Benedetto "Nitto" Santapaola, a powerful Sicilian mafia leader who spent over 30 years in prison, has died at age 87. The crime boss was serving multiple life sentences for his role in orchestrating the murders of two prominent anti-mafia prosecutors in 1992.
A powerful Sicilian organized crime leader who spent more than three decades behind bars has passed away at age 87, according to two sources familiar with the situation who spoke Monday.
Benedetto “Nitto” Santapaola died while incarcerated at a maximum-security facility in Milan, where he was serving multiple life sentences for homicide and additional criminal charges following his 1993 arrest, one source confirmed.
Italy’s justice ministry has not yet provided a statement regarding the death.
Santapaola earned the fearsome nicknames “il cacciatore” (the hunter) and “il licantropo” (the werewolf) during his reign as the head of organized crime operations in Catania, a major city in eastern Sicily, spanning from the late 1970s through the early 1990s.
The deceased crime boss was prosecuted and found guilty as one of the masterminds behind the 1992 assassinations of Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino, two of Italy’s most renowned prosecutors dedicated to fighting organized crime.
Major Argentine Union Challenges President’s Labor Law Changes in Court
Missouri Farmer Warns of Brazil’s Growing Threat to U.S. Corn Market
Schools Face Hurdles Bringing Whole Milk Back to Cafeteria Menus
Michigan Farm Bureau: Deer Population Control Efforts Need More Focus