The Aquino clan is opposed to the
Mazzaferro clan from the same town. In the 1970s, his clan entered into the smuggling of cigarettes, which led to a bloody feud with the
Mazzaferro-Femia. He was a member of the
Camera di Controllo, a provincial commission of the 'Ndrangheta formed at the end of the
Second 'Ndrangheta war in September 1991 to avoid further internal conflicts. He was involved in running a
heroin lab in
Rota d'Imagna in the
province of Bergamo that was discovered in 1990. On 13 February 1999, in
Marina di Gioiosa Ionica, he was sentenced to 15 years for criminal association and international drug trafficking. After many years in prison, Aquino was released due to his poor health and returned to live in Marina di Gioiosa Ionica. Aquino died on 18 February 2025, at the age of 80. ==References==