Notorious Italian Mafia boss who boasted his victims could ‘fill a cemetery’ is buried at private funeral

Matteo Messina Denaro died in custody this week after 30 years on the run

The hearse carrying late mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro arrives at the cemetery in the Sicilian town of Castelvetrano (REUTERS)

The Italian Mafia boss who once claimed to have murdered enough people to fill a cemetery has been laid to rest in his hometown in Sicily, with only a handful of family members allowed to attend.

Matteo Messina Denaro, who was arrested in January after three decades on the run, died of cancer in a hospital in central Italy on Monday, taking to the grave the secrets of his mafioso past.

The hearse arrived in the southwestern Sicilian town of Castelvetrano after dawn and entered the cemetery by a side gate, skirting residential areas to avoid any public demonstrations of affection or anger.

Relatives of late Mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro, including his brother Salvatore, holding flowers at left, and sister Bice, right, wait for Denaro's funeral hearse to arrive (AP)

A mugshot of Mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro (EPA)

Seven people walked behind the hearse, one carrying a bunch of yellow flowers. Three cars of close relatives also drove in before police closed the entrance to prevent waiting journalists from following.

There was no religious service at the funeral.

Among those present were Messina Denaro’s daughter, Lorenza Alagna, who he only met following his capture. The mobster’s two sisters and brother were also there.

Messina Denaro was found guilty of several crimes, including helping plan the 1992 murders of anti-mafia prosecutors Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino - killings that shocked Italy and sparked a crackdown on the Sicilian mob.

Matteo Messina Denaro being transferred into custody earlier this year (AFP/Getty)

He once claimed to have murdered enough people to fill a cemetery.

The 61-year-old was also held responsible for bombings in Rome, Florence and Milan in 1993 that killed 10 people, as well as helping organise the kidnapping of Giuseppe Di Matteo, 12, to dissuade his father from giving evidence against the mafia.

Police stand outside the cemetery, where late mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro is burie (REUTERS)

Relatives of late Mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro: niece Lorenza, left, and his sister Bice (AP)

The boy was held for two years, then murdered and his body dissolved in acid.

The mayor of Castelvetrano, Enzo Alfano, has been highly critical of Messina Denaro, saying he had wrecked the reputation of the town, stunting the local economy.

“It will take decades more before we can put an end to ... a sometimes rampant culture of illegality, of impunity, that he and his acolytes and others before them cultivated for too long,” Mr Alfano told reporters earlier this week.