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Italian police seize crocodile from suspected mafia boss
Sep 23, 2009, 11:01 GMT
Naples, Italy - Italian police have seized a crocodile allegedly used by a suspected mafia boss to intimidate people into paying protection money, officials said Wednesday.
The 40-kilogram, 1.7-metre long, reptile which was kept on a terrace equipped with a small pool, was discovered during a search at the man's house near the southern town of Caserta.
'The crocodile was fed live rabbits, a spectacle neighbours could watch from surrounding terraces,' police anti-mafia squad official, Maurizio Vallone told the German Press Agency dpa.
The suspect who has been charged with the illegal possession of animals, is believed to run several racketeering operations in Caserta, an area where the Naples version of the mafia the Camorra is highly active.
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