By admin 
Italian police have carried out a large-scale operation to dismantle Mafia clans operating in and around Palermo, Sicily. More than 1,200 officers took part in the raids, which the military Carabinieri force described as an effort to prevent the Mafia from rebuilding its leadership structure, known as the Cupola.
This operation, the most extensive in recent years, comes amid concerns that Mafia bosses recently released from prison on appeal are attempting to regain control. Investigators discovered that those still incarcerated have been using encrypted mobile phones to continue their criminal activities.
Authorities revealed that Sicily’s notorious Cosa Nostra Mafia has modernized its methods, no longer relying on in-person meetings. One local Mafia leader reportedly managed to operate from hiding while maintaining his influence over organized crime in his district.
For over a century, the Sicilian Mafia controlled local towns and cities, extorting businesses through protection money and profiting from drug trafficking. In the early 1990s, anti-Mafia prosecutors who fought against their influence were assassinated. The arrest of infamous Mafia figures, such as Salvatore “Toto” Riina in 1993 and Matteo Messina Denaro in 2023, dealt significant blows to the organization.
Despite the imprisonment of many mobsters, the Carabinieri found that some had managed to smuggle miniature mobile phones into their cells, allowing them to continue their operations. Police discovered encrypted conversations by planting listening devices in suspects’ homes and vehicles, though they have yet to break the encryption. Some of those involved in these secret communications are believed to use aliases such as “Robert de Niro” and “Spider-Man.”
The raids, which began before dawn on Tuesday, targeted Mafia clans across Palermo, from Tommaso Natale in the north to Porta Nuova in the city center. Police are investigating a range of suspected crimes, including Mafia association, drug trafficking, attempted murder, and armed violence.
Among those arrested was Tommaso Lo Presti, a previously convicted Mafia boss who served 12 years in prison before his release in 2023. His arrest follows public outrage last year when it was revealed that he had celebrated his silver wedding anniversary in a Palermo church where slain anti-Mafia prosecutor Giovanni Falcone is buried.
Gill Bikram Singh