7 years ago, a 53-year-old Italian mafia gangster was accused of trafficking cocaine for the Cacciola clan of the ‘Ndrangheta between Italy and the Netherlands. He has since been on the run and hiding from the authorities. But he was caught recently, courtesy of his tattoos.
Since 2014, he has reportedly been leading a quiet life in hiding with his family in Boca Chica. He recently started posting a series of cooking videos with his wife on YouTube as well. While he did make it a point to hide his face, he failed to disguise the distinct tattoos on his arm which led to the investigators recognizing him easily.
The Italian police issued a statement that read, “The love for Italian cuisine allowed (police forces) to follow his traces on the web and social networks, while the love for tattoos (allowed police) to recognize the fugitive as that cook.”
Soon after his arrest in the Dominican Republic, he was extradited and flown to Milan earlier this week. The police’s statement also read, “This is an operational success that demonstrates once again that the ‘Ndrangheta is not a Calabrian pandemic nor an Italian one but that it represents a serious threat at an international level.”
Guess his transition from crook to cook didn’t go down that seamlessly!