Pope Francis will wash the feet of inmates at a prison known for housing mafia turncoats on Holy Thursday.
The Paliano prison, located in a huge fortress outside Rome, houses many of Italy's "collaborators of justice," who can shave time off their sentences by cooperating with anti-mafia investigators.
Given the security concerns involved, the Vatican said that the Mass at the maximum-security facility would be "strictly private."
Francis has spoken out frequently to denounce the mafia, declaring mobsters "excommunicated" and urging them to change their ways.
