Rumours of leadership change in Melbourne's Italian mafia, the 'Ndrangheta, should not be trusted, expert says

Police outside the home of John Latorre after he was shot dead in his driveway. (ABC News)

The Melbourne-based chapter of the Calabrian mafia may be using “fake news” to try and divert law enforcement attention away from its leadership, an Italian organised crime expert has said.

According to Anna Sergi, a world-renowned expert on the Calabrian mafia, which is also known as the ‘Ndrangheta, the rumours may be a red herring to protect the leadership.

“The change of leadership, I wouldn’t trust it that much,” Ms Sergi told 7.30 from her home in Bologna, Italy.

The highly secretive ‘Ndrangheta made headlines this month after Melbourne fruiterer John Latorre, was shot dead in his driveway as he was leaving in the early hours of the morning to go to work.

The nature of the killing has led many underworld experts to conclude the hit was likely carried out on the orders of other organised crime figures.

Ms Sergi said the ‘Ndrangheta, which is reputed to threaten members with death if they disclose information about the group publicly, may be trying to deliberately create confusion over who is acting as its godfather.

“There is an interesting concept in ‘Ndrangheta which a lot of the older members obey, which is called false politics, which is falsifying decision-making practices,” she said.

Ms Sergi said leadership of the group could currently be made up of a committee of various senior members which could cause tension within the group.

“If that is the case, we are in a position to assume that new groups can rise up and claim a seat at the ‘Ndrangheta table,” she said.

Ms Sergi said it’s too early to determine whether leadership tension was a motive in Mr Latorre’s murder and police have not commented on the organised crime elements of the case.

“‘Ndrangheta kills for three reasons. One is preventative to avoid things getting out. Two is revenge, so it’s punitive. And the third one is demonstrative, so it’s a performance, so you need to kill someone in order to show your power,” Ms Sergi said.

She said that if the execution was ordered by ‘Ndrangheta then a serious transgression of the rules would have had to have occurred.

“The ‘Ndrangheta does not kill lightly … because it’s costly and no one wants that,” she said.

Latorre described as ‘pillar of strength’

Mr Latorre’s funeral was held at St Monica’s Catholic Church in Melbourne’s Moonee Ponds on Saturday. The church couldn’t accommodate the hundreds who attended and many watched the live stream of the service outside.

Mr Latorre was remembered as a well-respected member of the local community.

Also in attendance was well-known Melbourne identity Mick Gatto, who was acquitted of the 2005 murder of underworld hit man Andrew “Benji” Veniamin.

Mr Latorre’s daughter Antoinette described him as a “pillar of strength”, telling the congregation that she rushed to his side when she discovered he had been shot.

“I want you to know I tried everything I could that morning to help you. I was right by you, as you are with me,” she said.

Code of silence

Colin McLaren, who worked as an undercover police officer trying to dismantle ‘Ndrangheta in the New South Wales town of Griffith as well as Melbourne and Adelaide, said police often noted that men within the society are often dedicated family men but highly paranoid.

“They’re so powerful and so dangerous, and everybody’s looking over everybody’s shoulder,” he said.

Now based in New York, the former detective said law enforcement will likely never solve Mr Latorre’s murder.

“Probably the police won’t solve it, it’s just the way it is,” he said.

“The code of silence and the fear of being killed in such a horrific way, that keeps people silent. But law enforcement must keep up the effort.”

In 2021, federal police said ‘Ndrangheta activity was rife in Australia, claiming the group controlled about 70 per cent of the world’s cocaine market.

The AFP claimed the information was gleaned from a messaging app called ANOM, which criminals believed was encrypted and secure but was being covertly monitored by officers in Australia and the United States.

Mr McLaren said the sting showcased the extraordinary global scale of the ‘Ndrangheta, which allows them to move drugs around the world.

“They’re so big. It’s so prevalent,” he said.

“There are so many members of them in Australia and globally.”

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