Italy nabs top Mafia boss Lo Piccolo

The Italian police this morning arrested Salvatore Lo Piccolo, 65, reputed leader of the Sicilian Mafia, according to stories by Jeff Israely of TIME and Elisabetta Povoledo of the International Herald Tribune.

Lo Piccolo (right) had been a fugitive since 1983, when he was convicted of murder. Italian authorities believe he became the most powerful boss of the Sicilian Mafia after the April 2006 capture of Bernardo Provenzano near Corleone.

Lo Piccolo, his son Sandro, 35, and two other associates - Andrea Adamo and Gaspare Pulizzi - were arrested in homes in the town of Cinisi, just west of Palermo. Three dozen police surrounded the house. The four men surrendered after police fired warning shots.

During the arrests, police discovered weapons, cash, fake identification and the small handwritten notes that Provenzano used to communicate to other Mafiosi.

Police believe Lo Piccolo served as Provenzano's top lieutenant in the Sicilian underworld. They believe the mob boss was actively involved in strengthening ties between the Sicilian and American branches of the Mafia.

Matteo Messina Denaro, 45, of Trapani, long considered a contender for supreme boss of the Mafia, might take the opportunity of Lo Piccolo's arrest to seize control of the criminal society, investgators say. Also wanted by authorities, Denaro's location is not known.

Pondering Sicilian succession

A March 28 article from Janes Intelligence Review mulls the transfer of power within the Sicilian Mafia after the April 11, 2006, arrest of boss Bernardo Provenzano.

There is speculation that the Cosa Nostra is ruled at the moment by a triumvirate of Matteo Messina Denaro (right) of Trapani, Salvatore Lo Piccolo of Palermo and Domenico Raccuglia from Piana degli Albanesi.

Related MobNews posts:

• Sicilian godfather's Bible verse puzzle 01-04-07
• Two ambush murders in Sicily 08-22-06
• Sicily police arrest 52 suspected mafiosi 06-20-06
• Provenzano nearly caught in '04 05-09-06
• Sicilian boss's code 04-26-06

Sicilian godfather's Bible verse puzzle

Authorities are studying a memorial message in a Sicilian newspaper placed by reputed Mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro, according to a story by Richard Owen of the UK Times.

Denaro's memorial notice to his father, who died in 1998, contains a Biblical verse in Latin, to which some words have been attached. Police suspect that Denaro might be using the message to communicate with underworld colleagues. Sicilian mob bosses, including Bernardo Provenzano who was captured last year, are known for sending coded messages based on Bible passages.

The first portion of the memorial, translated into English reads from the Old Testament Book of Ecclesiastes: "To every thing there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven, a time to be born and a time to die"

But, after that, it includes words not used in the Bible: "but only he who wants to will fly, and your flight has forever been sublime."

- Biography of Messina Denaro on Gangsters Incorporated