PALERMO –An appeal has been opened on the strength of new evidence against General Maurio Mori, who was previously cleared of Mafia associations in July 2013.

Prosecutors have assembled the evidence, which includes previously unseen classified secret service documents. The files allegedly demonstrate a string of instances in which Mori, former head of the Carabinieri’s special operations unit, pursued his own agenda, striking deals with Mafia members and turning a blind eye to the presence of mafiosi fugitives in Sicily.

The case against Mori centres around the inability of authorities in Sicily to arrest Mafia boss Bernardo Provenzano, the so-called “capo di tutti capi” (boss of bosses), who evaded capture from 1963 to 2006. Prosecutor Roberto Scarpinato claims that Mori conspired to delay the arrest, and was in fact aware of Provenzano’s location at several points during this period.

Similarly, Mori is accused of facilitating the escape of Mafia boss Nitto Santapaola. Officers serving under Mori “inadvertently” blew their cover while moving in to arrest Santapaola in Terme Vigliatore, Messina, in 1993, thus enabling him to escape and evade capture for a further few months.