Italy's far-right minister Matteo Salvini admonished by prosecutor for tweeting about Nigerian 'mafiosi' arrests

Police operations threatened by interior minister's social media habit, prosecutor claims

Italian interior minister Matteo Salvini poses with two members of the Central Security Operations Service, a swat team of the state police (REUTERS)

Italy’s far-right interior minister has been attacked by a veteran prosecutor for tweeting about a police operation which was still ongoing.

Matteo Salvini, the leader of the Lega party which is part of Italy’s ruling coalition, tweeted on Tuesday that police in Turin had arrested 15 “Nigerian mafiosi”.

But this provoked an unprecedented admonition from Armando Spataro, a seasoned prosecutor from Turin, who said the operation was currently underway.

Mr Spataro said Mr Salvini’s premature tweets risked compromising the investigation and broke basic law enforcement rules about what information to release to the public and when.

He urged Salvini to refrain from similar messaging in the future “to avoid the risk of damaging investigations underway”.

The interior minister, whose rise to power has been marked by a growing use of social media, quickly hit back and said he had been texted by the Turin police about the news 90 minutes before he tweeted.

In a video he posted on Facebook, Mr Salvini lashed out at Mr Spataro and ended by wishing the veteran lawyer a restful retirement.

Mr Spataro is due to stand down later this month after reaching the age of 70.

Despite Mr Salvini’s defiance, other prosecutors sprung to their colleague’s defence and backed his decision to criticise the interior minister’s hasty tweeting.

The Lega party, which has surged in popularity in recent years, turned itself from a small purely northern regional party into a national force by campaigning for a tougher stance on immigration and law-and-order issues.

And despite the hostility from prosecutors, Mr Salvini has continued his habit of tweeting news about police operations regularly.

On Wednesday, one day after his spat with Mr Spataro, the far-right leader tweeted his appreciation for a major multinational inquiry which had arrested dozens of people connected with Italy’s ‘Ndrangheta' mafia group.

His cheeky message ended with: “I hope no one gets offended and attacks me for my praise.”

Mr Salvini is one of the most prominent Italian politicians on social media.

His feed is an eclectic mixture of commentary and aggressive politician campaigning, interspersed with occasional light-hearted reflections and pictures of what he is eating for dinner.