The Navy awarded Mafia-linked contractors despite murder and bid-rigging indictments

Evidence

In the 1990s, three major janitorial, grounds keeping, and maintenance contractors at Sicily’s Sigonella naval base were revealed to have Mafia ties. According to court rulings, the controlling partner in the three companies, Carmelo La Mastra, was part of attempts to intimidate a competitor into withdrawing a contract bid. A U.S. court found that it was “probably in connection with that bid” that another firm’s owner was killed. La Mastra’s companies were placed under legal receivership, and he was indicted for his role in a “Mafia-type association” and bid rigging. Yet in 1999, the Navy awarded La Mastra’s three companies a major base maintenance contract, stating they had they had “a satisfactory record of performance, integrity, and business ethics.” — David Vine, Base Nation_ How U.S. Military Bases…, 370

Categorization

• XREF: Supports and directly extends the chapter’s Naples theme; connects to broader pattern of U.S. base contractors with criminal histories documented elsewhere in Base Nation.
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — David Vine, Base Nation_ How U.S. Military Bases…, 370