Edoardo Contini

Edoardo Contini (; born July 6, 1955) is an Italian Camorra boss. He is the founder and head of the Contini clan, a Camorra clan with its central base in the Arenaccia, that also operates in the Poggioreale, Vasto, Mercato and San Carlo all'Arena suburbs of Naples.

He is known as ("Angel Face") and ("the Roman"), due to his business connections in Rome. In 2001, Contini was included on the list of most wanted fugitives in Italy and eventually captured on December 14, 2007. Prior to his arrest, he was alleged to be one of the most powerful bosses of the Camorra.

Early life Edoardo Contini was born in the Vasto quarter of Naples, but his father Augusto moved after a short time in the notorious district of Amicizia, which became the headquarters of the clan. He began his criminal career as a small robber. He made the "qualitative leap" by marrying Maria Aieta, the sister of Mallardo clan boss, Francesco Mallardo.

Secondigliano Alliance Contini, together with Mallardo and Gennaro Licciardi of the Licciardi clan, was one of the founding members of the Secondigliano Alliance in the mid-1980s. The Secondigliano Alliance was created with the sole purpose to control the drug trade and the extortion rackets in many suburbs of Naples. Thus, according to Francesco Forgione, president of parliament's anti-mafia commission, Contini built one of the most dangerous and violent cartels to ever exist in the Neapolitan underworld. Furthermore, Italian Interior Minister Giuliano Amato labeled Contini as "perhaps the most dangerous boss in Naples". He is considered to be the inventor of the racketeering string of houses in the Vasto suburb, as well as the common codes used for drugs. For instance, the matches are "slip" and doses are "bra".

1994 arrest and fugitive In New Year's Eve, 1994, Contini was arrested by the Italian police during the New Year's celebrations at the chic ski resort at Cortina D'Ampezzo. He was convicted in 1996 of criminal association for illicit businesses, including clandestine betting operations. Contini was released in 2000 because his arrest warrant expired before his trial could be concluded. Shortly afterwards, he went into hiding while trials against him were still going on.

He is believed to have spent some of his years in hiding in Northern Europe, including Germany. He also maintained control of his clan from hiding, leading a vast criminal empire dealing in drugs, extortion, prostitution, money lending and illegal immigration. Contini also recycled money through a casino in Venice, where his clan led mainly checks and pretending to change them having to pay in exchange for tokens to use for the game and mask as winnings.

Contini took extraordinary measures to ensure that he was never re-arrested. To avoid detection, he never left a place for months, keeping fit on a treadmill and watching satellite TV. He avoided using phones or the internet, instead issuing orders through small hand written notes called Pizzini, which he handed to visiting subordinates. In a further effort to evade detection, he only visited his wife Maria Aiata during Christmas. He never saw his two-month-old grandson. He even avoided sending clothes out for laundry by ordering in a constant supply of clean underwear, never wearing the same underwear twice. His weekly regimen included chicken with potatoes, steak and salad and ricotta cheese with rocket. He never had desserts. In the corner of his room was a running machine, and a 32-inch television with a Sky subscription.