Marcello Dell'Utri (born 11 September 1941) is a convicted mafia criminal and a former Italian politician and senior advisor to Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.
Formerly Senator in the Italian Senate for The People of Freedom political party, he was also member of the Italian Parliamentary Delegation to the Council of Europe and of the Italian Parliamentary Delegation to the Western European Union (WEO).
He was appointed artistic director of the now closed Teatro Lirico in Milan by the then mayor Letizia Moratti (PDL party) his appointment has been strongly criticized by art critic and then Head of Culture Department of the Municipality of Milan Vittorio Sgarbi .Dell'Utri has been found guilty of tax fraud, false accounting, and complicity in conspiracy with the Sicilian Mafia; the conviction for the last charge has been upheld on 9 May 2014 by the Italian Supreme Court of Cassation which sentenced Dell'Utri to seven years in prison.
The conviction is final and cannot be further appealed.
The third criminal section of Palermo's Appellate Court declared Dell'Utri a fugitive in May 2014, when it was discovered he had fled the country ahead of the final court decision.
After being detained in Lebanon, on 13 June 2014 Dell'Utri was extradited to Italy where he is currently serving his seven years prison term.
He has been further sentenced in April 2018 to 12 years due to the State-Mafia Pact.