WARNING, GRAPHIC CONTENT: Giuseppe Di Matteo, 12, was kidnapped by Giovanni Brusca’s Sicilian Mafia gang to stop his father Santino testifying against them

Young Giuseppe Di Matteo thought he was off to see his father when police officers came to pick him up one day in 1993.

Ex- Mafia associate Santino Di Matteo had recently turned his back on his criminal comrades and was under the protection of the authorities for his own safety.

However, his 12-year-old son became a casualty when Cosa Nostra criminals in Sicily, Italy posed as police officers and kidnapped him.

The horrifying plot was masterminded by hitman Giovanni Brusca and crime boss Salvatore ‘Toto’ Riina. For nearly 800 days, the helpless lad endured unimaginable torment while held captive in a café.

He was beaten and starved by the criminals, who also sent photos of the boy to Santino as part of their sick mind games.

The initial aim was to stop the informant from giving evidence in the trial of anti-Mafia judge Giovanni Falcone, who had been killed in a car bomb attack.

The esteemed judge had devoted his career to prosecuting organised crime, notably leading the notorious “maxi trial” in 1986, which led to the conviction of 342 mafiosi, according to the Mirror.

Woolly mammoths will return in 2028, how you could live to 200, alien signals lost in the weather, could we battle Godzilla, and a creature with 20 arms has been discovered near the Antarctic – all this and more in our latest peculiar science newsletter.

Brusca was ordered to seek revenge and, in 1992, he placed half a tonne of explosives under a motorway near Palermo, targeting Falcone as his car drove past.

The judge died alongside his wife and three bodyguards, and Brusca was forced to go on the run immediately.

The later capture of Santino revealed Brusca – dubbed ‘The Pig’ – as the ringleader, sealing Giuseppe’s terrible fate.

In 1996 – 779 days following his kidnapping – Brusca gave the command to kill Giuseppe with five callous words: “Get rid of the puppy”.

The boy was so frail from his ordeal that he offered no resistance as he was throttled to death.

His remains were subsequently dissolved in acid to guarantee they would never be found – a technique called ‘lupara bianca’. Shockingly, Brusca showed no regret, later boasting in his autobiography about his ever more appalling crimes.

“I’ve dissolved bodies in acid; I’ve roasted corpses on big grills; I’ve buried the remains after digging graves with an earthmover,” he wrote.

“Some pentiti [former Mafiosi] say today they feel disgust for what they did. I can speak for myself: I’ve never been upset by these things.”

Brusca was later captured and jailed for 25 years after confessing his role in more than 100 killings.

His eventual freedom in 2021, then aged 64, triggered outrage throughout Italy that such a lethal murderer was now at liberty to roam the streets.

Tina Montinaro, whose bodyguard husband was murdered alongside Falcone, told the Repubblica at the time: “The state is against us – after 29 years we still don’t know the truth about the massacre and Giovanni Brusca, the man who destroyed my family, is free.”

Three years earlier in 2018, Giuseppe’s family received over €2.2m (£1.9m) as compensation for his murder. On the 25th anniversary of his son’s abduction, Santino stated in an interview: “I think about it every day.

“How can there be people so evil to treat a child this way? When people get involved in stuff like this, it’s most likely they are never coming back.”

Captain Cody has the perfect conditions to bounce back to form and add to his triumph in the Scottish Grand National last April.

Willie Mullins’ stable in Co Carlow is the dominant force of National Hunt racing – a sovereignty that now extends to the world’s most famous steeplechase, once the very emblem of the lottery where even the small-stakes player could hit the jackpot.

Mullins has now won the National three times but, tellingly, that tally includes the last two runnings, with I Am Maximus and Nick Rockett.

The latter’s late withdrawal leaves the 69-year-old trainer with eight of the 34 runners, and drying weather on Merseyside has enhanced the chances of the eight-year-old Captain Cody.

