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Encyclopedia > Sicilian Mafia Commission

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. It is composed of representatives of a mandamento (a district of three geographically contiguous Mafia families) that are called capo mandamento or rappresentante. The Commission is not a central government of the Mafia, but a representative mechanism for consultation of independent Mafia families who decided by consensus. The Sicilian Mafia (also referred to simply as the Mafia or Cosa Nostra), is a criminal secret society of men which first developed in the mid-19th century in Sicily. ... 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. ... Officially a mandamento is the part of Italian territory under the jurisdiction of a pretore which is a kind of magistrate. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Judge Cesare Terranova who disclosed the existence of a Mafia Commission
Judge Cesare Terranova who disclosed the existence of a Mafia Commission

The jurisdiction extends over a province; each province of Sicily has some kind of a Commission, except Messina, Siracusa and Ragusa. Initially the idea was that the family bosses would not sit on the Commission, but in order to prevent imbalances of power some other prominent member would be appointed instead. However, that rule was not obeyed from the start. According to the pentito Tommaso Buscetta the Commission first came into being "to settle disputes between members of the various families and their bosses" in order to discipline members of each family. Only later did its function expand to "the regulation of the activities of all families in a province." Image File history File links Cesare_Terranova. ... Image File history File links Cesare_Terranova. ... Tommaso Buscetta (in sunglasses), the first important pentito of Italian Mafia, escorted in a court of law. ... Undated photograph of Tommaso Buscetta Tommaso Buscetta (July 13, 1928, Palermo, Sicily - April 4, 2000, New York) was a Sicilian mafioso, and later repented. ...


The first time the existence of such a Commission filtered out to the rest of the world was in 1965 during the inquiry into the so-called First Mafia War by judge Cesare Terranova. Terranova based himself on a confidential report of the Carabinieri of May 28, 1963, where a confidential informant revealed the existence of a commission composed of fifteen persons – six from Palermo city and the rest from towns in the province – "each with the rank of boss of either a group or a Mafia family." Judge Terranova did not believe that the existence of a commission meant that the Mafia was a tightly unified structure. [1] Judge Cesare Terranova Cesare Terranova (August 15, 1921 - September 25, 1979) was a magistrate from Sicily notable for his anti-Mafia stance. ... 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. ... May 28 is the 148th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (149th in leap years). ... 1963 (MCMLXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (the link is to a full 1963 calendar). ...


It was Buscetta who definitely revealed the existence and workings of the Commission, when he became a state witness and started to give evidence to judge Giovanni Falcone in 1984. It enabled Falcone to argue that Cosa Nostra was a unified hierarchical structure ruled by a Commission and that its leaders – who normally would not dirty their hands with criminal acts – could be held responsible for criminal activities that were committed to benefit the organisation. This premise became known as the Buscetta theorem and would be recognised legally with the confirmation of the Maxi Trial sentence in January 1992. Giovanni Falcone. ... Giovanni Falcone, one of the architects of the Maxi Trial. ...

Contents

Interprovincional Commission

Beyond the provincial level details are vague. According to the pentito Tommaso Buscetta a commissione interprovinciale – Interprovincional Commission – was set up in the 1970s, while the pentito Antonino Calderone claims that there had been a rappresentante regionale even before the Commissions and the capi mandamento were created. Tommaso Buscetta (in sunglasses), the first important pentito of Italian Mafia, escorted in a court of law. ... Undated photograph of Tommaso Buscetta Tommaso Buscetta (July 13, 1928, Palermo, Sicily - April 4, 2000, New York) was a Sicilian mafioso, and later repented. ... Catania Mafia boss and pentito Antonino Calderone Antonino Calderone (b. ...


The Interprovincional or Regional Commission was probably set up in February 1975 on the instigation of Giuseppe Calderone from Catania who became its first "secretary". The other members were Gaetano Badalamenti for Palermo, Giuseppe Settecasi (Agrigento), Cola Buccelato (Trapani), Angelo Mongiovì (Enna) and Giuseppe Di Cristina (Caltanissetta). Giuseppe “Pippo” Calderone (Catania, November 1, 1925 – Palermo, September 30, 1978) was an influential Sicilian mafioso from Catania. ... Gaetano Badalamenti (1923 - April 29, 2004) was an Italian-born Mafioso who was connected with the Pizza Connection drug smuggling scheme. ... 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. ...


