Anti-Mafia head slams Berlusconi’s Mafia ‘hero’ claim
(ANSA) – Palermo, November 26 – Former premier Silvio Berlusconi’s description of a Mafia figure as a “hero” is particularly hurtful given how many true heroes have died in the fight against organized crime, the head of Italy’s anti-Mafia commission Rosy Bindi said Tuesday.
She spoke on the sidelines of a conference in Palermo after visiting the city’s Garden of Remembrance, dedicated to victims of Mafia violence.
Bindi recalled Berlusconi’s claim that Mafia figure Vittorio Manganol, hired to allegedly manage the billionaire’s villa stables in the 1970s, was a “hero”. “These are the words which clash with the place of memory that I visited today in Palermo where there are real heroes, those who gave their lives,” said Bindi.
“These are words that hurt,” she added.
Mangano died of cancer in jail in 2000 while serving time for drug trafficking and facing a double-homicide rap.
Late anti-Mafia prosecutor Paolo Borsellino described Mangano as a key figure in mob money laundering in northern Italy.
Both Berlusconi and the close aide who allegedly recruited Mangano to protect the media magnate’s family have said he was a “hero” for not giving in to police pressure to say Berlusconi was linked to the Mafia.