It’s hard to see the son of 2010 St Leger hero Arctic Cosmos coming home in front if he repeats the form of four underwhelming runs this season.

But the key to Captain Cody’s chance today is Aintree’s drying terrain.

It’s a year minus a day since my selection enjoyed the biggest victory of his career so far on Scotland’s west coast.

There are ‘Nationals’ run everywhere in Britain and Ireland nowadays – Midlands (Uttoxeter), London (Sandown), Somerset (Wincanton), Berkshire (Ascot), Sussex (Plumpton), Borders (Kelso), Leinster (Naas) and Kerry (Listowel), to name but a few.

But there are four Nationals that really count – the English which, being the first, doesn’t need a geographical qualification, the Scottish, Irish and Welsh.

Of the 23 runners who lined up at Ayr last year, 10 turned for home with any chance of success, with Captain Cody moving with menace on the outside.

His jumps at the final two fences weren’t pristine, but the casual ease with which the bay gelding lengthened to overhaul Klarc Kent – Harry Cobden had merely to shake the reins – and score by a length had to be seen to be believed. The handicap system rewards excellence with extra lead in the saddle, and Captain Cody is 12lb higher in the ratings today.

But his rise in the weights is well earned, and an eight-year-old jumper should be at the peak of his powers.

The Scottish National’s distance is three miles, seven furlongs and 176 yards, and Captain Cody will have no problem galloping for an additional two furlongs and 118 yards.

He has his own way of getting from one side of a fence to the other, but the National obstacles, with plastic cores replacing the timber of yore, are more tolerant of such eccentricity these days.

Jockey Johnny Burke, whose best National placing from six attempts was a fifth aboard Goonyella in 2016, gets the leg-up today and the British-based Irishman represents a safe pair of hands.

Of Captain Cody’s 33 rivals, Mullins’ I Am Maximus, first in 2024 and second last year, Grangeclare West, third 12 months ago, and talented outsider Champ Kiely are all dangers, while Gorgeous Tom, whose trainer Henry de Bromhead won the race with the Rachael Blackmore-ridden Minella Times in 2021, is also in the mix.

But it’s the improving novice Oscars Brother, bidding to give his owner JP McManus a record fourth National triumph, who is feared most of all.

The eight-year-old, one of just two horses trained in Co Tipperary by 29-year-old Connor King, looked an embryonic stayer when fourth at the Cheltenham Festival and has more to offer.

Click here to sign up to our sport newsletter, bringing you the latest sports news, headlines and top stories

It would be doing Bath a massive disservice to suggest they were all route one as they demonstrated with their third try which was strike play perfection. The scrum was solid and Redpath felt Russell, who faked pumped once to draw a gap to send Henry Arundell scurrying under the posts.

Then right on half-time came a try that both coaches identified as a key momentum shift as shortly after Smith missed a penalty to touch, replacement Francois van Wyk was driven over. Russell missed leaving the game tantalising poised at 35-26 to the visitors. After the madness of the first half, Smith took the first conservative decision of the game, by kicking a penalty in front of the posts. However, Saints were reduced to 14 men when JJ van der Mescht was sin-binned following repeated offences in the 22. Bath kicked to the corner and piled what seemed like half of Somerset into the maul with replacement Kepu Tuipulotu grounding the ball. Russell’s conversion made it a five-point game.

Another Smith penalty gave Saints a modicum of breathing space but that was wiped out by Russell’s penalty before a grandstand finish featuring Pollock, inevitably, and Hill’s try which will be celebrated long into the night.

Match details

Scoring sequence 0-5, Pollock try; 0-7 Smith con; 0-12, Dingwall try; 0-14, Smith con; 5-14, Dunn try; 7-14, Russell con; 7-19, Lockett try; 7-21, Smith con; 7-26, Kemeny try; 7-28, Smith con; 12-28, Russell try; 14-28, Russell con; 14-33, Sleightholme try; 14-35, Smith con; 19-35, Arundell try; 21-35, Russell con; 26-35, Van Wyk try; 26-38, Smith con; 31-38, Tuipulotu try; 33-38, Russell con; 33-41, Smith pen; 36-41 Russell pen; 41-41, Hill try; 43-41, Russell con.

