Italy
Fugitive ‘Ndrangheta mafia boss caught in Genoa
This year, several mafiosi who have been wanted for years have already been arrested by Italian authorities (symbolic image). photo
© Press Office Questura Di Roma/ANSA/ZUMA/dpa
He was one of Italy’s most wanted criminals, a powerful boss of the dreaded ‘Ndrangheta. Pasquale Bonavota escaped for years, but now his escape is over.
The Italian carabinieri arrested the Mafia boss Pasquale Bonavota in Genoa, who had been on the run for years. Special units caught the 49-year-old after a long investigation in the northern Italian city, as the carabinieri announced.
The Mafioso of the Calabrian ‘Ndrangheta has been wanted since 2018. He was one of the most wanted Italian criminals and, along with other Mafia figures, was included in the Interior Ministry’s list of the most dangerous fugitives.
Bonavota are accused of, among other things, mafia affiliation, murder, illegal possession of weapons and drug trafficking. He was the only person still on the run in 2019 after a full-scale raid that made 334 arrests. According to the Carabinieri, Bonavota was the boss of the Sant Onofrio clan of the ‘Ndrangheta to the end.
Italy’s Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi thanked the emergency services involved and congratulated them. “A great success for our investigators,” said the politician, according to a statement. Bonavota’s arrest is a “strong reaction from the state” and shows the “great commitment of the judiciary and authorities” in the fight against organized crime.
This year, several mafiosi who have been wanted for years have already been arrested. In mid-January, for example, the Italian authorities managed to arrest Cosa Nostra boss Matteo Messina Denaro in Sicily after 30 years on the run. In cooperation with foreign authorities, two more high-ranking mafiosi were arrested in France and on Bali.