Gun Battle Erupts at Italy Mafia Trial

Mafia warfare erupted in a courtroom here Monday when an alleged mobster pulled out a gun, fired at two fellow defendants and wounded two police guards.

Officials said defendant Antonio Miano fired seven shots through the bars of a cage where suspected Mafiosi Antonino Faro and Antonio Marano were being guarded by six policemen. They were among 115 alleged Mafia gangsters held in cages during the trial.

Marano and Faro were being held separately from the other defendants after a prison attempt to kill two rival clan members who are also on trial.

Police said they were investigating how Miano had managed to smuggle the gun through the tight security at the court. Defendants undergo two strip searches, one before leaving prison and another before entering their courtroom cages.