Mafia Fugitive Edgardo Greco Caught After 16 Years On The Run, Opening Pizza Restaurant

An Italian fugitive and convicted murderer, said to have been a part of Italy’s most powerful organized crime groups, was found this week after 16 years of being on the run. This included working at a pizza restaurant in France.

63-year-old Edgardo Greco was apprehended on Thursday in the city of Saint-Etienne. He had been given a life sentence in absentia in Italy for a double-homicide and attempted murder as a “mafia war” occurred in the early 1990s.

In 2006, Greco escaped from temporary police custody subsequent to an arrest warrant issued after the fatal beatings of Stefano and Giuseppe Bartolomeo, two brothers. This happened at a meat market in the town of Cosenza in January 1991. The men’s bodies were thought to have dissolved in acid.

Supposedly a member of the Perna-Pranno gang, Greco couldn’t be found for years. During his disappearance, he lived in Lyons, France, where he opened his own pizza shop.

By 2021, he was going by the name Paolo Dimitrio, and was seen in a local newspaper, advertising his restaurant.

After he was apprehended last week, Greco was formally notified of Italy’s arrest warrant prior to placing him in detention.

Greco is the second mafia-connected fugitive to be captured this month.

“No matter how hard fugitives try to slip into a quiet life abroad, they cannot evade justice forever. Dedicated officers around the world will always ensure that justice is served,” said Interpol’s Secretary General Jurgen Stock.