‘Big Treasurer’ of World Mafia Arrested in Rome
ROME — Police announced Saturday the arrest of Giuseppe Calo, the long-sought “big treasurer†of the international Mafia and reputed boss of the powerful Sicilian Mafia in Corleone, and two of his associates.
Calo, 54, and the other two--Antonio Rotolo, 39, and Lorenzo Di Gesu, 52--were picked up Friday night at an apartment Calo owns in eastern Rome, police said.
Police said Calo is considered “the king of finance†because he allegedly recycled hundreds of millions of dollars of Mafia profits every year, investing in real estate, bonds and other legitimate businesses around the world.
Police said they seized 350 million lire, the equivalent of about $170,500, in cash and valuable art works from his home and another apartment Calo has near the Spanish Steps in central Rome.
Rome Police Chief Marcello Monarca told reporters that Calo had been sought for 15 years.
He was identified as one of the top underworld bosses by Mafia informer Tommaso Buscetta whose confession resulted in a major crackdown on the Sicilian Mafia starting last September and led to arrests of scores of people in Italy, Brazil and the United States.
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