'Black Widow' mafia clan rounded up: who are they?

Italian police say they have arrested several senior figures of one of the oldest and most influential mafia groups in Naples, the Moccia clan, which is headed by a woman known as the "Black Widow".

"Luigi Moccia, reportedly the current business brains of the organisation, was one of five people placed in custody after Tuesday's dawn raids," reports AFP.

The arrests have been hailed as "an important victory" by the Italian government.

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Who are they and what do they do?

The Moccia clan is based in the small town of Afragola, on the outskirts of Naples. Italian prosecutors accuse the group of extortion and other crimes related to their wholesale of fruit, vegetables and mozzarella.

Coldiretti, Europe's largest agricultural producer's organisation, warns of the effects of the illicit trade of fine Italian foods. "Not only do they destroy free market competition and choke honest entrepreneurs, they also gravely comprise the quality and safety of food," it said.

For more than half a century, the clan has been led by family matriarch Anna Mazza, the first woman ever to be convicted in connection with the Italian mafia. She became known as the "Black Widow" after taking control of the family business following the murder of her husband, Gennaro Moccia.

Is it unusual to have a female mafia boss?

Women occupy a wide range of roles within the Neapolitan crime syndicate, from bodyguards to bosses, according to the Los Angeles Times.

"In Naples, women are traditionally responsible for the finances within the household. They run the accounts and, according to anti-mafia investigators, have taken a major part in money laundering, cutting up drug deliveries for distribution and running numbers, says the newspaper.