A former member of the Italian far right, at the head of the underworld in Rome until his arrest in 2014, was sentenced to ten years in prison on Tuesday.
Massimo Carminati, 62, was the man at the center of the massive corruption scandal in the Italian capital, which had been dubbed "Mafia Capital" and had discredited some of the Roman political staff.
Read also: In Rome, the sprawling "Mafia capital" before justice
The Rome Court of Appeal also sentenced his main partner, Salvatore Buzzi, to twelve years and 10 months in prison.
The two men were accused of having set up a mafia network specializing in racketeering, theft and fraud, in particular the rigging of public works and service tenders in the Italian capital.
Their downfall had led to dozens of others, including local politicians of all stripes, businessmen and Rome City Hall officials, accused of taking advantage.
This scandal discredited the city's political elites and paved the way for a historic victory in the municipal elections by the then anti-establishment Five Star Movement in 2016. After several legal twists in the prosecution case, Carminati and Buzzi have convicted of criminal conspiracy and other crimes, but the Mafia charges, which carry more severe penalties, were dropped in 2019.
The two men were released from prison in 2020 as they had served the maximum time allowed for inmates awaiting a final decision on their case.
It was not known on Tuesday evening whether Carminati and Buzzi would have to return to prison following these convictions, which can be the subject of appeals.