The Second Mafia War was a conflict within the Sicilian Mafia, mostly taking place in the early 1980s. As with any criminal organization, the history of the Sicilian Mafia is replete with conflicts and power struggles, and the violence that results from them, but these are generally localised and short term. However, the Second Mafia War, which is sometimes referred to as The Great Mafia War or the Mattanza, involved the entire Mafia and radically altered the power balance within the organization. Sicily ( 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. ... This article is about the criminal society. ...

Even more so than the first one, the Second Mafia War involved a staggering amount of violence, with upwards of a thousand homicides. The dates of the war are sometimes given as 1981 to 1983, but whilst the majority of the violence occurred during these years, the first shots had been fired back in 1978, whilst the instigators and eventual victors had been preparing their strategy some years prior to this. Similarly, the victors dragged the killing out until the end of the 1980s as they disposed of their allies. Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ...

In parallel to the war amidst the Mafia itself, there was a war against the state, a campaign of deliberate assassinations of authority figures, such as judges, prosecutors and even politicians. In turn, the war resulted in a major crackdown against the Mafia, helped by the pentiti, Mafiosi who collaborated with the authorities after losing so many friends and relatives in the Second Mafia War. In effect, the conflict helped blow the lid of secrecy on the Mafia. For other uses, see State (disambiguation). ... Assassin and Assassins redirect here. ... Judges may refer to the Book of Judges in the Bible more than one judge. ... In countries adopting the common law adversarial system or the civil law inquisitorial system, the prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution. ... A politician is an individual involved in politics, sometimes this may include political scientists. ... Pentiti (Italian, literally meaning those who have repented) are former members of the Italian Mafia or similar criminal or terrorist organisations who have abandoned their criminal/terrorist organisation and helped police to discover as much as possible about the respective organisation, criminals, and in general anything related to their former...

Preceding events

Salvatore Riina, pictured in 1993, was one of the prime orchestrators of the Second Mafia War

The instigators of the Second Mafia War were the Corleonesi, the Mafia Family from the town of Corleone, although they were helped by a number of other Mafia Families. Hailing as they did from a small rural town, the Corleonesi were often referred to as "the peasants" - i viddani in Sicilian - by other Mafia Families, especially by the powerful urbanized bosses in the capital of Palermo. Things began to change in the 1960s as the Corleonesi grew in power and prestige under the leadership of the brutal and ambitious Luciano Leggio, who had become the Mafia boss of Corleone via the crude but effective method of simply shooting the old one. Picture of Salvatore Riina, Mafia boss. ... Picture of Salvatore Riina, Mafia boss. ... Salvatore Riina, also known as Totò Riina (born November 16, 1930, Corleone) is a member of the Sicilian Mafia who became the most powerful member of the criminal organisation in the early 1980s. ... Luciano Leggio at a court appearance in 1974 Totò Riina, amidst tight security, appears in court following his capture in January 1993 The Corleonesi is the name given to a faction within the Sicilian Mafia that dominated Mafia in the 1980s and the 1990s. ... Corleone is a small town of approximately 12,000 inhabitants in the province of Palermo in Sicily, Italy. ... Sign in a rural area in Dalarna, Sweden Qichun, a rural town in Hubei province, China An artists rendering of an aerial view of the Maryland countryside: Jane Frank (Jane Schenthal Frank, 1918-1986), Aerial Series: Ploughed Fields, Maryland, 1974, acrylic and mixed materials on apertured double canvas, 52... For other uses, see Palermo (disambiguation). ... Luciano Leggio (January 6, 1925 – November 16, 1993) was an Italian criminal and leading figure of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Corleone is a small town of approximately 12,000 inhabitants in the province of Palermo in Sicily, Italy. ... Dr. Michele Navarra (1905 - August 2, 1958) was a powerful member of the Sicilian Mafia. ...

