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| 'Mafia man' arrested in Venezuela | |
| (about 19 hours later) | |
| An Italian Mafia fugitive, listed as one of the country's 30 most dangerous men, has been arrested in Venezuela, Italian police say. | An Italian Mafia fugitive, listed as one of the country's 30 most dangerous men, has been arrested in Venezuela, Italian police say. |
| Salvatore Miceli, on the run since 2001, had been under surveillance for three days before he was seized by officers in the capital, Caracas. | Salvatore Miceli, on the run since 2001, had been under surveillance for three days before he was seized by officers in the capital, Caracas. |
| He is suspected of being a link between Sicily's Cosa Nostra, the 'Ndrangheta network and Colombian drug cartels. | |
| Italy's interior minister said his arrest was an "important operation". | Italy's interior minister said his arrest was an "important operation". |
| A police statement said: "The investigation has essentially confirmed Miceli's primary role in the drug trafficking sector and his ability to build a close network of relations with various trans-national organised crime groups." | A police statement said: "The investigation has essentially confirmed Miceli's primary role in the drug trafficking sector and his ability to build a close network of relations with various trans-national organised crime groups." |
| High-profile arrests | High-profile arrests |
| Italian police have inflicted a number of major blows on the Sicilian Mafia in recent years. | Italian police have inflicted a number of major blows on the Sicilian Mafia in recent years. |
| Arrests have included the man known as the "boss of bosses" Bernardo Provenzano in 2006, followed by the arrest of his heir apparent Salvatore Lo Piccolo in 2007. | Arrests have included the man known as the "boss of bosses" Bernardo Provenzano in 2006, followed by the arrest of his heir apparent Salvatore Lo Piccolo in 2007. |
| Pasquale Condello, the boss of the 'Ndrangheta - which operates from Calabria in southern Italy and is considered even more powerful than the Sicilian Mafia - was arrested in February 2008. | |
| In more recent months a number of operations in Sicily and the mainland have led to the detention of dozens more members of the Mafia, and arrests of members of the Camorra - a separate group operating around Naples. | |
| When Silvio Berlusconi was elected prime minister last year he promised to be more aggressive towards organised crime. | When Silvio Berlusconi was elected prime minister last year he promised to be more aggressive towards organised crime. |
| A few hundred troops were sent to the Naples area to help police. | A few hundred troops were sent to the Naples area to help police. |
| It is hard to conclude that all this current activity against the various mafia amounts to a concerted attempt to break them, says the BBC's Duncan Kennedy in Rome. | It is hard to conclude that all this current activity against the various mafia amounts to a concerted attempt to break them, says the BBC's Duncan Kennedy in Rome. |
| But it does seem like an extremely productive period for the authorities, even if the mob in all its guises continues to evolve and survive, he adds. | But it does seem like an extremely productive period for the authorities, even if the mob in all its guises continues to evolve and survive, he adds. |
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