Domenico Lucano

Domenico "Mimmo" Lucano (born 31 May 1958) is an Italian politician, who served as the mayor of Riace between 2004 and 2018.

Domenico Lucano
Mayor of Riace
In office
12 June 2004 – 3 October 2018
Preceded byCosimo Salvatore Comito
Succeeded byAntonio Trifoli
Personal details
Born (1958-05-31) 31 May 1958
Melito di Porto Salvo, Italy
Political partyLeftist independent
OccupationPolitician

Biography

Lucano was born in Melito di Porto Salvo but moved early in his life to Riace. He worked as a teacher for most of his adult life, and has been a human rights activist since the 1990s.

Mayor of Riace

He became mayor of Riace in 2004, maintaining the role since then. In 2009, shortly after his first re-election as mayor, Lucano was shot at through the window of a restaurant and two of his dogs were poisoned and killed.[1]

He gained international recognition for settling refugees in his village, which was experiencing population decline.[2][3]

He gained worldwide attention through his innovative approach to dealing with refugees,[4] in the context of the European migrant crisis. As mayor of Riace, he allowed 450 refugees to settle among the 1,800 inhabitants of the village, revitalising it and preventing the closure of the local school.[5][6]

Lucano, came second runner-up in the 2010 World Mayor competition. (The winner Marcelo Ebrard was the Mayor of Mexico City, which has about nine million inhabitants.)[2]

Lucano was also listed by Fortune as one of the world's greatest leaders in 2016;[6][7] featuring at number 40 in the magazine's listing.[3]

In 2017 he was awarded the Dresden Peace Prize.[8]

In October 2018, the Italian police put Lucano under house arrest for allegedly helping illegal migrants to stay in the country by organising “marriages of convenience”.[9][1]

In April 2019, Lucano was indicted with other 26 people on charges of abuse of power and aiding illegal immigration.[10] In the same month, he faced another probe regarding alleged false public statements and fraud.[11]

In September 2021, Lucano was sentenced, in the first degree,[12] to 13 years and 2 months in prison for aggravated fraud, embezzlement, forgery and abuse of office crimes, further aggravated by the conspiracy with his partner Tesfahun Lemlem and several figureheads "in order to continue to enrich themselves, exploiting the migrants".[13][14][15][16][17] The sentence was nearly double the 7 years and 11 months requested by the prosecution and the entire.[17] Public opinion on the sentence was divided, with voices on the left considering it politically motivated.[18][19][20]

The sentence is later reduced to 1 year and 6 months on appeal: Lucano is condemned for forgery and abuse of office, acquitted of the others charges. The Court of Appeal declares some wiretaps "unusable" and some crimes prescripted.[21][22][23][24]

References
  1. Giuffrida, Angela. "In Italy's 'hospitality town', migrants fight to save mayor who gave them a new home". The Guardian. Retrieved 2018-10-07.
  2. World Mayor 2010 results
  3. "World's Greatest Leaders". Retrieved 2016-04-13.
  4. Sreenivasan, Hari (April 3, 2016). PBS NewsHour Weekend.
  5. Ash, Lucy (10 January 2011). "Italian mayor saves his village by welcoming refugees". BBC News. Retrieved 26 September 2016.
  6. Poggioli, Sylvia (April 12, 2016). NPR Morning Edition (radio). National Public Radio. Retrieved 2016-04-13.
  7. "Riace: The Italian village abandoned by locals, adopted by migrants". BBC News. 25 September 2016. Retrieved 26 September 2016.
  8. "Laureates – Dresden-Preis". dresdner-friedenspreis.de. Retrieved 16 November 2018.
  9. Reeves, Chris. "Italy Arrests World-Renowned Sanctuary City Mayor for Aiding Illegal Migrants". Townhall. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  10. "Riace Mayor Mimmo Lucano indicted - English". ANSA.it. 2019-04-11. Retrieved 2019-04-12.
  11. "Riace Mayor Lucano faces new probe - English". ANSA.it. 2019-04-12. Retrieved 2019-04-12.
  12. According to the Italian law, a defendant is "not guilty" until the sentence "becomes final". A defendant has the right to all three levels of judgment (Tribunal, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court of Cassation) and to advance, in any level, a request for a constitutional complaint. He also has the right to go to supranational courts (like the Court of Justice of the European Union and the European Court of Human Rights) to stand up for his reasons. Treccani.
  13. "Full text of the sentence on ilFattoQuotidiano.it". ilFattoQuotidiano.it (in Italian).
  14. Corriere della Sera, Calabrian editorial office, 18/12/2021.
  15. Corriere della Sera, Calabrian editorial office, 17/12/2021.
  16. "La sentenza e i tifosi", Marco Travaglio.
  17. "Pro-refugee Italian mayor sentenced to 13 years for abetting illegal migration". the Guardian. 2021-09-30. Retrieved 2021-09-30.
  18. "La perversa letteratura processuale nelle motivazioni della condanna di Mimmo Lucano". La Repubblica. 21 December 2021. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  19. Corriere della Sera, 18 dec 2021.
  20. Il Tempo, 18 dec 2021.
  21. https://www.adnkronos.com/cronaca/mimmo-lucano-in-appello-cadono-le-accuse-condannato-solo-per-abuso-dufficio_1V5VpwycyhtBU6g75z5FQk
  22. https://www.rainews.it/articoli/2023/10/reggio-calabria-crollano-le-accuse-per-mimmo-lucano-condannato-in-appello-a-un-anno-e-sei-mesi--7357f6f4-d1a5-419d-b178-e506466cf2d4.html
  23. https://tg.la7.it/cronaca/mimmo-lucano-sentenza-ribaltata-in-appello-condannato-a-1-anno-e-mezzo-di-reclusione-e-assolto-dai-11-10-2023-195895
  24. https://www.ilfattoquotidiano.it/2023/10/11/mimmo-lucano-sentenza-appello-condanna-1-anno-e-6-mesi/7320395/
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