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1 COAT ew te i ; operations were alleged to have been chiefly the rural districts of the southern, centret.and « estern provinces, vith a heavy concentration in the province of | | Palermo, “Most of the accused wrre charged with extortion, in many casea & | kind of controlled extortion that had continued for many years. The accused were, alleged to have individually and collectively established a reiga of terror over bas local rroperty owners of 21 classcs, forcing them to pay tribute in the form of local property owners of all classes, Soreing tem to pay Uribe In ene torm money and cthor valuable considerations such as cattle and grain, in return for: “protection,” In most Jastences they were charged with "banding together for- i { sa, tr! i] criminal purposes, "' an well a3 substantive crimes of various kinds, including |, rurder, attempted murder, assiult, blackmatl, robbery, theft (especially cattle (83) : ructling), and the rrrimting of live stock. In 1925, the Offfee of the Inspector Goncral of Public Security of Sicily, with the help of prosecutors and Carabiniert of the island identified and | arrente about 245 alleged “afiosi in the Cattolica Traclea area. -They were , charged with murvor, cattle rustling, and robberies, The sentence of death was allegedly carriod out against three of thetr number, about thirty were contenced to ile imprisonment: and the rest received sentences said to have (84) ranged from twenty te thirty years in prison. In 1937, thr same office is catd to have acted against 211 more Mafiosi, this time the adherents of Savara and of Palma Montechlaro, who were also... , (85) 4 given severe sentences. a peor i | - 45 -