Berlusconi’s alleged Mafia ties

  Sicilian Mafioso turned snitch Gaspare Spatuzza needs to re-watch a pivotal scene from Goodfellas. While testifying against Marcello Dell’Utri, an Italian politican, Spatuzza dropped a dime on Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi for having ties to the Mafia. Spatuzza is serving life in prison for two murders. Dell’Utri was earlier convicted of Mafia associations ...

575914_091207_PassportMrBInthePokey2.jpg
575914_091207_PassportMrBInthePokey2.jpg

 

 

Sicilian Mafioso turned snitch Gaspare Spatuzza needs to re-watch a pivotal scene from Goodfellas. While testifying against Marcello Dell’Utri, an Italian politican, Spatuzza dropped a dime on Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi for having ties to the Mafia. Spatuzza is serving life in prison for two murders.

Dell’Utri was earlier convicted of Mafia associations and sentenced to nine years in jail, something he is now appealing. He was a co-founder of Berlusconi’s political party, Forza Italia and a senior advisor to the prime minister. As is common for political heavyweights in Italy, Dell’Utri hasn’t served any jail time, despite convictions.  

Spatuzza told his story from behind a screen in the courtroom, testifying that his former employer, mob boss Guiseppe Graviano used to brag about how close he was with Berlusconi in the 1990s.

“Two names were mentioned, one of them was Berlusconi’s,” he said. “Graviano told me that thanks to the seriousness of these people, we had the country in our hands.”

A Berlusconi spokesman denied the allegations, saying the Mafia was trying to harm the prime minister’s credibility because of his recent crackdown on organized crime. Dell’Utri thinks Berlusconi has bigger things to worry about.

“Of course Berlusconi is completely calm about it too – he’s more afraid of his wife than Spatuzza,” he said, referring to Berlusconi’s pending divorce after he allegedly pulled a Tiger Woods.

The mounting pressure against Berlusconi was evident in Saturday’s rally in which tens of thousands came together in Rome calling on the prime minister to resign.

VINCENZO PINTO/AFP/Getty Images

Bobby Pierce is an editorial researcher at Foreign Policy.

More from Foreign Policy

A photo illustration shows Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Joe Biden posing on pedestals atop the bipolar world order, with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and Russian President Vladamir Putin standing below on a gridded floor.
A photo illustration shows Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Joe Biden posing on pedestals atop the bipolar world order, with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and Russian President Vladamir Putin standing below on a gridded floor.

No, the World Is Not Multipolar

The idea of emerging power centers is popular but wrong—and could lead to serious policy mistakes.

A view from the cockpit shows backlit control panels and two pilots inside a KC-130J aerial refueler en route from Williamtown to Darwin as the sun sets on the horizon.
A view from the cockpit shows backlit control panels and two pilots inside a KC-130J aerial refueler en route from Williamtown to Darwin as the sun sets on the horizon.

America Prepares for a Pacific War With China It Doesn’t Want

Embedded with U.S. forces in the Pacific, I saw the dilemmas of deterrence firsthand.

The Chinese flag is raised during the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics at Beijing National Stadium on Feb. 4, 2022.
The Chinese flag is raised during the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics at Beijing National Stadium on Feb. 4, 2022.

America Can’t Stop China’s Rise

And it should stop trying.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky looks on prior a meeting with European Union leaders in Mariinsky Palace, in Kyiv, on June 16, 2022.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky looks on prior a meeting with European Union leaders in Mariinsky Palace, in Kyiv, on June 16, 2022.

The Morality of Ukraine’s War Is Very Murky

The ethical calculations are less clear than you might think.