Catania Mafia boss Nitto Santapaola

Benedetto Santapaola (Catania, June 4, 1938), better known as Nitto is a prominent mafioso from Catania, the main city and industrial centre on Sicily's east coast. His nickname is il cacciatore (the hunter), because of his passion for shooting game. He is currently in jail serving several life sentences. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... The Roman Odeon. ... June 4 is the 155th day of the year (156th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1938 (MCMXXXVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Mafia (also known as Cosa Nostra), is an Italian criminal secret society which first developed in the mid-19th century in Sicily. ... The Roman Odeon. ... Sicily (Sicilia in Italian and Sicilian) is an autonomous region of Italy and the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, with an area of 25,708 km² (9,926 sq. ...

Early years

Nitto Santapaola was born in the degraded neighbourhood of San Cristoforo in Catania into a poor family together with his brothers Salvatore, Antonino, Natale and numerous cousins, such as the Ferrera clan, the Ercolano clan and the Romeo clan, all members or associates of Cosa Nostra, and the future nucleus of the Santapaola-Ercolano Mafia family. The Roman Odeon. ... Charles Lucky Luciano, one of the most famous American bosses (La) Cosa Nostra (our thing or this thing of ours in Italian) is a worldwide alliance of criminals, linked through both familial and conspiratorial ties, that is dedicated to pursuing crime and protecting its members. ...

At the beginning of 1960s, Santapaola was introduced by his cousin Francesco Ferrera into the largest Mafia family of Catania, at the time under the command of Giuseppe Calderone. Santapaola’s first denunciation was in 1962 for theft and criminal conspiracy. In 1970 he was sent into internal exile and in 1975 he was denounced for cigarette smuggling. Giuseppe “Pippo” Calderone (Catania, November 1, 1925 – Palermo, September 30, 1978) was an influential Sicilian mafioso from Catania. ...

Ally of the Corleonesi

While Giuseppe Calderone was elevated to the Regional Commission of Cosa Nostra in 1975, his underboss Santapaola took over the illicit business in Catania for the Mafia family and became the capo famiglia of the clan. Santapaola managed the interests in heroin trafficking and acted as chief enforcer for the leading businessmen. Meanwhile, he carefully built a private faction within the family that was loyal to him – and strengthened relations with Totò Riina and the Corleonesi. Giuseppe “Pippo” Calderone (Catania, November 1, 1925 – Palermo, September 30, 1978) was an influential Sicilian mafioso from Catania. ... The Sicilian Mafia Commission, known as Commissione or Cupola, is a body of leading Mafia members to decide on important questions concerning the actions of, and settling disputes within the Sicilian Mafia or Cosa Nostra. ... Salvatore Riina Salvatore Riina, also known as Totò Riina (born November 16, 1930) is one of the most infamous members of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Corleone ...

While Riina was a fugitive he frequently spent time in and around Catania and often went hunting with Santapaola around the local mountains. Riina decided to support Santapaola’s faction in order to replace Calderone, an ally of Stefano Bontade from Palermo and Giuseppe Di Cristina from Caltanissetta. Giuseppe Calderone, was killed on September 30, 1978 by his former close friend and protégé. Santapaola took over the command of the Catania Mafia Family. These skirmishes were just a prelude to the Second Mafia War that really started after the murder of Stefano Bontade in 1981. Stefano Bontade (April 23, 1939 - April 23, 1981) was a powerful member of the Sicilan Mafia. ... Mafia boss Giuseppe Di Cristina Giuseppe Di Cristina (Riesi, April 22, 1923 — Palermo, May 30, 1978) was a powerful mafioso from Riesi in the province of Caltanissetta. ... Giuseppe “Pippo” Calderone (Catania, November 1, 1925 – Palermo, September 30, 1978) was an influential Sicilian mafioso from Catania. ... is the 273rd day of the year (274th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar). ... The Second Mafia War was a conflict within the Sicilian Mafia, mostly taking place in the early 1980s. ... Stefano Bontade (April 23, 1939 - April 23, 1981) was a powerful member of the Sicilan Mafia. ...

Catania Mafia wars

In order to kill Santapaola’s rival, Alfio Ferlito, three policemen who were escorting him from Enna to Trapani prison were killed as well

Santapaola’s command over the Catania Mafia was not unchallenged. He had to fight a war against another independent group that was not part of the Mafia in Catania, known as Cursoti, which waged war in order to control gambling and cigarettes smuggling. He was also involved in a bitter feud with the faction of Alfio Ferlito, who had been a close friend of Giuseppe Calderone. The war involved gun battles in the streets and dozens of murders. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 771 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (800 × 622 pixel, file size: 174 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) On June 16, 1982, on the orders of Catania Mafia boss Benedetto Santapaola his rival Alfio Ferlito was killed. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 771 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (800 × 622 pixel, file size: 174 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) On June 16, 1982, on the orders of Catania Mafia boss Benedetto Santapaola his rival Alfio Ferlito was killed. ... The Roman Odeon. ... Giuseppe “Pippo” Calderone (Catania, November 1, 1925 – Palermo, September 30, 1978) was an influential Sicilian mafioso from Catania. ...

