Italy: Mafia fugitive arrested in south
February 17, 2009 by The Boss · Leave a Comment
Reggio Calabria (AKI) – Police on Monday arrested fugitive mafia suspect Paolo Latella, outside the southern Italian city of Reggio Calabria, on charges of mafia association and extortion. Latella, 37, initially resisted arrest, claiming police had made a mistake, but was identified by digital fingerprinting.
An acquaintance of Latella’s, Pasquale Lamonte, 36, was also arrested and charged with mafia collusion after a police found Latella sleeping at Lamonte’s home in the seaside town of Melito Porto Salvo.
Police said Latella had been living at Lamonte’s house for several months.
Latella evaded capture during a police operation, ordered by anti-mafia magistrates from the northern city of Milan last July, dubbed ‘Metallica’.
The ‘Metallica’ operation targeted a powerful extortion ring operated by the Calabrian mafia or ‘Ndrangheta in the northern regions of Lombardy and Veneto and in Reggio Calabria, allegedly headed by Giuseppe Onorato.
Italian authorities consider the ‘Ndrangheta the country’s most dangerous crime syndicate. It reportedly earns tens of billions of euros each year, largely from narcotics smuggled from Latin America, but also from extortion and other smuggling.
Thirty-five-year-old ‘Ndrangheta boss Giuseppe Nirta was last week extradited from the Netherlands to Italy to face charges over the suspected murder of six young men in Germany in 2007.
Investigators believe the murders outside a pizzeria in the northern German city of Duisburg were part of a long-running blood feud between two rival ‘Ndrangheta clans.
adnkronos.com/AKI/English/Security/?id=3.0.3021038121
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