"I'm from Matteo Messina Denaro," he told police when he was arrested Monday at a clinic in the Sicilian city of Palermo.
It was probably the first time in 30 years that he said those words out loud in public.
Messina Denaro, 60, received many nicknames during his life: "The Last Don", "The Boss of Bosses", "The Thin", "The Diabolic" - and these nicknames accompanied him for the past three decades, even after he disappeared from the face of the earth following his arrest in -1993 of Sicilian Mafia leader and mentor, Salvatore "The Beast" Reina.
For years, only one person from Raina's inner circle - the "boss of bosses" who left behind a trail of hundreds of bodies, including judges, priests and politicians - managed to escape for so long from the authorities.
Hundreds of police officers have been involved in the search for Messina Denaro for years, but without success.
A series of arrests of people close to him, including his sister Patrizia, raised hopes that his capture was near,
The arrest of Matteo Messina Denaro.
Palermo (Photo: Reuters)
Messina Denaro, who was known for his wealth and love of the good life, eventually managed to live a full life hiding from the authorities in a humble and simple-looking house, not far from his hometown of Castelvetrano in Sicily.
Now, alongside the celebrations in Italy for the capture of the man who used to boast that he "filled an entire cemetery by himself", the obvious question also arises: how did Messina Denaro manage to mislead the police for decades, when he was hiding right under their noses?
Matteo Messina Denaro (photo: screenshot, Twitter)
Who is Messina Denaro?
Matteo Messina Denaro was born in April 1962 in Castelvetrano in Sicily to his father, Francesco, "Don Ciccio", who was the leader of the "Cosa Nostra" (Sicilian Mafia) in the province of Trapani.
The son of the boss liked the lifestyle of the criminal organization and at the age of 14 already started practicing shooting.
According to rumors, he committed his first murder at the age of 18, and since then his path has been paved, especially since he became Rayna's protégé.
Messina Denaro was convicted of murder in 2002 - albeit in absentia - for the murders of the two special prosecutors who were responsible for the fight against the mafia, Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino.
Messina Denaro was sentenced to life in prison for carrying out deadly attacks in Milan, Florence and Rome in 1993.
He is also accused of kidnapping, torturing and murdering the son of a mobster who became a state witness, an 11-year-old whose body was found in a tank of acid and the murder of Antonella Bonanno, the partner of a rival boss who was pregnant.
However, Messina Denaro, it is said, was not a traditional Mafia leader.
He was too flamboyant and had an obsession with computer games.
"He became part of the Corleone group, but he was a modern boss," Giacomo di Gilrolamo, author of a biography of Messina Denaro, told The Guardian this week.
"He was not married, but he had a child with his partner, which is unthinkable among the bosses from the old school. In addition, while the older bosses used to adhere to Christianity and its rituals, Messina Denaro said he was an agnostic."
Patricia, the sister of Messina Denaro who was arrested (photo: screenshot, Facebook)
Since the mafia always knew how to adapt to the changing times, Denaro's importance lay in his connection to the "grey zone", where organized crime lived alongside politics and the business world.
His enormous wealth came from the investments he made in the energy and waste sector, and from his "winning" in prestigious real estate tenders.
Three years ago, a wind energy entrepreneur was even arrested because he financed Messina Denaro. His business was indeed legal, for the most part, but behind the scenes who had relationships with him Esakim knew that it was not worthwhile, and in fact "it was impossible to refuse" his offers.
The researchers described Messina Denaro as a combination of the old and the new mafia. "Like the old mobster, he sees the mafia as the supreme state, where individual members deserve this respect," said Teresa Pricipato , a former judge, in 2014. "He doesn't let anyone in, except for a few people.
But he is also modern... greedy, cruel and ready to get involved in any business that makes a profit - and his methods work."
Messina's father Denaro was a mafia leader as well (photo: screenshot, Facebook)
Messina Denaro lives like a king.
He was known for his love of fast cars, jewelry, designer clothes and beautiful women.
In the summer when the big boss Raina was arrested, he was in Tuscany.
And when he was arrested this week, Messina Denaro was wearing a luxury watch worth $40,000, according to the police.
Even during the years when he fled from place to place, Messina Denaro enjoyed a luxurious lifestyle.
He played video games and used to switch girlfriends, according to the Washington Post report.
But he did not forget for a moment that he escaped from the law.
Mobsters who remained loyal to him used to warn him every time the police searched a certain place and helped move from hiding place to hiding place.
The strict code of silence in the mafia - the "omerta" - has proven itself time and time again.