During the 1970s the Mafia in Sicily resumed its normal illicit business after the Mafia Trials of the 1960s had ended with few convictions. The Corleonesi's primary rivals were Stefano Bontade, Salvatore Inzerillo and Gaetano Badalamenti, bosses of various powerful Palermo Mafia Families. The Sicilian Mafia Commission was re-established in 1970, with Bontate and Badalementi making up two of the three leaders of the Commission. The third was Leggio, although he was represented by his Underboss, Salvatore Riina as Leggio was in hiding on the Italian mainland. When Leggio was captured in 1974 and imprisoned for murder, Riina soon took over as boss of the Corleonesi, with Bernardo Provenzano as his underboss. The 1960s Sicilian Mafia trials took place at the end of that decade in response to a rise in organized crime violence around the late 1950s and early 1960s. ... Stefano Bontade (April 23, 1939 - April 23, 1981) was a powerful member of the Sicilan Mafia. ... Salvatore Inzerillo (died May 11, 1981) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Gaetano Badalamenti (Cinisi, September 14, 1923 – Devens Federal Medical Center, Ayer, Massachusetts, April 29, 2004) was a powerful member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... 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, also known as Totò Riina (born November 16, 1930, Corleone) is a member of the Sicilian Mafia who became the most powerful member of the criminal organisation in the early 1980s. ... Bernardo Provenzano in 1959, aged 26. ...

During the 1970s, the Corleonesi began to win over allies amongst other Mafia Families. Amongst those who aligned themselves with the Corleonesi were Palermo bosses Giuseppe Calò (boss of Porta Nuova), Filippo Marchese (boss of Corso Dei Mille) and Rosario Riccobono (boss of Partanna Mondello). In 1978, for reasons still unknown, Riina managed to have Badalamenti expelled from the Commission and subsequently exiled from the Mafia and Sicily altogether. His place was taken by Ciaculli Godfather Michele "The Pope" Greco, who was also aligned with Riina. Greco, like Calò, Marchese and Riccobono, kept his alliance secret from the likes of Bontate and Inzerillo. Luciano Leggio at a court appearance in 1974 Totò Riina, amidst tight security, appears in court following his capture in January 1993 The Corleonesi is the name given to a faction within the Sicilian Mafia that dominated Mafia in the 1980s and the 1990s. ... Giuseppe Pippo Calò (born September 30, 1931 in Palermo) is a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Filippo Marchese Filippo Marchese (died 1982) was a hitman and leading figure in the Sicilian Mafia suspected of dozens of homicides. ... Rosario Riccobono (February 10, 1929 - November 30, 1982) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Ciaculli is an outlying suburb of Palermo, Sicily in Italy. ... Michele Greco (born May 12, 1924) is a member of the Sicilian Mafia, currently incarcerated for multiple murder. ...

It was also in 1978 that Riina arranged for the murders of Giuseppe Di Cristina and Giuseppe Calderone, bosses of Riesi and Catania respectively. Both men were allies of Bontade and Inzerillo; their successors were allies of Riina, who sponsored them. Gradually, the bosses of Palermo and their men were isolated. 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. ... Riesi is a comune (municipality) in the Province of Caltanissetta in the Italian region Sicily, located about 110 km southeast of Palermo and about 20 km south of Caltanissetta. ... The Roman Odeon. ...

The Great Mafia War

The bullet ridden body of Salvatore Inzerillo

On April 23, 1981, Bontade was machine-gunned to death, and a few weeks later, on May 11, Inzerillo was torn apart by a hail of bullets. Various relatives and associates of the pair were subsequently killed or vanished without trace, including Inzerillo's 15-year-old son, who was killed for vowing to avenge his murdered father. Badalamenti only managed to survive by fleeing Sicily after the Corleonesi had him expelled in the late 1970s. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... is the 113th day of the year (114th 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 131st day of the year (132nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Luciano Leggio at a court appearance in 1974 Totò Riina, amidst tight security, appears in court following his capture in January 1993 The Corleonesi is the name given to a faction within the Sicilian Mafia that dominated Mafia in the 1980s and the 1990s. ...

More and more killings took place over the next two-years, with the bloodshed best illustrated by the fact that, on a single day - November 30, 1982 - twelve Mafiosi were murdered in Palermo in twelve separate incidents. The murders even extended across the Atlantic, with one of Inzerillo's brothers being found dead in New Jersey after fleeing to the U.S., and one of Badalemnti's nephews turning up dismembered in a field in Germany. is the 334th day of the year (335th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... The Atlantic Ocean is Earths second-largest ocean, covering approximately one_fifth of its surface. ... “NJ” redirects here. ... Motto: (Out Of Many, One) (traditional) In God We Trust (1956 to date) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington D.C. Largest city New York City None at federal level (English de facto) Government Federal constitutional republic  - President George Walker Bush (R)  - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence from... Dismember redirects here. ...

