Quebec mobster Giuseppe De Vito dies in prison

A well-known member of the Montreal Mafia, Giuseppe De Vito, died under mysterious circumstances in prison overnight Sunday, according to the Correctional Service of Canada.

The 46-year-old mobster was found unconscious in his cell shortly after midnight atthefederal penitentiary in Donnacona, Quebec.Prison staff attempted toresuscitate De Vito before transporting himto the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

An investigation is underway to determine the cause of death.

De Vito associated with the Rizzuto crime familywas arrested in 2010 and convicted of conspiracy to import drugs and gangsterism. He began serving an 11-year, seven-month sentence on June 20, 2012.

Judge Isabelle Rheault concluded that De Vito was a major link in the criminal organization and part of a small circle of Mafia insiders.

Wiretapping and surveillance evidence presented by the Crown showed De Vito had connections to the most powerful members of the Rizzuto clan, who were running an international cocaine import operation.

De Vito managed to escape the sweeping anti-Mafia operation dubbed "Operation Coliseum" in 2006, and was on the run for four years before being arrested in the Montreal borough of Saint-Leonard in October 2010.

De Vito was the husband of Adele Sorella, who is in prison forkilling their two daughterswhile he was on the run. On June 24, she was convicted of the first-degree murders, which werecommitted in March 2009.