LA STIDDA | La Stidda: Sicily’s Other Mafia & Its Brutal History

[0:00]La Stidda is a Sicilian mafia type criminal organization that emerged during the Second Mafia War as a breakaway faction of Cosa Nostra. Its members known as Stidari primarily operate in Southern and Eastern Sicily with influence extending to mainland Italy in cities like Milan, Genoa, and Turin. Unlike Cosa Nostra, La Stidda is loosely structured with independent clans that sometimes collaborate or even ally with local Cosa Nostra factions. The group follows similar rituals including a membership tattoo, a five-pointed start inked between the thumb and index finger. Many of its founding members were former Cosa Nostra soldiers expelled for disobedience or personal connections to law enforcement. Early Stidari were loyalists of mafia boss Giuseppe Di Cristina, who was taken out by the Corleonesi faction. La Stidda expanded into extortion, gambling and contract hits. A violent conflict in the early 1990s sparked by the rub out of boss Calogero Lauria led to over 300 deaths including a judge. Today, Stida gangs continue to operate independently across Italy.