The Menkalinan System contained, as of the mid-Twenty-Third Century, some of the most booming asteroid mining fields in the Terran Federation. However, it was known for a degree of danger and lawlessness; as it was located beyond the Capella System, conveys to and from Menkalinan ran the risk of being intercepted by Capella pirates, while many criminal groups operated within the asteroid fields themselves (such as Capello Nero, which operated a local base on the planet PB34428).