Bath T De Glanville (S Carreras, 52); H Arundell, O Lawrence, C Redpath, W Muir; F Russell, B Spencer (B van der Linde, 74); B Obano (F van Wyk, 29), T Dunn, (K Tuipulotu, 52), V Sela (T Du Toit, 47), Q Roux (T Hill, 47), C Ewels, G Pepper, S Underhill (A Barbeary, 32), M Reid (R Molony, 66).

Northampton Saints G Furbank; T Freeman, R Hutchinson (T Litchfield, 74), F Dingwall, O Sleightholme (G Hendy, 66); F Smith, A McParland (A Mitchell, 59); D Fischetti (E Iyogun, 47), C Langdon (C Wright, 17), C Kundiona (E Millar-Mills, 47), T Lockett (Van der Mescht, 68), JJ van der Mescht (E Prowse, 67), J Kemeny, T Pearson (C Chick, 27), H Pollock.

Referee Andrew Brace. Attendance 14,509.

Rudy’s Pizza will be opening its doors on John Street in the former Banyan Bar and Restaurant.

The site will offer indoor seating for approximately 120 guests and outdoor space for 35.

A statement posted on Facebook said: “Join us on Saturday 11th April from 5pm-8.30pm at our new pizzeria located on John Street.

RECOMMENDED READING:
Date for Rudy’s Pizzeria opening in Harrogate announced

“Whilst our team put their training into practice, we will be opening our doors for a first look of our pizzeria and to support our friends at Harrogate Homeless Project – HHP

“Book your table now and you will get one free sharing garlic bread pizza per booking. A minimum of two pizzas + two drinks must be purchased to qualify.

“All proceeds from the evening, including money raised in our raffle, will be donated to Harrogate Homeless Project.”

Earlier, as part of the opening, Rudy’s Pizza announced a giveaway of 3,000 pizzas for those who sent their contact details in advance.

The Manchester-based company gave a similar promotion when Rudy’s Pizza opened in York’s High Ousegate in 2024.

Since then, the York outside has won widespread acclaim, receiving 4.5 stars out of five on Google based on 434 Google Reviews.

Tripadvisor awards 4.6 stars out of five, based on 198 reviews, ranking it 85th out of 728 York restaurants.

Rudy’s opened its first site in Manchester in 2015 and now operates 36 locations across the UK.

Follow Rudy’s on Instagram for the latest updates – @wearerudyspizza and head to www.rudyspizza.co.uk/location/harrogate for more information and bookings.

Emergency services were deployed to the scene of the crash off the GM-2 road in San Sebastian de La Gomera, on the island of La Gomera, on the east coast on Friday, the 112 Canarias official account posted on X.

Photographs shared by the Canary Islands Government on social media appear to show the bus had come off the road at a hairpin bend, coming to rest in a ravine.

Rescuers work at the scene of a bus crash near in San Sebastian de La Gomera, in Spain’s Canary Islands, Friday, April 10, 2026. (Europa Press Canarias/Europa Press via AP) (Image: AP)

Several ambulances, including an air ambulance, attended to the British tourists and driver.

Two seriously injured people are currently being transferred to hospitals in Tenerife by helicopter.

One will be taken to University Hospital of Nuestra Senora de Candelaria while another will go to the University Hospital of Canarias.

NEW YORK (AP) — After chants of “run again!” filled the room, former Vice President Kamala Harris told African American activists on Friday that she’s actively considering another presidential bid.

“I might. I am thinking about it,” Harris told Rev. Al Sharpton after he asked directly whether she was going to run for president in 2028.

