive Gargano Mafia trial that, between 2004 and 2010, dismantled the historic leadership of the mountain tribe, Enzo Miucci was acquitted. But in the meantime, he had already assumed a leading role: he was the trusted bodyguard of Franco Li Bergolis , a boss who had been on the run for over a year. According to the investigation, his protection was provided by the "Società Foggiana." Miucci was sentenced to five years in the "Blauer" trial against his supporters, but was now ready to climb the ladder.

The command of the clan

With the capture and convictions of his cousins ​​Franco (life imprisonment), Armando, and Matteo Li Bergolis (about 27 years each) , Miucci took over the reins of the clan. The Anti-Mafia Directorate (DDA) wrote this back in 2012, during the Rinascimento raid that convicted him of extortion and loan sharking: "Miucci earned his leadership," reads a press release from the time, "through a life spent alongside boss Li Bergolis, who practically adopted him as a child."

In 2016, he was arrested along with Matteo Pettinicchio , now a repentant, while returning to Puglia with three guns hidden in his car. In 2017, in the hours following the San Marco in Lamis mafia massacre , he was among the prime suspects. There is no concrete evidence, but his name remains a constant reference in the investigations.

The accusation: he shot the rival boss

A watershed moment is the story of former lieutenant Pettinicchio , who broke his silence last January. He accuses him of being among the killers in the massacre of August 9, 2017 , when rival boss Mario Luciano Romito was eliminated: "He shot him in the head while he was still alive, taunting him: 'Run away, Mario Romito!'" In reality, according to expert reports, there does not appear to have been a final blow .

The massacre was the culmination of an internal war within the former cartel between mountain men and men from Manfredonia, which resulted in 21 deaths and 36 bloody incidents in less than twenty years. According to informants, Miucci wanted to sever all ties with Mario Luciano Romito's group and establish himself as the sole master of drug trafficking in the Gargano area.

International traffic and the "update" on landings

He has been in prison since November 20, 2019 , implicated in the Friends raid, which sees him charged with drug trafficking in the trial still underway in Foggia. The DDA believes he also supplied cocaine to Calabrian circles. Not only that: according to statements from collaborators, Enzino allegedly received a percentage ("the point") on every shipment of marijuana coming from Albania and landed on the Gargano coast . A multi-million dollar business also described by another informer, Gianluigi Troiano : "We landed on a yacht belonging to Miucci's friends and a dinghy belonging to friends of Quitadamo. There were 3,000 kilos on the yacht and 1,000 on the dinghy . The landing took place in an area of ​​Peschici. Piergiorgio and I unloaded the 1,000 kilos and transported them by van to a farmhouse in Peschici."

“Mari e Monti”: he continued to command even from prison

His name is also among the main suspects in the " Mari e Monti " operation, with 41 arrests reported last October and 50 people under investigation, including his older brother Dino . Renzino Miucci is accused of mafia, drug trafficking, extortion, and robbery . Investigators maintain that he continued to exercise his leadership even from prison, using cell phones available to him.

" He led the organization, making the most significant strategic decisions ," the documents state. According to the DDA, Matteo Pettinicchio was at his side, and he guaranteed "full and constant availability" to the boss, until the betrayal that opened up new and very serious legal avenues.

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