In 2021, a British man from Liverpool was mistakenly arrested in the Netherlands because police, forced to rely on a computerized portrait of an "adult" Messina Denaro, thought he was the notorious mobster.
He also appeared in the Netflix documentary series, "World's Most Wanted."
Finally, it was a tip received by the police about the visits of the cancer patient Mina Denaro to a private clinic in Palermo that ended the search for the last mafia leader who grew up in the lap of tradition of an organization whose roots lie in the 19th century.
Messina Denaro's hiding place (Photo: Reuters)
This week the police found the apartment where Messina Denaro apparently lived in the last few months, under the pseudonym Andre Bonfidi.
The apartment is in a modest house in the city of Campobello di Mezra - a few kilometers from his childhood home.
A second hiding place for Italy's most wanted mobster has been discovered behind a wardrobe with a movable bottom.
The armed bunker is in the house about 300 meters away from the first hiding place.
In the first hiding place, luxury names, expensive furniture, designer clothes, shoes and jewelry were found, as well as receipts from luxury restaurants and pills to strengthen the strength of the man.
A neighbor, who lives near Messina Denaro, told an Italian television channel that he used to see him frequently, and that the two used to greet each other when they met.
According to information, the mobster even used to shop at the local supermarket himself.
How did the authorities manage to miss this?
Some believe that Messina Denaro was protected by politicians and the establishment.
"I always believed he was protected by a global network of Freemasons."
Princepato told the newspaper "La Repubblica".
According to her, she found evidence that he had been in Spain, Venezuela and the UK over the years.
Messina Denaro's hiding place (Photo: Reuters)
The author of the successful book "Gomorrah" about the Neapolitan mafia, Roberto Saviano, pointed out that a junior minister in the Italian Ministry of Justice, named Antonio D'Ali, was even convicted due to connections with Messina Denaro and his family.
D'Aly served in the government of former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi in 2006-2001.
Rumors of a deal or "deal" between the state and Cosa Nostra, in which Messina Denaro was also extradited, are being considered, Sabiano told CNN.
"They always say that the mafia is anti-state, but this is a mistake. One part of the mafia coordinates with the state, while another part of it fights the state."
As part of this power play, Messina Denaro may have paid the price.
And some believe that Messina Denaro himself wanted to be caught, after decades of being on the run, so that he could end his life in a hospital.
The researchers believe that a network of colleagues, businessmen and local residents, some of whom own farms, resorts, gas stations and supermarkets in the area, helped hide Messina Denaro over the years.
The mentor.
Salvatore "The Beast" Reina (photo: official website, Wikipedia)
What is the significance of the Messina Denaro?
The arrest of Messina Denaro, hailed by the Prime Minister of Italy Giorgia Maloney as a "great victory", brings to an end a dark period, smashes to pieces the symbol of resistance to the state, and most importantly - may reveal the most hidden secrets of the Cosa Nostra, if The criminal will decide to talk to the investigators.
The police hope to find an "archive" previously owned by Reyna and inherited by Messina Denaro.
It is apparently a collection of notes that Raina passed on to Messina Denaro that may shed light on the connections between the mafia and politicians and provide the answers to many crimes.
"Messina Denaro is the last godfather, he represents all the secrets of Cosa Nostra. His arrest is the end of the myth, and now the organization will have to deal with it," Anna Sergi of the University of Essex, in England, told CNN.
The prison where Messina Denaro is being held (Photo: Reuters)
What's next for Messina Denaro?
Messina Denaro is currently detained in the Costerella prison near the town of Laquila.
He is one of 160 inmates in the high-security prison, which opened in the 1990s and is considered the largest guarded prison in Italy and previously housed other mobsters.
Messina Denaro will be subject to "41 bis" laws - a severe isolation regime aimed at preventing suspects from operating criminal organizations from within the prison walls.
The prisoners are each kept in a small cell with 24-hour camera monitoring.
He faces a series of criminal trials because even though he was already convicted in his absence in 2002, according to Italian law his cases must reach the Supreme Court.
Messina Denaro is represented by his niece, Lorenza Gottadauro, daughter of his sister Rosalia, who passed the bar qualification exams in 2011.
The treatment for the cancer from which he is suffering will continue in a hospital in Lakeville.
The regime in Messina Denaro's hiding place (Photo: Reuters)
who is the boss?
Italian police have not released the names of possible heirs.
But in Sabiano's opinion, Messina Denaro will rule the organization until his death, even from within the walls of the khalf like Reina before him: "Mateo Messina Denaro, even behind bars, will continue to be the king of Cosa Nostra because no one is ready to sit on a throne that remains half full."
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