Italian mafia boss arrested in Brazil after 30 years on the run

The former boss of the Camorra, one of Italy’s largest and oldest crime syndicates, has been arrested in Brazil – after more than 30 years on the run. Pasquale Scotti was among Italy’s most dangerous and sought-after fugitives after he escaped from a hospital near Naples in 1984. According to Interpol, he arrived in Brazil two years later, reinvented himself as Francisco de Castro Visconti, and underwent plastic surgery to avoid detection. The 56-year-old (pictured) also got married and has two children, but while in police custody, Scotti has admitted his family were unaware of his real identity. Scotti was apprehended as he took his two daughters, aged 13 and 15, to school.

Pasquale Scotti no longer exists. Only Francisco de Castro exists.

During questioning, Scotti said he wanted to “forget his past”

The Italian national also owned a fireworks company and a real estate firm – but both businesses are now being investigated for possible money laundering. In absentia, an Italian court sentenced him to life imprisonment in 2005. He had been charged with extortion, the illegal possession of weapons and more than 20 murders. A fingerprint comparison led to the fugitive’s arrest in Recife, a city in Brazil’s northeast – where detectives later discovered the false identity cards and voter registration documents he was using. The Italian government is expected to initiate extradition proceedings within the next few days, and a Federal Police spokesman in Recife has said “it is the most important arrest in the history of Interpol in Brazil”. Scotti maintains that he fled Italy to avoid being killed.

mafia brazil Americas