On June 6, 1981, Santapaola was seriously wounded when ambushed by Ferlito and his men. When Ferlito was arrested Santapaola planned his revenge. On June 16, 1982, Ferlito was killed in an ambush when he was escorted by the Carabinieri during a transfer between to prisons. The killers were from Palermo and linked to the Corleonesi. is the 157th day of the year (158th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays the 1981 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 167th day of the year (168th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... The Carabinieri is the shortened (and common) name for the Arma dei Carabinieri, an Italian military corps of the gendarmerie type with police functions, which also serves as the Italian military police. ... Corleone ...

The murder of General Dalla Chiesa

Santapaola paid back the service by sending a hit team from Catania to Palermo to kill Carabinieri general Carlo Alberto Dalla Chiesa, on September 3, 1982, in the Via Carini in Palermo. Swapping hit teams proved to be a successful way to distract police investigations. Dalla Chiesa had just been appointed prefect of Sicily to end the violence that was the result of a war between rival Mafia families. In his last public interview it had become clear that Dalla Chiesa started to focus on the emerging role of the Catania Mafia. The Carabinieri is the shortened (and common) name for the Arma dei Carabinieri, an Italian military corps of the gendarmerie type with police functions, which also serves as the Italian military police. ... Carlo Alberto Dalla Chiesa (September 27, 1920, Saluzzo, province of Cuneo – 3 September 1982, Palermo) was a general of the Italian carabinieri notable for campaigning against terrorism during Italys 1970s strategy of tension, and later assassinated by the Mafia in Palermo. ... is the 246th day of the year (247th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... For other uses, see Palermo (disambiguation). ... A prefect (from the Latin praefectus, perfect participle of praeficere: make in front, i. ...

Dalla Chiesa had noticed that four mighty real estate developers that dominated the construction industry on Sicily were building in Palermo with the consent of the Mafia. The four entrepreneurs, Carmelo Costanzo, Francesco Finocchiaro, Mario Rendo and Gaetano Graci, were granted the honorary title Cavaliere del Lavoro (Knight of Labour) by the Italian government as reward for special merit to the Italian economy. Sicily (Sicilia in Italian and Sicilian) is an autonomous region of Italy and the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, with an area of 25,708 km² (9,926 sq. ... For other uses, see Palermo (disambiguation). ...

Links with business and politics

After Dalla Chiesa’s murder, investigating magistrate Giovanni Falcone found a note that indicated that Dalla Chiesa had discovered that Santapaola was on the payroll of Costanzo. Falcone encouraged Elio Pizzuti of the italian Financial/Customs Police (Guardia di Finanza) to look into their financial records. Pizzuti found ample evidence of corruption and political influence peddling by the four Knights that tied together the local Mafia, high finance and political figures.^[1] Giovanni Falcone during the Maxi Trial Giovanni Falcone, (May 18, 1939 – May 23, 1992) was an Italian magistrate who specialised in prosecuting Cosa Nostra crimes. ... The Guardia di Finanza () is an Italian police force directly under the authority of the Minister of Economy and Finance. ...

Santapaola had been a guest at the wedding of Costanzo’s nephew and had been hiding in one of Costanzo’s luxury hotels near Catania. He also had access to the private game reserve of another one of the Knights, Gaetano Graci. Mario Rendo bought all his cars from Santapaola’s car dealership, while wiretaps revealed Rendo’s executives discussing subcontracting with various mafiosi.

Pizzuto also discovered a massive tax fraud by the Knights through phoney receipts and a list of payoffs to politicians and magistrates. Rendo told inspectors that the false receipts were necessary to create a slush fund for government contracts. (A prelude to the scandal of political bribery known as Tangentopoli that would emerge ten years later in 1992) Rendo discussed the investigations of Pizzuti with his boss, Treasury minister Rino Formica of the Italian Socialist Party (PSI). Pizzuti was promoted and sent to North Italy – as far away as possible from Sicily. Bettino Craxi, viewed by many as the symbol of Tangentopoli, leader of the Italian Socialist Party, is greeted by a salvo of coins as a sign of loathing by protesters contesting him. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Later, photographs turned up showing the mayor and members of the Catania city council with Santapaola, while a clan war bloodied the streets at the time. One picture showed Santapaola in friendly embrace with Salvatore Lo Turco, a member of the Sicilian parliament’s Antimafia Commission.^[2] Mani pulite (Italian for clean hands) was a nationwide Italian police investigation into political corruption held in the 1990s, following the scandal of Banco Ambrosiano in 1982, which implicated mafia, Vatican Bank and P2, and the Maxi Trial of the mid-1980s. ...

