the sicilian Matteo Messina Denaro, The last godfather of Cosa Nostra, arrested this Monday after having lived 30 years in hiding, was a ruthless murderer, who ordered both massacres and million-dollar businesses and loved luxury.
“With the people I have killed, I could fill an entire cemetery,” he once boasted, referring to the people he has personally killed, even with his bare hands, by strangulation.
A firearms expert, he knew how to shoot since he was 14 years old and committed his first homicide at the age of 18.
Nicknamed “Diabolik”, by the name of a criminal protagonist of a famous Italian comic strip, he was now the undisputed leader of the feared Sicilian Mafia Cosa Nostra, specialized in the millionaire drug traffic, but also with tentacles in the real estate sector, wind energy and online betting.
Born on April 26, 1962 in Castelvetrano, in southwestern Sicily, he had been part of the organization since childhood thanks to his father, Don Ciccio, leader of the local clan.
Leader of the new generation that replaced the old godfathers, the “prince of Trapani”, as he was often called, had a true passion for luxury cars, women and gold watches.
A lover of electronic games, his followers revered him as a god despite his ruthless style shown in the 90s, when he ordered the killing of anti-mafia judges Falcone and Borsellino and ordered a series of bombings in Rome, Milan and Florence.
His first problems with the law began in 1989, when he was accused of mafia association for his participation in the bloody fight between two rival clans.
That same year he was accused of ordering the murder of Nicola Consales, a hotelier who regretted that his employees had connections to the mafia, including none other than Diabolik’s mistress.
Alliance Castelvetrano – Corleonesi
As leader of the so-called Castelvetrano clan, he signed an alliance with the famous Corleonesi clan, immortalized in the film “The Godfather”, and He became one of the heirs of the feared “capo of all capos” Toto Riini, “The Beast”, captured in 1993 and died in 2017.
In July 1992, he participated in the murder of Mincenzo Milazzo, head of the Alcamo clan, and strangled his partner, who was three months pregnant, fueling his reputation as a cruel leader.
After the arrest of Toto Riina, Messina Denaro led the strategy of terror, supported the organization of the attacks in Florence, Milan and Rome, outside of Sicily, which left a total of ten dead and a hundred injured.
60-year-old arrested mobster Matteo Messina was known for his extreme cruelty: he boasted that he could “fill an entire cemetery” with his victims. Among them, a teenager, the son of a repentant mobster, whom he ordered to dissolve in acid. #AFP pic.twitter.com/MjptrIVKDR
— Agence France-Presse (@AFPespanol) January 16, 2023
In the middle of 1993 he chose to disappear, he became the invisible leader of a millionaire criminal organization and his appearance was unknown to most Italians.
Accused of mafia association, homicide, possession of explosives, theft and other crimes, He has received convictions for mafia, attacks and fifty homicides.
Between 1994 and 1996, the testimonies of various repentants shed light on his role within Cosa Nostra.
In 2000, after the maxi-trial against the mafia called “Omega” and held in Trapani, he was sentenced in absentia to life imprisonment.
Kidnapping of the child Di Matteo
He was one of the organizers in 1993 of the kidnapping of little Giuseppe Di Matteo to force his father Santino to recant his testimony about the murder of Judge Falcone.
After 779 days of detention, the boy was strangled and his body was dissolved in acid, one of the most horrible crimes of his long career.
During his years as a fugitive, he communicated under the pseudonym “Alessio” through the famous “pizzini”, messages written on small pieces of paper and easily hidden.
In 2010, Forbes magazine included him in the list of the ten most dangerous fugitives in the world.
His years as a fugitive were marked by rumors. It is claimed that he underwent plastic surgery to render him unrecognizable.
According to European journalistic data, he suffers from colon cancer with liver metastases for which he underwent periodic cycles of chemotherapy treatments. The Sicilian clinic where he was treated is located about 7 blocks from the police station that carried out the capture of the capo. (YO)
Source: Eluniverso
Paul is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment and general news. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established herself as a respected voice in the industry.
