Hideouts, wigs and cash: an Italian mobster's life on the run

A woman displaying a photograph that became iconic in Italy and shows top anti-mafia prosecutors Falcone (left) and Borsellino, during a demonstration in the streets of Palermo, Sicily, on Jan 16, the day Italy's top fugitive, mafia boss Messina Denaro, was arrested. Photos: Alberto Lo Bianco/LaPresse/AP

While some mobsters flee to the tropics to escape prison, most of Italy's mafia fugitives stay close to home, where they can continue to reign from the shadows.

"Going to state prison means failure for a mafioso. The mafioso wants to die in his own bed, not behind bars," Italian journalist Attilio Bolzoni, a specialist on Italy's criminal underworld, said.