-from news.monstersandcritics.com-

Rome - Five purebred racehorses feature amongst the goods seized in a major bust against the Mafia in Italy this week in which 33 alleged mobsters were rounded up, an Italian news agency reported Thursday.

Police in Rome and in Sicily took the horses away from stables in Rome and in the Sicilian towns of Catania and Syracuse, Adnkronos said.

The horses are allegedly owned by members of the Catania-based Santapaola mafia family, the report said.

Francesco Santapaola, 46, one of the alleged leaders of the clan, was arrested on Wednesday a day after 32 other suspected members of the crime family were picked up in police raids in Sicily and on the Italian mainland.

Those arrested are accused of drug trafficking and extortion.

Last month the burnt body of Francesco’s brother Angelo was found in a field near Catania in what authorities believe was a settling of scores within the Santapaola family.

The mafia and other organised crime groups in Italy have often been involved in horseracing and related betting activities; fixing regular races as well as organising clandestine events on beaches and even on public roads.