Francesco Pesce, the leader of the powerful Pesce family which controls the ‘Ndrangheta, was living in a custom-made sophisticated bunker on a warehouse lot. His hideout boasted amenities including air conditioning, satellite TV, video surveillance cameras and high speed internet. The apartment was accessible through a remote controlled trap door.
Pesce, 31, reportedly succeeded his father Antonio Pesce several years ago as the head of the clan after the patriarch was arrested. The elder Pesce is still serving time in jail.
To the chagrin of local law enforcement officers, the suspect allegedly tried to set his private documents on fire before being handcuffed and led away, but police were able to salvage some and are now analyzing them. He remained silent when he was arrested, but after spending a night in detention, he reportedly told the prison guards, “I've become a famous personality.”
Pesce was one of Italy’s most wanted fugitives until his arrest. He was arrested alongside 44-year-old farmer Antonio Pronesi, the owner of the warehouse and land where Pesce was living. Pronesi is accused of to helping Pesce evade arrest.
The suspect had been on the run since May 2010, when Italian police launched an operation dubbed “All Inside” whose goal was finding and prosecuting members of organized crime syndicates.
Italian authorities in the Calabria region say they began investigating Pesce in October 2006, in connection with the murder of Dominic Sabatino, a former collaborator of Pesce’s.
