Rome - One of Italy's top five fugitives, 'Ndrangheta Mafia
boss Rocco Morabito, has been arrested in Uruguay after spending 23
years on the run.
In a Monday statement, Italian Interior Minister Marco Minniti
congratulated Italian and Uruguayan police for apprehending "the
number one fugitive" from the 'Ndrangheta.
The 50-year-old has been convicted in absentia for belonging to a
Mafia organization, cocaine trafficking and other serious crimes, and
should serve a 30-year-prison sentence.
Morabito was arrested on Sunday in a hotel in the centre of
Montevideo, the Uruguayan Interior Ministry said in a separate
statement, adding that his wife was also apprehended.
The mobster used a fake Brazilian passport under the name of
Francisco Capeletto. His wife, a 54-year-old from Angola, was
arrested at home in the luxury beach resort of Punta del Este.
The couple lived in a villa with a pool, according to photos released
by the ministry. It added that Morabito would be detained for three
months while extradition requests are processed.
Uruguayan authorities seized several items, including a gun, 13
mobile phones, 12 credit cards, 150 ID photos showing Morabito in
different clothing, two cars and more than 50,000 dollars in cash.
Originating from Calabria, the region that forms the tip of Italy's
boot, the 'Ndrangheta is one of the world's most powerful organized
crime groups, and is the leading smuggler of cocaine into Europe.
dpa