MADRID – A convicted Italian Mafia boss was arrested near Barcelona on Wednesday after about seven years as a fugitive, Spanish police said.
Police identified the suspect as Paolo Di Mauro and said he was detained in the town of Casteldelfells, along with another alleged mobster.
A police spokesman had no other details. He spoke on condition of anonymity in line with department rules.
Italian Interior Minister Roberto Maroni called the arrest "a hard blow for organized crime."
Di Mauro is considered one of Italy's 30 most wanted criminals. He is allegedly the head of a powerful Camorra crime syndicate active in the Naples area, in southern Italy. Di Mauro has been on the run since 2003. He has been sentenced to 17 years and 10 months in jail for a 1998 murder and mafia association.
Italian police identified the mobster arrested along with Di Mauro as Luigi Mocerino, convicted of international drug trafficking.
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