Matteo Messina Denaro, a notorious figure in the Cosa Nostra Mafia and Italy’s long-standing fugitive, was apprehended by police while receiving medical treatment at a private clinic in Palermo, according to prosecutor Maurizio de Lucia on Monday.
Since 1993, Messina Denaro had evaded capture and was among Europe’s most wanted individuals, as noted by Europol, de Lucia informed CNN.
“This arrest is a triumph for the collaborative efforts of law enforcement agencies over these many years to bring this dangerous fugitive to justice,” stated Lamberto Giannini, Italy’s chief of Police, applauding the Carabinieri and the Palermo Public Prosecutor’s Office.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni celebrated the event on Twitter, calling it “a great victory for the state,” emphasizing Italy’s steadfast stance against organized crime. Defense Minister Guido Crosetto echoed this sentiment, describing the arrest as “a testament to the state’s victory over the Mafia.”
While speaking outside the prosecutor’s office, Meloni acknowledged that while the battle against the Mafia continues, this arrest was pivotal. “Today is a day to celebrate and to tell our children that the Mafia can be defeated,” she asserted.
Matteo Messina Denaro, also known as “Diabolik,” has been implicated in numerous Mafia-related murders and was sentenced to multiple life terms in absentia, including for his role in the assassinations of anti-Mafia prosecutors Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino in 1992.
His most recent life sentence in 2020 was for bombings in Milan, Florence, and Rome, as well as for the brutal murder of an 11-year-old boy whose father had testified against the Cosa Nostra.
The arrest, conducted by over 100 specialized Carabinieri agents in a predawn raid at the Maddalena clinic, marks the end of a nearly three-decade-long manhunt for Italy’s longest-hiding fugitive. Messina Denaro is now held at a undisclosed location.
In recent years, authorities have intensified efforts against Messina Denaro’s network, seizing approximately €3 billion ($3.25 billion) in assets linked to his supporters and making arrests between 2009 and 2010.
Born into a Mafia family in Sicily in 1962, Messina Denaro inherited a criminal legacy. His brother and sister were also implicated in Mafia activities, with his sister currently serving a 14-year sentence.
During his years on the run, Messina Denaro maintained various relationships, including with his fiancée and a high-profile liaison with an Austrian hotel worker.
Despite numerous attempts over the years, authorities repeatedly failed to apprehend him, including a mistaken identity arrest in 2021 and various sightings that led to extensive manhunts.
Reported by CNN’s Barbie Latza Nadeau and Valentina Di Donato from Rome, and Antonia Mortensen from Milan.