LA Times: In Naples' mob, there's no glass ceiling

Story here. Excerpt:

'For decades, women have occupied a full range of roles within the Neapolitan crime syndicate, from bodyguard to boss, authorities say. 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.

But wives and mothers have also been among the perpetrators of some of the worst violence in Naples, with the emancipation of women in Neapolitan society over recent decades mirrored inside the secretive world of the Camorra.
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"Today women appear on all of the multiple arrest warrants that we issue," she said. "It's more like we are shedding light on a phenomenon that was always there."

The women operating in the Camorra crime syndicate today have some impressive role models to look back on. The first woman to be charged with "mafia association" was a Neapolitan, Anna Mazza, about a decade ago. The murder of her husband, Gennaro Moccia, gave her the nickname, the "Camorra Widow," and put the top job within her reach. She grabbed for it. She became the undisputed leader of her clan, moving its activities toward the lucrative construction industry and dramatically increasing its power.'