Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

'Mamma mia, how he squealed': Screaming mafia boss Francesco Raccosta 'fed alive to pigs' by rival Calabrian assassins in bloody mob war

Prosecutors made an arrest in the case after one of the suspected killers was recorded bragging about the killing

Rob Williams
Friday 29 November 2013 11:14 GMT
Comments
Francesco Raccosta was allegedly murdered as part of a 60-year bloody feud and in direct retaliation for the killing of boss Domenico Bonarrigo.
Francesco Raccosta was allegedly murdered as part of a 60-year bloody feud and in direct retaliation for the killing of boss Domenico Bonarrigo. (GETTY IMAGES)

Your support helps us to tell the story

This election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.

The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.

Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.

A screaming mafia don was beaten with a spade and 'fed alive to pigs' by a rival group of Calabrian assassins, Italian police have said.

Francesco Raccosta was allegedly murdered as part of a 60-year bloody feud and in direct retaliation for the killing of rival mob boss Domenico Bonarrigo.

Bonarrigo was shot three times and killed while driving his car 11 days earlier, according to investigators. Francesco Raccosta went missing in March 2012 but his body has never been found.

Prosecutors made an arrest in the case after one of the suspected killers was recorded bragging about the killing during Operazione Erinni, an anti-mafia campaign. Twenty suspects have been arrested as part of the crackdown in southern Italy.

According to The Telegraph, during the recording crime boss Simone Pepe, 24, is heard boasting about the killing of Raccosta: “It was satisfying to hear him scream...Mamma mia, how he squealed, but I couldn’t give a s**t," he says.

"Someone said a few bits of him remained at the end of it all, but I couldn’t see anything, for me nothing remained at all. I said, wow, how a pig can eat," he added.

Raccosta's murder was reportedly one of five carried out in revenge for the killing of boss Domenico Bonarrigo.

They are part of an ongoing mafia war between different factions of the so-called 'Ndrangheta'. The issue is over criminal control of territory near the town of Oppido Mamertino and involves a group led by the Raccosta and Ferraro families and another by the Mazzagatti family.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in