Harris’ comments came during the National Action Network’s annual convention, where more than a half-dozen potential candidates appeared this week , hoping to make inroads among Black voters — who comprise one of Democrats’ most powerful blocs.

The Democrats’ next presidential primary season won’t begin in earnest until after November’s midterm elections, but this week’s conference showcased a collection of Democrats already jockeying for position in what promises to be a crowded competition.

For now, at least, there is no clear early favorite. But there did appear to be a favorite at Sharpton’s conference.

Harris, the nation’s first Black female vice president and the Democrats’ presidential nominee in 2024, earned the only standing ovation and the largest crowd of any other 2028 prospect this week.

Sharpton noted that Harris earned more votes in her losing 2024 campaign than even former Democratic Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton.

“Whatever she decides to do, she made a point in history,” Sharpton said.

Harris has raised the possibility of another presidential bid before in the 15 months since she left office. She also recently launched a political action committee and began to travel across the United States to support Democrats, especially across the South.

Still, some in the party have shifted their focus to a new generation of Democratic leaders given Harris’ struggle in the last presidential contest.

The convention lineup this week featured Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, Rep. Ro Khanna of California, and Arizona Sens. Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego.

Buttigieg, speaking shortly after Harris left the stage, received soft applause from a room that was about half-empty. Some cheered when he mentioned supporting federal workers and minority businesses, but many attendees had streamed out of the packed auditorium after Harris’ speech in an effort to grab a selfie with the former vice president.

Buttigieg, like many other 2028 prospects this week, laughed off a question about whether he would seek the presidency again.

Harris was more explicit.

Three times she repeated, “I’m thinking about it,” when Sharpton asked her about a 2028 White House run.

“I served for four years being a heartbeat away from the presidency of the United States. I spent countless hours in my West Wing office footsteps away from the Oval Office. I spent countless hours in the Oval Office and the situation room. I know what the job is, and I know what it requires,” Harris said.

She continued: “I am thinking about it in the context of who and where and how can the best job be done for the American people. That’s how I’m thinking about it. I’ll keep you posted.”

E-bike and e-scooter fires are often caused by the failure of batteries, conversion kits or chargers.

The Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service have issued an urgent warning to the public to be vigilant after an increase in electric vehicle fires.

According to figures obtained by the Press Association, across the UK, 432 e-bike blazes were recorded in 2025. That is up 38 per cent from 313 the previous year, and is more than five times higher than the 84 in 2021. There were 147 e-scooter fires last year, representing a 20 per cent jump from 123 in 2024. In 2021 the figure was 88.

E-bike and e-scooter fires are often caused by the failure of batteries, conversion kits or chargers.

These products bought from online marketplaces have been found to be at greater risk of malfunctioning than those sold by established retailers because they are not subjected to the same level of regulation.

The figures obtained by PA showed that there were 5 E-Bike fires and 4 E-Scooter fires in Northern Ireland in 2025.

NIFRS Area Commander Suzanne Fleming said: “In 2025, NIFRS responded to 8 fires involving E-Scooters and E-Bikes, this is an increase from 3 in 2021. We are reminding the public to take extra care when using electric vehicles, particularly in relation to charging and storage. Please follow the safety advice to keep you and those around you safe. We also advise purchasing electric vehicles and chargers from reputable retailers only, ensuring they meet all relevant safety standards.”

The NIFRS have issued the following safety advice:

• When charging your E-Bike or E-Scooter, always use the manufacturer-approved charger supplied with the device and follow their safety instructions.
• Never leave your device charging unattended.
• Unplug the device before going to sleep or leaving your home.
• Always charge it in an area with a working smoke alarm and avoid charging anywhere that would block an escape route, such as a hallway
• Avoid using extension leads where possible and take care not to overload plug sockets.
• Regularly inspect both the battery and charger for any signs of damage.
• Batteries should always be disposed of responsibly. Please check with your local authority for guidance on recycling facilities in your area.