Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 2, 2026
1 min readLast updated: April 2, 2026
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Notorious Sicilian mafia boss Benedetto “Nitto” Santapaola, aged 87, has died in a Milan prison after serving over three decades in custody for multiple life sentences tied to high-profile murders including those of anti‑mafia judges Falcone and Borsellino.
ROME, March 2 (Reuters) - Benedetto "Nitto" Santapaola, a notorious Sicilian mafia boss who has been in prison for more than three decades, has died at the age of 87, two sources close to the matter said on Monday.
Santapaola, who was arrested in 1993 and was serving multiple life sentences for murder and other crimes, died in a high-security jail in Milan, one of the two sources said.
Italy's justice ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Santapaola, known as "il cacciatore" (the hunter) or "il licantropo" (the werewolf), led the mafia in the eastern Sicilian city of Catania from the late 1970s to the early 1990s.
He was tried and convicted as one of the instigators of the 1992 murders of Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino, two of Italy's most famous anti-mafia prosecutors.
(Reporting by Alvise Armellini and Angelo Amante; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
Nitto Santapaola was a notorious Sicilian mafia boss who led the mafia in Catania from the late 1970s to early 1990s.
Nitto Santapaola was 87 years old at the time of his death in prison.
He died in a high-security prison in Milan, Italy.
He was serving multiple life sentences for murder and other crimes, including being an instigator of the murders of anti-mafia prosecutors.
Santapaola led the mafia in the eastern Sicilian city of Catania and was involved in high-profile crimes and murders.
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