From 41 bis to house arrest. "Fish King" Franco Muto, the alleged boss of Cetraro, will serve the seven-year and 10-month sentence handed down last July by the Paola court. The decision to revoke the harshest restrictive measure—adopted by the Court of Liberty, which granted the request for house arrest submitted by Muto's lawyers, Luigi Gullo and Nicola Guerrera—has sparked controversy. The alleged boss of the Tyrrhenian coast of Cosenza, who is 79 years old and has walking difficulties that have required him to undergo several surgeries, had requested, through his lawyers, the revocation of the harsh regime following the verdict in the "Frontiera" trial (which arose from a segment of the investigation into the murder of Angelo Vassallo, the fisherman mayor of Pollica, killed in 2010), handed down last June by the judges of the Paola Court. On that occasion, Muto had been acquitted of mafia association and sentenced to over seven years for fictitious ownership of assets. According to the ruling, which redefined the clan's internal power structure, the "fish king" was no longer the head of the Cetraro clan, but the sceptre had passed to his son Luigi, convicted in the same proceedings and also subjected to the 41-bis regime. Previous requests to revoke Muto's harsh prison sentence had been rejected by both the Paola Court, the Court of Appeal, and the Supreme Court of Cassation, based on medical-legal reports that his health was compatible with the prison regime. The decision to revoke the measure and grant house arrest nonetheless sparked a flurry of reactions. "I wonder," stated Nicola Morra, president of the Parliamentary Anti-Mafia Commission, "whether the judges assessed the request made by Muto's lawyers with the utmost caution. This decision, however legitimate and thoughtful it may have been, would contradict all previous decisions to the contrary. I hope the competent authorities will conduct a further assessment." According to the commission's vice president, Jole Santelli, "bosses of Muto's caliber don't retire. We're waiting to hear the reasons for the decision." Journalist Klaus Davi, a city councilor in San Luca, called the decision "absurd and inconceivable, completely senseless." Stefano Graziano, commissioner for the Calabrian Democratic Party, called the decision "absurd" and called for Minister Bonafede's intervention. Democratic Senator Ernesto Magorno also described the judges' decision as "speechless."
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