Struggling Italian residents have found an unlikely ally during the coronavirus crisis, with the Mafia handing out free food on the streets amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The gangsters operating in the poorest Southern regions of Campania, Calabria, Sicily and Puglia have been pictured distributing initials to those who have been hit the hardest by the deadly virus.
However, anti-mafia investigator Nicola Gratteri has sounded an alarm over a wolf in sheep's clothing: "For over a month, shops, cafes, restaurants and pubs have been closed.
"Millions of people work in the grey economy, which means that they haven't received any income in more than a month and have no idea when they might return to work.
"The government is issuing so-called shopping vouchers to support people. If the state doesn't step in soon to help these families, the mafia will provide its services, imposing their control over people's lives."
The Mafia has a long-standing connection with Italian football, with infiltration and corruption becoming a regular occurrence even for the top Serie A sides.
Last year, the Italian Supreme Court found Juventus guilty of supplying match tickets that were subsequently resold for profit under the control of the Calabrian mafia.
Reflecting on the mafia's role in Italian society, professor of criminology at the University of Oxford Federico Varese said: "Mafias are not just criminal organisations.
"They are organisations that aspire to govern territories and markets. Commentators often focus on the financial aspect of mafias but they tend to forget that their strength comes from having a local base from which to operate."
