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- Jun 22, 2020
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ROME—The arrest of Sicilian mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro marks the end of an era for Cosa Nostra, a once-dominant player in global crime that has largely been forced to retreat to its native island.
Captured this week after 30 years on the run, Mr. Messina Denaro was the last leading mobster who represented Cosa Nostra, as the Sicilian mafia is known in Italy, in its heyday and still lived at large. He played a major role in the crime syndicate in the 1980s and 1990s, when it controlled the trans-Atlantic heroin trade and waged a ruthless campaign against anything that stood in the way, from rival factions to the Italian state.
As a young mobster, Mr. Messina Denaro was a protégé of the Sicilian mafia’s most notorious chief: Salvatore Riina, whose faction, based in the town of Corleone in Sicily’s mountainous interior, waged a bloody internal war to become Cosa Nostra’s “boss of bosses.”
www.wsj.com
Captured this week after 30 years on the run, Mr. Messina Denaro was the last leading mobster who represented Cosa Nostra, as the Sicilian mafia is known in Italy, in its heyday and still lived at large. He played a major role in the crime syndicate in the 1980s and 1990s, when it controlled the trans-Atlantic heroin trade and waged a ruthless campaign against anything that stood in the way, from rival factions to the Italian state.
As a young mobster, Mr. Messina Denaro was a protégé of the Sicilian mafia’s most notorious chief: Salvatore Riina, whose faction, based in the town of Corleone in Sicily’s mountainous interior, waged a bloody internal war to become Cosa Nostra’s “boss of bosses.”
Sicilian Mafia’s Bloodiest Era Draws to a Close With Arrest of Old-School Boss
The crime syndicate has largely retreated to its native island, but its members still enjoy a strong support network.
www.wsj.com