Amongst the many hitmen at the disposal of the Corleonesi and their allied clans was Giuseppe Greco from Ciaculli. He was a member of the Ciaculli clan headed by his uncle, Michele "The Pope" Greco, but was primarily at the disposal of Riina. An ace shot with an AK-47, Giuseppe Greco is suspected of killing around eighty people on behalf of Riina, including Bontade and Inzerillo. He lead a "death squad" of hitmen, which included Mario Prestifilippo and Giuseppe Lucchese. Filippo Marchese, boss of Corso Dei Mille, also took an active part in the slaughter, as did his young nephew, Giuseppe Marchese (who was caught in 1982. Vincenzo Puccio, another prolific assassin, missed most of the war as he was in prison until 1983. A hitman (alternately, hit man), also referred to as a contract killer, is a hired assassin, usually in the employ of organized crime. ... This article is about the Mafia hitman; for the Genoa_C.F.C. footballer see Giuseppe Greco (footballer) Giuseppe Pino Greco Giuseppe Pino Greco (1950 - September 1985) was a hitman and member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Michele Greco (born May 12, 1924) is a member of the Sicilian Mafia, currently incarcerated for multiple murder. ... Avtomat Kalashnikova model 1947 g. ... Mario Prestifilippo (died September 29, 1987) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Giuseppe Lucchese (born c1961) is a member of the Sicilian Mafia from the Brancaccio neighbourhood in Palermo. ... Filippo Marchese Filippo Marchese (died 1982) was a hitman and leading figure in the Sicilian Mafia suspected of dozens of homicides. ... Giuseppe Marchese (born c 1962) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia, who turned state witness (pentito). ... Vincenzo Puccio (Palermo, November 27, 1945 – Palermo, May 11, 1989) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ...

During 1981 and 1983 there were at least 400 Mafia killings in Palermo and as many again across Sicily. In addition there were at least 160 cases of Mafiosi and their associates who vanished, victims of what is known as lupara bianca (Sicilian for "White Shotgun"), whereby the body is completely destroyed or buried so that it is never found.

The Corleonesi and their allies were the overwhelming victors in the war, suffering few casualties themselves. One of the reasons was their natural secrecy. Whilst some Mafiosi lived quite publicly, putting on a persona of respectability, Riina, Provenzano, Leoluca Bagarella and their many killers spent years as fugitives, often rarely seen by fellow Mafiosi, let alone the public. Leoluca Bagarella (born 1941) is an Italian criminal and member of the Sicilian Mafia. ...

The fact that many bosses aligned themselves with the Corleonesi but without telling other mafiosi also aided the campaign in that these allies continued to have the misplaced trust of the Corleonesi's enemies. A prime example took place not long into the war, whereby six members of Bontade and Inzerillo's Mafia Families were invited to a meeting with one of their supposed friends. This 'friend' had, in fact, allied himself with the Corleonesi and the four who went along were never seen again. One who did not go was Emanuele D'Agostino, who became suspicious and instead, together with his son, sought refuge with one of Bontade's oldest allies, Rosario Riccobono. Of course, Riccobono had also secretly allied himself with the Corleonesi, and D'Agostino and his son were likewise eliminated. The only one of the six men to survive was Salvatore Contorno, who subsequently survived a murder attempt and went into hiding before he was caught by the police. Rosario Riccobono (February 10, 1929 - November 30, 1982) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Mafia turncoat Salvatore Totuccio Contorno Salvatore Totuccio Contorno (Palermo, May 28, 1946) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia who turned into a state witness against Cosa Nostra in October 1984, following the example of Tommaso Buscetta. ...

While on the run, Contorno sent anonymous letters to the police, giving up vital information about the war. This was invaluable to the authorities, who - like the losing clans - had little idea as to what exactly was going on with all the bloodshed. Mafiosi were obviously very secretive normally, and the at the time of the Second Mafia War the authorities were at a loss to understand the exact allegiances and motives of the war. For example, when Bontade was murdered, for a short while, until he himself was killed, the police thought he had been killed as an act of treachery by Inzerillo. Deliberate disinformation was also employed by the Corleonesi. When Inzerillo died he was wanted for the murder three-years previously of Giuseppe Di Cristina, but in fact the Corleonesi had murdered Di Cristina, deliberately doing so on Inzerillo's territory in order to frame him. 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. ...

War against the state

Judge Cesare Terranova, murdered in 1979

Whilst the Sicilian Mafia has generally been more inclined to kill authority figures than their American counterparts, this is still usually only as a last resort. The Corleonesi and their allies, however, started a specific campaign of assassination of state figures. Image File history File links Cesare_Terranova. ... Image File history File links Cesare_Terranova. ... Luciano Leggio at a court appearance in 1974 Totò Riina, amidst tight security, appears in court following his capture in January 1993 The Corleonesi is the name given to a faction within the Sicilian Mafia that dominated Mafia in the 1980s and the 1990s. ...