The Catanese Mafia was generally able to learn about arrest warrants before they were issued and sometimes have names crossed of the list. The police released Santapaola after only a few routine questions when his bulletproof car had been found at the scene of a vicious shoot-out in which several people had been killed. Moreover, they continued to grant him a license to bear arms, despite his well-known criminal record. ^[3]

Murder of Giuseppe Fava

Giuseppe Pippo Fava, editor of I Siciliani

Santapaola has been convicted for the murder of the journalist Giuseppe Fava on January 5, 1984. Fava, founder and editor in chief of the magazine I Siciliani, exposed the links between the Catania Mafia and the world of business and politics. In the first edition of I Siciliani Fava published an article I quattro cavalieri dell'apocalisse mafiosa (The four horsemen of the Mafia apocalypse), denouncing the links of the entrepreneurs with the Mafia. ^[4] Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Giuseppe Pippo Fava Giuseppe Fava also known as Pippo, (Palazzolo Acreide, September 15, 1925 - Catania, January 5, 1984) was a Sicilian writer, investigative journalist, playwright and Antimafia activist who was killed by the Mafia. ... Giuseppe Pippo Fava Giuseppe Fava also known as Pippo, (Palazzolo Acreide, September 15, 1925 - Catania, January 5, 1984) was a Sicilian writer, investigative journalist, playwright and Antimafia activist who was killed by the Mafia. ... January 5 is the 5th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1984 (MCMLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1984 Gregorian calendar). ...

In 1994, Maurizio Avola, a nephew of Santapaola, confessed the killing of Fava, and became a pentito. He also confessed some 70 other murders. Avola said that his uncle Nitto Santapaola had ordered the killing of the journalist. Tommaso Buscetta (in sunglasses), the first important pentito of Italian Mafia, escorted in a court of law. ...

Arrest and convictions

On May 18, 1993, the fugitive Nitto Santapaola was arrested in a farmhouse hideout outside Catania after being on the run for 11 years. His wife, Carmela Minniti, was killed on September 1, 1995, by killers posing as policemen. They called at her house, pushed past her daughter and shot her dead. "She ran his affairs," said Liliana Madeo, author of a book on the Mafia's new women. "If she was just a little woman, she wouldn't have been killed." May 18 is the 138th day of the year (139th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar). ... The Roman Odeon. ... September 1 is the 244th day of the year (245th in leap years). ... Year 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full 1995 Gregorian calendar). ...

Santapaola’s rival Giuseppe Ferone (who had become a pentito) was one of the killers. Nitto Santapaola forgave his wife's killer in a letter he publicly read in court. Ferone’s son and father had been killed on the orders of Santapaola. Tommaso Buscetta (in sunglasses), the first important pentito of Italian Mafia, escorted in a court of law. ...

In 1998, Santapaola and Aldo Ercolano were convicted for ordering the killing of Giuseppe Fava. In 2001 the Court of Appeal in Catania confirmed the life sentences. He also received life sentences for the murder of Carlo Alberto Dalla Chiesa, Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino. Carlo Alberto Dalla Chiesa (September 27, 1920, Saluzzo, province of Cuneo – 3 September 1982, Palermo) was a general of the Italian carabinieri notable for campaigning against terrorism during Italys 1970s strategy of tension, and later assassinated by the Mafia in Palermo. ... Giovanni Falcone during the Maxi Trial Giovanni Falcone, (May 18, 1939 – May 23, 1992) was an Italian magistrate who specialised in prosecuting Cosa Nostra crimes. ... Paolo Borsellino (January 19, 1940 - July 19, 1992) was an Italian anti-Mafia magistrate. ...

References

• Arlacchi, Pino & Antonio Calderone (1992). Men of Dishonor. Inside the Sicilian Mafia. An Account of Antonio Calderone, New York: William Morrow & Co.
• Stille, Alexander (1995). Excellent Cadavers. The Mafia and the Death of the First Italian Republic, New York: Vintage ISBN 0-09-959491-9
• (Italian) Caruso, Alfio (2000). Da cosa nasce cosa. Storia della mafia del 1943 a oggi, Milan: Longanesi ISBN 88-304-1620-7

Giuseppe Pippo Fava Giuseppe Fava also known as Pippo, (Palazzolo Acreide, September 15, 1925 - Catania, January 5, 1984) was a Sicilian writer, investigative journalist, playwright and Antimafia activist who was killed by the Mafia. ... Four horsemen redirects here. ... This Gutenberg Bible is displayed by the United States Library. ... Visions of John of Patmos, as depicted in the Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry. ... Look up pestilence in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... A famine is a social and economic crisis that is commonly accompanied by widespread malnutrition, starvation, epidemic and increased mortality. ... Death, as a skeleton carrying a scythe. ... Allexander Stillé is an American author and journalist. ... Excellent Cadavers is a documentary on judge Giovanni Falcones fight against the Mafia in Sicily and his assassination on his way from Palermo Airport. ...

External links

• (Italian) Benedetto Santapaola Biography in Italian.
• (Italian) I quattro cavalieri dell’apocalisse mafiosa, by Giuseppe Fava in I Siciliani, January 1983.