After Chase, Ex-Mafia Boss Gunned Down in France

A former mob boss was chased in his car, then fatally shot on a motorway in southeastern France on Wednesday. Jean-Pierre Maldera, 71, described as a "godfather" of the local mafia in the 1980s and '90s, got out of his BMW and attempted to escape on foot across the A41 motorway near Grenoble before he was killed by three to four gunmen, local media reported, per the BBC. He was pronounced dead 10 years after the disappearance of his younger brother, Robert Maldera, nicknamed "the madman," at age 55. Robert Maldera wasn't seen again after attending a meeting near Grenoble, and a prosecutor concluded he was probably killed, per AFP.

Both brothers were key figures in the "Italo-Grenoblois" mafia group. A police source told France 3 that Jean-Pierre Maldera represented the brains of the operation, and Robert Maldera the brawn, per the BBC. The pair were convicted of a series of organized crime-related offenses in 2004 but released from prison the following year "due to an administrative error," per the BBC. Authorities didn't hear of Jean-Pierre Maldera again until the shooting, according to the outlet. As of Wednesday, those responsible had not been caught. They fled the scene in a stolen Renault Megane that was later found burned in a Grenoble parking lot. AFP has a photo of the blackened ground. (More France stories.)