This started in 1977 with the killing of Carabinieri Colonel Giuseppe Russo and continued throughout the late 1970s and early 1980s. Amongst the victims (known as "excellent cadavers") were police chiefs Emanuele Basile and Boris Giuliano, magistrates Rocco Chinnici and Cesare Terranova, and politicians Piersanti Mattarella and Pio La Torre. The Carabinieri are the military police of Italy. ... Chief of Police in United States usage is the title typically given to the head of a police department. ... Emanuele Basile (died May 4, 1980) was a captain of Carabinieri and a collaborator of Paolo Borsellino on anti-Mafia investigations. ... Giorgio Boris Giuliano (1930 - July 21, 1979) was a police chief from Palermo, Sicily. ... A magistrate is a judicial officer. ... Rocco Chinnici became Chief Prosecutor at the Palace of Justice in Palermo following the murder of his predecessor, Cesare Terranova, by the Mafia. ... Judge Cesare Terranova Cesare Terranova (August 15, 1921 - September 25, 1979) was a magistrate from Sicily notable for his anti-Mafia stance. ... Piersanti Mattarella (May 24, 1935 - January 6, 1980) was an Italian politician. ... Pio La Torre Pio La Torre (Palermo, December 24, 1927 – Palermo, April 30, 1982) was a leader of the Italian Communist Party (Partito Comunista Italiano, PCI). ...

Nonetheless a team of anti-Mafia prosecutors, including Giovanni Falcone, Paolo Borsellino and Antonino Caponetto, laboured to orchestrate a concerted effort to combat the Mafia and the rising tide of violence, as well as the flow of heroin whose control was behind the war. 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. ...

The war against the Mafia resulted in the Maxi Trial of 1986/87, whereby hundreds of Mafiosi were convicted of a long litany of crimes. Some of the investigations and crimes had begun in the 1970s but a bulk of the charges related to the Second Mafia War. Many of the defendants, such as Riina and Provenazno, were convicted in absentia as they were still fugitives at the time of the trial. The trial was significant as several Mafiosi on the losing side of the war, like Salvatore Contorno and Tommaso Buscetta, took the stand and testified against their former fellow Mafiosi. These became known as pentiti. Giovanni Falcone, one of the architects of the Maxi Trial. ... For in absentia medical care, see Health care delivery. ... Mafia turncoat Salvatore Totuccio Contorno Salvatore Totuccio Contorno (Palermo, May 28, 1946) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia who turned into a state witness against Cosa Nostra in October 1984, following the example of Tommaso Buscetta. ... Tommaso Buscetta (Palermo, July 13, 1928- New York, April 4, 2000) was a Sicilian mafioso. ... Pentiti (Italian, literally meaning those who have repented) are former members of the Italian Mafia or similar criminal or terrorist organisations who have abandoned their criminal/terrorist organisation and helped police to discover as much as possible about the respective organisation, criminals, and in general anything related to their former...

Continuing violence

Filippo Marchese, who eventually suffered the same fate as his victims

By the end of 1982 the Corleonesi and their allies were all but triumphant, with many of the surviving members of the old clans surrendering and switching their allegiance to the victors. The killing did not end though. The Corleonesi decided to dispose of key allies, starting with Rosario Riccobono, who was killed along with over twenty of his associates and friends in late 1982, and swiftly followed by Filippo Marchese, who was strangled and dissolved in acid like many of those who had died at his own hands. Image File history File links Marchese. ... Image File history File links Marchese. ... Luciano Leggio at a court appearance in 1974 Totò Riina, amidst tight security, appears in court following his capture in January 1993 The Corleonesi is the name given to a faction within the Sicilian Mafia that dominated Mafia in the 1980s and the 1990s. ... Rosario Riccobono (February 10, 1929 - November 30, 1982) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Filippo Marchese Filippo Marchese (died 1982) was a hitman and leading figure in the Sicilian Mafia suspected of dozens of homicides. ...

