His maternal uncle, Giuseppe Nicola Coviello, was a bandit who died burned in a hut where he was hiding from the police; his paternal uncle, Francescantonio, was sentenced to ten years for beating a bourbon gendarme and, after the imprisonment, fled to Apulia after killing a man for a matter of gambling, working as a servant for a landowner of Cerignola but he left soon for banditry.

Ninco Nanco participated in the conquest of the entire Vulture zone, pushing forward to the province of Matera, Irpinia and Capitanata.

His principal targets were rich landowners, resorting to kidnapping, homicide and properties devastation for ransom to finance his band activities.

The most known episode of his brigand life happened in January 1863, when he killed in the wood of Castel Lagopesole Costantino Pulusella, director of Public Safety of Avigliano, the captain Luigi Capoduro and some of his troops who tried to lead him to surrender.

He helped his sisters economically, who lived in miserable conditions and, being deeply religious, he donated money to the priests to celebrate masses in honour of the Lady of Mount Carmel, whose effigy he carried always on his neck.

Ninco Nanco deposited valuable items in the chapel of Monte Carmine, which were seized and sold in 1863, by order of the antibrigandage committee.

[6] Ninco Nanco's activity began to weaken in early 1864, because of the betrayal of Giuseppe Caruso, Crocco's lieutenant who decided to collaborate with the Italian government.

On March 13, 1864, Ninco Nanco and two of his brigands (one of whom was his brother Francescantonio), while repairing in a farmhouse in the district of Castel Lagopesole, were suddenly surprised by the national guards, headed by captain Benedetto Corbo.