Italy urged to close case of British man mistaken for mafia boss

Liverpool man was mistaken for fugitive Matteo Messina Denaro and arrested in a restaurant in The Hague

The lawyer for a man from Liverpool mistakenly apprehended in the Netherlands on suspicion of being a notorious Sicilian mafia boss and the world's most-wanted fugitive mobster, is calling for the Italian authorities to withdraw the execution of an arrest warrant against him.

Last Wednesday, around 5pm, a 54-year-old British man, identified by his lawyer as Mark L, was cuffed while he was having a meal in a restaurant in The Hague by heavily armed police who pulled a hood over his head and dragged him out in front of dozens of terrified customers, according to media reports.