This is done through an operation covering a chain of preferential tax territories.
Read more The return of WTA tennis legend Serena Williams may happen very soon
Officials stated in a released statement that the assets had been accumulated since the 1980s “for the benefit of Matteo Messina Denaro.” He was arrested in 2023 after 30 years in hiding and died in prison the same year.
Officials said the assets were confiscated in Andorra, the Cayman Islands, Gibraltar, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Monaco, Spain, Switzerland, and Italy.
It is added that three people were arrested during the investigation.
M. Messina Denaro was one of the most ruthless bosses of the “Cosa Nostra” – the real Sicilian criminal syndicate depicted in the “Godfather” films.
He was convicted for participating in the 1992 murders of judges Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino, who fought against the mafia, as well as for deadly bombings in Rome, Florence, and Milan in 1993.
One of the six life sentences he received was for the kidnapping and murder of the 12-year-old son of a witness in the G. Falcone case.
M. Messina Denaro disappeared in 1993 and spent the next 30 years in hiding, while the Italian state took strict measures against the Sicilian mafia.
Read more Former CIA officer arrested in the USA, gold worth 40 million dollars found in his home
However, he remained at the top of Italy’s most wanted list and increasingly became a legendary figure.
His arrest was prompted by a decision to seek cancer treatment. He was arrested on January 16, 2023, while visiting a clinic in Palermo.
It was found that he was staying near his hometown of Castelvetrano in Western Sicily.
The arrest may have brought some relief to his victims, but the mafia boss always remained silent.
In an interview after his arrest, M. Messina Denaro even denied being a member of the “Cosa Nostra.”
He was imprisoned in L’Aquila, where he continued treatment in his cell, but in August of the same year, under strict security, he was transferred to a hospital.
Read more USA revealed the real reason behind Lavrov’s threats to strike Kyiv
He died on September 25, 2023.
