(VOVworld) – One of Italy's biggest organised crime trials in years - dubbed Mafia Capital - has opened in Rome, where councillors and gangsters allegedly stole millions of euros of public cash.

Journalists surrounded Carminati's lawyer Bruno Naso outside the court  (Photo: AP)

Prosecutors say their year-long investigation has laid bare systematic corruption in the city, as politicians, bureaucrats and businessmen hooked up with mobsters to rig public tenders on everything from creating refugee centres to rubbish collection. Forty-six defendants are on trial in the corruption case, which involves millions of euros allegedly stolen from city hall. The suspects were arrested last December. Since the “Mafia Capital” scandal broke in 2014, more than 150 people have been arrested or investigated. The move created a storm within the ruling Democratic Party, with accusations saying it has supported the mafia for a long time.