Italian police arrested the "postmen" of the Mafia's top boss on Monday, 19 close aides who delivered the notes he writes to impart orders from his hideout, officials said.
The officials hailed the arrests as the most significant blow to date to top boss Matteo Messina Denaro, who has been a fugitive for 17 years. Those taken into custody included Messina Denaro's brother, Salvatore, police said.
The written notes allowed Messina Denaro to run his businesses and communicate with his lieutenants and other Mafia families in Sicily and elsewhere, police said. Several businesses were shut down across Sicily.
Messina Denaro has been on Italy's wanted list since 1993 for murder and other crimes. He is believed to have climbed to the top of the Sicilian Mafia after the 2007 arrest of top boss Bernardo Provenzano.
news.brisbanetimes.com.au
|
