Mayors of Medellin and Palermo join forces to save cities from crime tourists

Cities made famous for their dark criminal underbellies are working together to turn around their reputation – and turn away hordes of crime tourists.

Medellín and Palermo, made famous by popular TV series like Narcos, have joined forces to shake their bad reputations as menacing underworld hubs harbouring drug cartels and mafia dons.

Medellín has long been know for its hitmen of drug kingpins like Pablo Escobar who murdered cops by the hundreds, while in Sicily’s Palermo mob bosses like Toto “the beast” Riina assassinated rivals and dissolved their relatives in acid as a warning.

But last week the two mayors met in Colombia to witness the triumphant demolition of Escobar’s former home, where…