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| 'Mafia boss' arrested in Italy | 'Mafia boss' arrested in Italy |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Italian police have arrested the leader of one of the country's most powerful mafia groups, officials say. | |
| Pasquale Condello, 57, was arrested in a house in Calabria, in mainland Italy's southern tip, police said. | Pasquale Condello, 57, was arrested in a house in Calabria, in mainland Italy's southern tip, police said. |
| Interior Minister Giuliano Amato said Mr Condello was the "number one boss of the 'Ndrangheta" crime syndicate. | Interior Minister Giuliano Amato said Mr Condello was the "number one boss of the 'Ndrangheta" crime syndicate. |
| Mr Condello had been on the run since a murder conviction in the late 1980s. The 'Ndrangheta is considered to be more powerful than the Sicilian Mafia. | |
| "It is the latest, extraordinary operation against organised crime," Mr Amato said of the arrest. | "It is the latest, extraordinary operation against organised crime," Mr Amato said of the arrest. |
| Italian investigators believe the 'Ndrangheta controls cocaine trafficking in many parts of Europe. | Italian investigators believe the 'Ndrangheta controls cocaine trafficking in many parts of Europe. |
| While police have scored recent triumphs against other mafia syndicates in Italy, penetration of the 'Ndrangheta has been less successful due to its tight family ties. | |
| Membership of the 'Ndrangheta - which means "Honoured Society" - is believed to number in the tens of thousands. | Membership of the 'Ndrangheta - which means "Honoured Society" - is believed to number in the tens of thousands. |
| Last year, rival clans of the 'Ndrangheta were linked to the murders of six Italian men at a pizza parlour in Germany. | Last year, rival clans of the 'Ndrangheta were linked to the murders of six Italian men at a pizza parlour in Germany. |