Italian police on Friday arrested
seven people in the countryside around the Sicilian city of
Agrigento in what they said was a continuation of a "scorched
earth" policy aimed at trapping the elusive head of the Sicilian
Mafia, Matteo Messina Denaro.
Police said alleged bosses and accomplices, key parts of a
support network for the fugitive Cosa Nostra chief, held
meetings in the fields, walking around to evade possible
surveillance devices.
Messina Denaro, 53, has not been publicly seen in more than
20 years, but an informant in 2014 helped Italian authorities
update their ideas of the Mafia boss's appearance, including
the fact he no longer wears eyeglasses and his dark hair has
receded.
The Cosa Nostra No.1, whose home fief is in Agrigento, has
been a fugitive since 1993 and according to Interpol he is among
the 10 most wanted criminals in the world.
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