Giovanni Tegano (; 8 November 1939 – 7 July 2021) was an Italian criminal and a member of the 'Ndrangheta, the Calabrian mafia. He was a fugitive since 1993 and was included in the
list of most wanted fugitives in Italy
The list of most wanted fugitives in Italy is a most wanted list published by the Italian Interior Ministry. It includes criminals who are considered extremely dangerous by the Polizia di Stato. The list was started in July 1992. There are also l ...
, until his arrest in April 2010. He was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for murder, arms trafficking, and mafia association.
He was considered to be the boss of the De Stefano-Tegano 'ndrina. The clan hails from the Archi neighbourhood in the city of Reggio Calabria, and also includes his brothers Pasquale and Giuseppe. At the time of his arrest in April 2010, Tegano was regarded as one of the few remaining bosses of the 'Ndrangheta's old guard.
Second 'Ndrangheta war
The Tegano clan sided with the De Stefano clan in the
Second 'Ndrangheta war
The Second 'Ndrangheta war was an internal struggle in the 'Ndrangheta, a criminal organisation in Calabria (southern Italy). The conflict raged from 1985–1991 in Reggio Calabria. Practically all the 'ndrine in the city of Reggio Calabria gro ...
, which raged from 1985 to 1991. The alliance was sealed by the marriage between Orazio De Stefano and Antonietta Benestare, a niece of Giovanni Tegano on 2 December 1985.Paoli, ''Mafia Brotherhoods'', p. 89 The bloody six-year war between the Condello- Imerti clan and De Stefano allied with the Tegano clan caused 621 deaths.Godfather's arrest fuels fear of bloody conflict ''The Observer'', 24 February 2008 La Repubblica, 19 February 2008Relazione annuale Commissione parlamentare d’inchiesta sul fenomeno della criminalità organizzata mafiosa o similare, 30 July 2003
While the main leaders of the De Stefano clan were killed, it fell upon the Teganos to wage the war. The Teganos were the key negotiators for the 'pax mafiosa' in Reggio Calabria in the 1990s between the Tegano, De Stefano, Libri, and Latella clans on one side and the Imerti, Serraino, Condello and Rosmini clans on the other, in which they divided their spheres of influence in Reggio Calabria. , Antimafia Duemila, N° 41 Agosto-Settembre 2004 He became a member of '' Camera di Controllo'', a provincial commission of the 'Ndrangheta, formed at the end of the war in September 1991 to avoid further internal conflicts., Tribunale di Reggio Calabria, 19 January 1999
Fugitive, arrest and death
He became a fugitive in 1993. His brother Pasquale Tegano, wanted since 1994, was arrested on 6 August 2004.Arrestato Pasquale Tegano ''La Repubblica'', 6 August 2004 At that time, differences between the Tegano clan and the De Stefanos emerged over the division of extortion rackets. The Teganos secured the neutrality of their old enemy
Pasquale Condello
Pasquale Condello (; born 24 September 1950) is an Italian criminal known as a member of the 'Ndrangheta. He is also known as ("the supreme one") for his role at the top of the crime syndicate.Mafia boss Giovanni Tegano arrested in southern Italy The Daily Telegraph, 27 April 2010 The next day, a group of friends, relatives and supporters applauded when he left the Reggio Calabria court house on his way to jail. "Giovanni is a man of peace!" one woman shouted. The Italian Minister of the Interior,
Roberto Maroni
Roberto Ernesto Maroni (; 15 March 1955 – 22 November 2022) was an Italian politician from Varese and a past President of Lombardy. He was the leader of the Northern League, a party seeking autonomy or independence for Northern Italy or Padan ...
, commented that "his capture is the hardest blow that we could inflict today to the 'Ndrangheta as he was the number one Calabrian fugitive."Italian police arrest top mafia fugitive Reuters, 27 April 2010 "Given his role, seniority and the importance of events he knew, he had risen to the ranks of one of the 'Ndrangheta's most important figures," according to a top police official, Renato Cortese.Arrested Italian mobster doesn't lose his fans The Associated Press, 27 April 2010
Giovanni Tegano died on 7 July 2021 in the prison of
Opera, Lombardy
Opera (Milanese: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Milan in the Italian region Lombardy, located about southeast of Milan.
Opera borders the following municipalities: Locate di Triulzi, Milan, Pieve Emanuele, Rozzano ...
, at the age of 81. Until his death, Tegano was detained under the 41 bis regime because he was still considered the leader of the powerful De Stefano-Tegano 'ndrina.