'Ndrangheta crackdown: Police arrest nearly 170 mobsters in raids across Germany and Italy

Police in Italy and Germany have arrested 169 people in a series of anti-mafia raids in the biggest crackdown on organised crime in two decades.

The swoop targeted the Farao-Marincola clan, part of the deadly Calabria-based 'NDrangheta mafia, who are accused of running a crime empire covering vineyards, ports, restaurants and toxic waste disposal.

About 11 arrests were made on Wednesday [9 January] in Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Hesse and North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany.

Officers in Calabria, southern Italy made just under 160 arrests in and around the town of Ciro. Two mayors and a provincial president, Nicodemo Parrilla, who is accused of appointing mob-approved officials to public office, were among those taken by detectives.

Assets worth around €50m (£44.06m; $59.79m) were seized. The assets were held across 57 separate companies.

Suspects in both countries were charged with a range of crimes including attempted murder, money laundering, extortion and holding illegal weapons.

Enforcement authorites said the 'NDrangheta was so entrenched in Ciro that both candidates in a recent mayoral race in the town were backed by the clan.

Local magistrate Vincenzo Luberto said: "We can't talk about mafia infiltration of the economy any more since the 'NDrangheta and the business community have become one."

Pizzeria shooting

Veteran 'NDrangheta investigator Nicola Gratteri added: "This investigation is the biggest in 23 years, based on the arrests."

Germany's federal criminal police office said the arrests they made centred around the illegal control and supply of pizza ingredients and wine to local Italian restaurants.

The 'NDrangheta first came to the attention of German police in 2007 when six gangsters were shot dead outside a pizzeria in Duisburg during a feud between families. Police said the gang was making plans to expand into Switzerland.

The 'Ndrangheta mafia rose to prominence in the 1990s through drug trafficking before branching out into an extensive network of interests that includes construction, funeral homes and supermarkets.

The 'Ndrangheta made more money in 2014 than Deutsche Bank and McDonald's put together with a turnover of €53bn (£44bn), according to economics body the Demoskopika research institute. It added this figure was equivalent to 3.5% of Italy's gross domestic product the previous year.