MAFIA, PRIEST LINKED TO AID SKIMMING

The mafia has moved i n on one of Italy’s f ew growth industries: caring for migrants.

Italian authorities on Monday arrested 68 people, including a priest and the head of a huge Catholic volunteer group, Mercy, and accused them of being in cahoots with a major mafia clan that allegedly skimmed millions in public funds destined for asylum seekers at a welcome centre in southern Italy.

Announcing the arrests, an incredulous Carabinieri Gen. Giuseppe Governale summarized the scam: “The welcome centre and Mercy were the ATMs of the mafia.”

Investigators said t he Arena clan of the Calabrian ’ Ndrangheta mob secured a lock on servicing the Isola di Capo Rizzuto migrant centre for the past decade, thanks in part to its links to Mercy and its regional head, Leonardo Sacco.

Sacco is a well- connected Italian, and his arrest took on broader i mplications given the number of politicians linked to him.

Even Pope Francis has been photographed with him.

The Calabrian holding centre is one of Italy’s largest, and Mercy is a major national organization that runs migrant centres and provides other volunteer services around the country.

Investigators said Mercy subcontracted catering services to companies run by the Arena clan, which allegedly skimmed some $ 54 million in public funds destined for migrant care.

Part of the scam involved putting in for more meals than were provided, then pocketing the money to buy real estate, fancy cars and l uxury boats, Catanzaro prosecutor Nicola Gratteri said.