Italian police hold 63 in mob swoop

Italian police have arrested 63 people in raids in the southern Calabria region aimed at the ’ndrangheta organised crime gang.

Those arrested are suspected in at least 12 murders in recent decades as well as extortion rackets and attempts to rig bidding on public works projects.

Prosecutor Eugenio Facciolla, who co-ordinated the investigation, said the arrests “break up some dangerous criminal gangs”.

Investigators have long worried that the ’ndrangheta’s influence in society extends far beyond its rural roots in Calabria.