The violence dragged on into the latter half of the 1980s as a result of the Corleonesi's treachery and desire to ensure their hegemony throughout the Mafia. Riccobono and Marchese were already eliminated by the start of 1983. Further murders followed, primarily involving Ciaculli killers Giuseppe Greco, Mario Prestifilippo and Vincenzo Puccio, and Agostino Marino Mannoia, who had switched sides from Bontade's to Riina's. These four men were invaluable to the Corleonesi throughout the first half of the 1980s, notching up literally hundreds of murders between them, but between 1985 and 1989 they were all murdered on the orders of the Corleonesi bosses, who saw them as having outlived their usefulness and/or perceived them as too ambitious and therefore a threat. Puccio's two brothers, also Mafiosi, were likewise killed. This article is about the Mafia hitman; for the Genoa_C.F.C. footballer see Giuseppe Greco (footballer) Giuseppe Pino Greco Giuseppe Pino Greco (1950 - September 1985) was a hitman and member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Mario Prestifilippo (died September 29, 1987) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Vincenzo Puccio (Palermo, November 27, 1945 – Palermo, May 11, 1989) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ...

Once again, the authorities were largely unaware of these new events in the closed world of the Mafia until they were confirmed by Francesco Marino Mannoia (brother of Agostino Marino Mannoia) in October 1989. He had been in prison since 1985 for trafficking heroin but had been kept up to date on incidents by Agostino, who visited him regularly. According to Francesco Mannoia, his brother, Vincenzo Puccio and Puccio's two brothers were killed after Riina discovered they had been plotting to overthrow him. Giuseppe Greco and Mario Prestifilippo were apparently slain because they got too ambitious. Francesco Mannoia (centre, foreground) in custody, circa 1986 Francesco Marino Mannoia (born 1951) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia who became a pentito. ...

Mannoia's information was confirmed in 1992 by several more pentiti, including Gaspare Mutolo, Giuseppe Marchese and Leonardo Messina. Unlike the pentiti of the mid-1980s, these men were on the winning side of the Second Mafia War, former allies of the Corleonesi. They all complained of the same thing, that Riina and the other bosses of Corleone abandoned or eliminated their allies once they were of no further use or perceived as a potential threat. It seemed the only way to survive being an ally of Riina was to do exactly as he said. In an interview with Borsellino in 1992, Messina summed this up by stating that the Corleonesi bosses "used us to get rid of the old bosses, then they got rid of all those who raised their heads, like Giuseppe Greco, "the Shoe", Mario Prestifilippo and [Vincenzo] Puccio...all that's left are men without character, who are their puppets." ^[1] Gaspare Mutolo Gaspare Mutolo (Palermo, February 5, 1940) is a Sicilian mafioso, also known as Asparino. In 1992 he became a pentito (state witness against the Mafia). ... Giuseppe Marchese (born c 1962) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia, who turned state witness (pentito). ... Leonardo Narduzzo Messina (b. ...

End of the 1980s

The primary result of the Second Mafia War was the victory of the Corleonesi and its bosses, Salvatore Riina and Bernardo Provenzano. By the mid-1980s they were effectively in charge of much of the Mafia and by the end of the decade, after many of their allies were eliminated or in prison, they effectively had a hegemony over the criminal organization. Luciano Leggio at a court appearance in 1974 Totò Riina, amidst tight security, appears in court following his capture in January 1993 The Corleonesi is the name given to a faction within the Sicilian Mafia that dominated Mafia in the 1980s and the 1990s. ... Salvatore Riina, also known as Totò Riina (born November 16, 1930, Corleone) is a member of the Sicilian Mafia who became the most powerful member of the criminal organisation in the early 1980s. ... Bernardo Provenzano in 1959, aged 26. ...

This was summed up by Salvatore Contorno who, when asked at the Maxi Trial about the 'winners' and 'losers' of the Second Mafia War, declared that "The winning and losing clans don't exist, because the losers don't exist. They, the Corleonesi, killed them all." ^[2] Mafia turncoat Salvatore Totuccio Contorno Salvatore Totuccio Contorno (Palermo, May 28, 1946) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia who turned into a state witness against Cosa Nostra in October 1984, following the example of Tommaso Buscetta. ... Giovanni Falcone, one of the architects of the Maxi Trial. ...

See also

• First Mafia War

References

• Dickie, John (2004). Cosa Nostra: A History of the Sicilian Mafia. London: Hodder & Stoughton. ISBN 0-340-82434-4. 
• Robb, Peter (1998). Midnight in Sicily. London: Harvill. ISBN 1-86046-465-3. 
• Stille, Alexander (1995). Excellent Cadavers: The Mafia and the Death of the First Italian Republic. London: Jonathan Cape. ISBN 0-224-03761-7. 
• Sicilian Mafia, 1970s and Sicilan Mafia, 1980s at GangstersInc