Mafia leaves horrifying animal warning for Sicily businessman

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A shocking mafia-style intimidation message was discovered on a prominent businessman’s property in Altofonte, Sicily, featuring grotesque animal mutilations that have left the community horrified.

The disturbing scene, discovered near Palermo, included a severed horse head placed in a construction digger and the mutilated remains of a pregnant cow, with its unborn calf positioned on top of the carcass.

Horse's head and pregnant cow used in 'barbaric' mafia threat in Sicily https://t.co/TKjq8dYqxt

— CTV National News (@CTVNationalNews) November 25, 2024

The target appears to be a well-known local building contractor, whose identity remains protected during the ongoing investigation. Despite the horrific nature of the threat, the contractor informed authorities he hadn’t received any prior warnings.

Altofonte’s Mayor Angela De Luca expressed her revulsion, stating: “It stopped me in my tracks, I can’t explain such barbarity. Our whole community is deeply shocked for an act which seems to take us back to medieval times. I have faith in the forces of law and order working to ascertain what happened and identify who is behind this dreadful act.”

The incident coincides with the recent release of 20 mafia members who completed their prison sentences. Anti-Mafia Directorate’s chief Maurizio de Lucia warned: “We can’t let our guard down, the fight against the mafia just got more difficult with these men free.”

#Italian police arrest new Mafia boss in Sicily pic.twitter.com/MiO1hFRmjk

— CGTN (@CGTNOfficial) December 5, 2018

The gruesome display echoes the notorious methods of Cosa Nostra, Sicily’s infamous mafia organization. The region recently witnessed the death of one of its most brutal leaders, Matteo Messina Denaro, who passed away from cancer in September 2023 while incarcerated. Denaro’s reign of terror included horrific acts, such as the murder of a police informant’s 12-year-old son, who was strangled and dissolved in acid.

The town has been actively working to prevent mafia-controlled companies from securing construction contracts, suggesting this brutal message might be a response to these anti-mafia efforts.