The former mayor of Catania, Angelo Lo Presti, was last week condemned to four-and-a-half years in jail after he was found guilty of using a company he has in Malta to recycle money that was to have been used in a big Mafia scam.

The amount of money involved was fairly small, €25,000, but it was only the first tranche of a €150,000 sum that was intended to “oil the bureaucratic machine” in favour of a group of Mafia leaders, who were all condemned last week by the Palermo tribunal.

The strategy was to build a hypermarket at Villabate, on the outskirts of Palermo. The agreement would have obtained regulatory approval for the concept, while 30 per cent of the work involved would be carried out by companies in the agreement, and 20 per cent of the people employed would be guaranteed to the same companies.