Carabinieri, General Giammarco Sottili died

Carabinieri general Giammarco Sottili died today at the age of 67. A few days ago hospitalized for a health problem, he died of cardiac arrest. One of the best officers in the Army leaves. A life dedicated to the search for mafia bosses, for mafia bosses, that of General Sottili. In his long and prestigious career in the Carabinieri he commanded several territorial departments. From the Carabinieri Company of Castelnuovo di Garfagnana to the Compagnia di Gaeta, then again in Trieste. To land at the investigative unit of Catania and then of Palermo. Then he led the provincial command of Avellino. To then land in Sardinia as Chief of Staff of the “Legion of Sardinia” in Cagliari. A highly esteemed and appreciated officer in all areas, he distinguished himself for his extraordinary skills in the investigative sector and in particular in the fight against the mafia that he carried out always in the front row, with great professionalism and courage. Among the many stands out the famous investigation into the so-called ‘moles’ which he personally directed and which led to the disruption of the most dangerous safety net that guaranteed the inaction of the super boss Bernardo Provenzano. “After those arrests in Palermo, that extraordinary offensive conducted by all the police forces against the mafia and which led to the capture of Bernardo Provenzano will take shape”, Colonel Francesco Gosciu who has worked alongside Sottili since 2004 to 2007. In that period Sottili directed numerous important investigations, such as the one on the Villabate mafia and the collaboration of Francesco Campanella. Sottili has obtained “exceptional investigative successes in all his territorial assignments – says Colonel Gosciu – I remember him first of all as a friend, whom I had the privilege of knowing at the beginning of my career as an Officer of the Carabinieri. I learned a lot from him. in all areas of the institutional life of the Carabinieri “. “Extremely prepared, animated by an engaging enthusiasm, he faced every problem, even the most difficult and impervious, always with a smile on his lips and with the confidence of one who always has the right and ready answer. represented for me and for my colleagues, with whom I shared those extraordinary moments in Palermo, a point of reference and a unique example “. During the indictment of the trial of the so-called ‘moles’ which also saw the former Governor Salvatore Cuffaro and the carabiniere Giorgio Riolo, prosecutors Maurizio de Lucia and Nino Di Matteo pointed out that, at the same time, “they were other soldiers of the Arma, those of the operative unit of Colonel Giammarco Sottili, who with great professionalism, incisiveness, effectiveness and intellectual honesty, without looking at anyone, they ripped the veil that covered such an uncomfortable truth “. Giammarco Sottili then carried out the search in the villa of Massimo Ciancimino, the son of the former mafia mayor of Palermo. It was February 17, 2005 when the Carabinieri broke into Massimo Ciancimino’s home in Addaura, holding a search warrant for an investigation into his father’s treasures and the affairs of Ciancimino junior. Sottili was at the time commander of the Operations Department in Palermo. And questioned as witnesses in the state-mafia negotiation process on the so-called ‘papello’ with the requests of Cosa Nostra to the state, he said: “Gosciu (Major Francesco Gosciu, ed) and Angeli (Lieutenant Colonel Antonello Angeli, ed) came to me , I don’t remember if the same day of the search or the one after. Angeli was holding the photocopied manuscript with ‘the Carabinieri’ written on it. I quickly scanned it and thought it was important. I told them to make me a photocopy to take it to the prosecutor’s office and I went to the competent magistrates for that investigation “. That day, says the witness, “I went to the deputy prosecutor Giuseppe Pignatone with Dr. Sava or Dr. Buzzolani, or both”. With Pignatone, Sottili continues, by chance “there was Dr. Michele Prestipino” and the two magistrates “told me that that document was the compendium of a report made by Gian Carlo Caselli to Vito Ciancimino. I believe that Pignatone told me that he also acquired it “.