One-Eyed 'Pirate Of Rome' On Trial In Mafia Case <br /> <br />Massimo Carminati is among dozens accused of colluding with bureaucrats and politicians to rig public tenders for city projects. <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />A one-eyed gangster nicknamed "The Pirate of Rome" has gone on trial alongside 45 other defendants accused of skimming millions of euros off city hall contracts. <br /> <br />Massimo Carminati, a former member of Rome's notorious far-right Magliana Gang, and his partner, the convicted murderer Salvatore Buzzi, are accused of masterminding a major crime ring with links to city bureaucrats and politicians. <br /> <br />The trial is the result of the "Mafia Capital" investigation which uncovered evidence of alleged collusion among senior public figures in Rome. <br /> <br />It is the biggest mafia trial in the city's recent history, with prosecutors saying their year-long investigation has laid bare systematic corruption in the Italian capital. <br />Massimo Carminati <br /> <br />Alleged mafia boss Massimo Carminati, nicknamed 'The Pirate of Rome' <br /> <br />They allege politicians, businessmen and bureaucrats linked up with mobsters to rig public tenders for projects including refugee centres and rubbish collection. <br /> <br />Carminati, who lost an eye in a shootout with police in the 1980s, is alleged to have delivered envelopes of cash to officials in exchange for lucrative public contracts. <br /> <br />Ahead of the trial police released an array of wiretaps which they claim record the defendants openly discussing their schemes. <br /> <br />In one of the wiretaps, Buzzi is alleged to have said: "Do you have any idea how much money you can make from immigrants? The drugs trade bring you less money." <br />ITALY-JUSTICE-TRIAL-MAFIA <br /> <br />Alessandro Diddi, the lawyer for Salvatore Buzzi, at the courthouse in Rome <br /> <br />Neither Carminati nor Buzzi will appear in court during the trial. They will follow proceedings via video links from a high-security jail. <br /> <br />Both men have denied having any links to the mafia, a crime which carries longer prison terms and tougher jail conditions than a conviction for corruption. <br /> <br />"In this whole story, the thing which has really annoyed Carminati is the fact that his name has been associated with the words 'mafia' and 'drugs'," said Carminati's lawyer Giosue Naso. <br /> <br />"He has nothing to do with the mafia." <br />ITALY-JUSTICE-TRIAL-MAFIA <br /> <br />A court employee brings legal files into the courthouse ahead of the trial <br /> <br />But Alfonso Sabella, a renowned Sicilian anti-mafia prosecutor who was drafted into the city after the "Mafia Capital" scandal escalated last year, said: "Rome is unfortunately fundamentally corrupt. <br /> <br />"This is not your traditional mafia involved in drug dealing or extortion rackets. This is something original." <br /> <br />Other defendants include Luca Gramazio, the former head of Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia party on the regional council, and Mirko Coratti, former head of Prime Minister Matteo Renzi's centre-left Democratic Party on the Rome city council. <br /> <br />Both have denied any wrongdoing. <br /> <br />The case is expected to last until at least July 2016. <br />Top Stories <br /> <br /> Egyptian president UK visit <br /> Breaking News: Egypt's Al Sisi Meets PM At Downing Street <br /> passengers stranded at Sharm <br /> Breaking News: Stranded Tourists 'To Fly Home Tomorrow' <br /> Sharm el Sheikh Airport <br /> Breaking News: Passengers' Stories Of 'Shocking' Security <br /> Bank Of England <br /> Breaking News: Bank Signals No Interest Rate Rise Until 2017 <br /> Migrants sleep at a transit camp in Gevgelija, Macedonia <br /> Three Million More Migrants Set For EU
