Italian Justice Undersecretary Andrea Delmastro has resigned after it was revealed he owned a stake in a mafia-linked restaurant.
His departure was one of two resignations by Italian prime ministers Georgia Meloni’s The government on Tuesday after losing a referendum to reform the country’s judiciary.
Mr. Delmastro, who is a member of Ms. Meloni Brothers Italy The party staked out a Rome restaurant with the daughter of a man convicted of having ties to the Naples-based mafia group Camorra.
Mr. Delmastro said he sold his stake when he learned that the father of his 18-year-old business partner, Andrea Caroccia, was connected to the organization.
However, a photo from 2023 later surfaced showing him with Caroccia, suggesting that the two men knew each other well.
It also emerged that he did not disclose his stake in Parliament.
Mr. Delmastro said, “I have always fought crime and achieved solid, significant results.”
“Although I did nothing wrong, I made an error in judgment, which I rectified as soon as I realized it. I take responsibility for it.”
Along with Mr. Delmastro, the Justice Ministry’s chief of staff, Giussi Bartolozzi, also stepped down on Tuesday.
Ms Bartolozzi resigned after controversially urging voters to support reforms so Italy could “ridd” the judiciary of what she described as a “firing squad”.
The departures added to the political turmoil after a referendum on reforming Italy’s judiciary failed on Monday, the first significant defeat for Ms Meloni and her right-wing coalition.
In a brief statement, Ms Meloni accepted the resignations of both officials, and, in an unusual move, also asked her Tourism Minister Daniela Santanche to “make the same choice”.
Daniela Santanche. File photo: Reuters
Ms Santanche was ordered last year to stand trial on charges of accounting fraud related to the publishing group she owns.
He has since resisted calls to step down and has the support of Ms Meloni.
Read more from Sky News:
Children play around missiles all over the Middle East
There will be snap elections in Denmark
The change shows Ms Meloni is trying to assert control by containing political damage, and signals she can act decisively even after voters rejected landmark reforms.
Both Ms Meloni and Justice Minister Carlo Nordio have resisted calls for them to resign after 54% of Italians rejected a proposal to modernize the country’s judiciary.
