Mafia and vote exchange, Fdi exponent arrested in Palermo

Carabinieri arrested former Palermo municipal councillor of Fratelli d'Italia Mimmo Russo. The politician, a historical reference point for Palermo's precarious workers, is accused of external complicity in mafia association, political-mafia vote exchange, aggravated extortion and complicity in corruption for acts contrary to official duties. The investigation was coordinated by the Palermo DDA led by prosecutor Maurizio de Lucia.

Together with the Fdi exponent, Gregorio Marchese, defined by the gip as the politician's 'rib' and son of the historical killer of the Mafia family of Corso dei Mille, Filippo Marchese, and business consultant Achille Andò are under investigation. For both of them, accused for various reasons of corruption and extortion, house arrests have been ordered. The investigation was conducted by the Carabinieri.

He was the first city councillor for Fratelli d'Italia in Palermo, Mimmo Russo, who was arrested this morning for external complicity in mafia association, political-mafia vote exchange, aggravated extortion and complicity in corruption for acts contrary to official duties. He had joined the party in 2017, immediately after being elected councillor in the Palermo 2022 list that had supported Leoluca Orlando, the winner of that electoral round. In that list Mimmo Russo had obtained 1,001 votes, in fourth place in terms of number of preferences among the 40 candidates. At the last municipal elections in 2022, Russo ran again with the FdI list but was not elected: he came 11th in the list of 40, with 805 preferences. After the electoral defeat, he had sought support in the party to get some office, but without success. Mimmo Russo is currently a member of the FdI city coordination. He had been a district councillor in the 1990s before joining the city council. He has changed sides several times: from Alleanza Nazionale to Raffaele Lombardo's Mpa, from Azzurri per l'Italia to the Palermo 2022 movement.

There are a dozen or so turncoats accusing Mimmo Russo, the Fdi exponent arrested today for, among other things, external complicity in mafia association and mafia political exchange voting. Heavy statements that come from former mafia members of various Palermo mafia districts: from Zen, where Russo is alleged to have made an electoral pact with boss Sandro Diele, to Borgo Vecchio, where the former municipal councillor, according to collaborators, boasted relations with Salvatore Cucuzza The repentants say that Russo paid Cosa Nostra for his preferences with money, petrol coupons and jobs. Fabio Manno, for example, speaks of Russo: "The whole Borgo gave votes to Mimmo Russo because he promised jobs," says the pentito. And Salvatore Giordano of Zen reports that the candidate had offered to pay for the neighbourhood party in exchange for electoral support, but then backed out complaining that no one had supported his candidate. 'And a politician who gets jobs, promises jobs,' Giordano explained. And again, Francesco Chiarello reveals that the former municipal councillor made his Caf available to mafiosi for probation as an alternative to prison. A circumstance confirmed by the turncoat Antonino Siragusa, who took advantage of the availability of Russo's Caf and managed to get out of prison. "He would give a certain amount of money or petrol coupons and they would divide it up to a few people to get them to vote," Siragusa says of Russo.