On 17 October 2026, the Naples Review Tribunal annulled the precautionary measure against entrepreneur Nicola Dello Russo, who had been placed under house arrest in connection with an alleged extortion investigation in the Vallo di Lauro.
The decision was issued by the Twelfth Section of the Review Tribunal. Dello Russo was defended by lawyer Gaetano Aufiero. The measure had followed a detention order issued by the Naples Anti-Mafia Directorate concerning four suspects over alleged extortion carried out between February and September 2026.
The investigation
The underlying investigation concerns four suspects and alleged extortion pressure against companies working on public and private construction projects in the Vallo di Lauro.
Prosecutors linked the investigation to alleged conduct facilitating the Graziano clan. Reporting on the operation describes Dello Russo as the alleged intermediary between the Graziano group and the targeted companies.
After the initial operation, Fiore and Rodolfo Graziano were held in prison, while Eugenio Russo and Nicola Dello Russo were placed under house arrest.
According to local reporting, the allegations included pressure on construction sites, threats of arson, and the use of a WikiMafia text to reinforce an extortion demand.
What the Avellino court had decided
In the first phase of the proceedings, the Avellino judge did not validate the detention order. The judge instead imposed precautionary measures, while excluding sufficient evidence at that stage for the alleged charge of mafia-type criminal association.
The available reporting says validation proceedings for the four suspects were still pending before the Naples judge after the Avellino judge declared territorial incompetence.
What the annulment means — and what it does not
The Naples court's decision concerned Dello Russo's precautionary measure. The available report does not state that it resolved the underlying criminal investigation.
The annulment of a precautionary measure is not an acquittal. It does not by itself establish whether the underlying allegations against Dello Russo will proceed, be modified, or be dropped.
The detailed legal reasoning behind the annulment has not been reported. The full text of the Review Tribunal order is not available in the published sources, nor is there an official statement from the prosecution or the defence in the material reviewed.
Readers should therefore treat the 17 October decision as a change in Dello Russo's custodial status, not as a final judgment on the facts alleged by investigators. All persons named in connection with the investigation remain presumed innocent unless and until a final conviction is issued.
