Father Christmas had a bad surprise in store on
Thursday for a suspected Sicilian mafia member -- an arrest for
racketeering.
A policeman dressed as Father Christmas nabbed the man in a
sting operation as he was coming out of a shop where he had
extracted some protection money.
"Father Christmas" dropped the bag of sweets that he was giving
out and arrested 37-year-old Salvatore Politini, believed to be a
member of the Santapaola mafia clan, in police footage shown on
Italian television.
The officer had been watching the shop in the city of Catania
for several days, dressed in his Father Christmas costume, Italian
news media reported.
The shopkeeper had been forced to pay the mafia a protection
racket of around 260 euros (340 dollars) every month for 10
years.
The man arrested was carrying a ceramic plate and a panettone
cake -- believed to be payment in kind from other extortion
victims.