Feared Sicilian mafia boss Salvatore ‘Toto’ Riina is in a coma and ‘close to death’

Former “boss of bosses” Toto Riina, one of the most feared Godfathers in the history of the Sicilian mafia, is in a coma and close to death, Italian media reports said on Thursday.

Riina, who turned 87 on Thursday and has battled cancer, was put in a medically-induced coma earlier this week after his health deteriorated following two operations in northern Italy.

The mobster, who is thought to have ordered over 150 murders and has been serving 26 life sentences since 1993, had been subject to a harsh anti-mafia regime that banned visitors.

But Health Minister Andrea Orlando signed a waiver allowing his family to say their goodbyes.

His wife and one of his daughters were expected to visit him in the prisoners’ wing of a hospital in Parma, media reports said.