The hiding of a longtime criminal fugitive, who was apprehended while riding a motor scooter on a Greek island, was revealed by hometown support for this year’s Italian soccer champions from Naples, according to Italian police over the weekend.
Vincenzo La Porta was arrested after being captured (Source: CBS News)
Most Dangerous Fugitive in Italy Arrested While Riding Motor Scooter
According to the published news from CBS News, the individual, who was on Italy’s list of the 100 most dangerous fugitives, was reportedly recognized in a photograph of supporters in a Corfu restaurant celebrating after the Napoli soccer team won Italy’s premier league title a few weeks ago, according to Naples-based Carabinieri paramilitary police. The wanted man, identified as 60-year-old Vincenzo La Porta who had been missing for 11 years, was then being pursued by Italian authorities in Corfu. They did not say exactly when his most recent arrest took place, only that officer stopped him as he was riding a motor scooter down Corfu Street. Later, according to Greek authorities, La Porta was detained on Friday.
The Naples-based Camorra syndicate’s close associate La Porta was found guilty in absentia of criminal affiliation, tax evasion, and fraud, according to the police. La Porta had been employed there as an assistant cook for the previous month or so, according to the proprietor of another eatery on the island.
The Associated Press was informed by La Porta’s attorney Athanassios Giannakouris, “We will say he does not want to be extradited,” He has a 9-year-old son and is working as a cook to make ends meet. He has heart conditions. If he is extradited, he and his family would be destroyed. He was sentenced for tax charges long ago. He has formed a new family in Greece.
La Porta’s internet activities, particularly his financial transactions, were being monitored by police, who claimed they were waiting for him to make a false move that would reveal his whereabouts. La Porta couldn’t help himself after the title win, authorities claimed, adding that “betraying him was his passion for soccer and the Napoli team.”
La Porta was visible in a photograph of revelers taken at the restaurant, where he was seen waving a scarf that featured the sky-blue colors of his hometown team. His capture is the most recent in a succession of captures of Italian mafia fugitives who had been on the lam for years.
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Others Recognized as Most Dangerous Fugitive in Italy
Pasquale Bonavota, a senior member of the ‘Ndrangheta crime syndicate, one of Italy’s most potent organized crime organizations, was apprehended by Italian authorities in April after nearly five years on the lam. He was moreover one of the most dangerous offenders, according to the police.
Edgardo Greco, a convicted killer, and reputed Ndrangheta gang member, was captured in February after more than 16 years on the run, including years spent working in a French pizzeria.
Italian authorities caught Matteo Messina Denaro, the mafia boss who was regarded as the nation’s most wanted fugitive, after a 30-year chase. With Messina Denaro’s capture, the Sicilian “Cosa Nostra” organized criminal group that was featured in “The Godfather” movies was brought to an end.
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