History and rules

Tommaso Buscetta in his early years
Tommaso Buscetta in his early years

According to Tommaso Buscetta the first Sicilian Mafia Commission for the province of Palermo was formed after a series of meetings between top American and Sicilian mafiosi that took place in Palermo between October 12-16, 1957, in the hotel Delle Palme and the Spanò sea-food restaurant. US gangsters Joseph Bonanno and Lucky Luciano suggested their Sicilian counterparts to form a Commission, following the example of the American Mafia that had formed their Commission in the 1930s. Image File history File links Tommaso_Buscetta_young. ... Image File history File links Tommaso_Buscetta_young. ... Undated photograph of Tommaso Buscetta Tommaso Buscetta (July 13, 1928, Palermo, Sicily - April 4, 2000, New York) was a Sicilian mafioso, and later repented. ... Over four days, between October 12-16, 1957, the American gangster Joseph Bonanno allegedly attended a series of meetings between some high-level Sicilian and American mafiosi in the Grand Hotel des Palmes (Albergo delle Palme) in Palermo, Sicily – the most splendid in town at the time. ... Palermo (Palermo in Italian, Palermu, Palemmu, Paliermu or Paliemmu in Sicilian) is the principal city and administrative seat of the autonomous region of Sicily, Italy as well as the capital of the Province of Palermo. ... October 12 is the 285th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (286th in leap years). ... October 16 is the 289th day of the year (290th in leap years). ... Year 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... FBI Mugshot of former Bonanno crime family boss Joseph Bonanno taken in 1964. ... Charles Lucky Luciano (born Salvatore Lucania) (November 24, 1897 – January 26, 1962) was an American mobster. ... The Commission is the governing body of the mafia in the United States. ...


The Sicilians agreed with their suggestion and Buscetta, Gaetano Badalamenti and Salvatore Greco "Ciaschiteddu" set the ground rules. Somewhere in 1958 the Sicilian Mafia composed its first Mafia Commission. It was formed among Mafia families in the province of Palermo, which had the highest concentration of cosche (Mafia families), approximately 46. Salvatore "Ciaschiteddu" Greco was appointed as its first segretario (secretary) or rappresentante regionale, essentially a "primus inter pares" – the first among equals. Initially, the secretary had very little power. His task was simply to organize the meetings.[2] Gaetano Badalamenti (1923 - April 29, 2004) was an Italian-born Mafioso who was connected with the Pizza Connection drug smuggling scheme. ... Salvatore Ciaschiteddu Greco (January 13, 1923, Palermo – March 7, 1978, Caracas, Venezuela) was a powerful mafioso and boss of the Mafia Family in Ciaculli, an outlying suburb of Palermo famous for its citrus fruit groves. ... Palermo (It. ... The word cosca (pl. ... Salvatore “Ciaschiteddu” Greco (January 13, 1923, Palermo – March 7, 1978, Caracas, Venezuela) was a powerful mafioso and boss of the Mafia Family in Ciaculli, an outlying suburb of Palermo famous for its citrus fruit groves. ...


Before that time the Mafia families were not connected by a collective structure. According to judge Cesare Terranova they "were a mosaic of small republics with topographical borders marked by tradition."[3] In the days before the Commission coordination inside Cosa Nostra was ensured by informal meetings among the most influential members of the most powerful families. In fact, the decision to form a Commission was a formalisation of these occasional meetings into a permanent, collegial body.[4] Judge Cesare Terranova Cesare Terranova (August 15, 1921 - September 25, 1979) was a magistrate from Sicily notable for his anti-Mafia stance. ...


Originally, to avoid excessive concentration of power in the hands of a few individuals it was decided that only "men of honour" holding no leadership position within their own family – in other words simple "soldiers" – could be appointed as members of the Commission. That rule was immediately dropped due to the opposition of some Family-bosses who threatened to abandon the project from the start.


The Commission had two main competencies. The first was to settle conflicts among Mafia families and single members, and to enforce the most serious violations of the normative codes of Cosa Nostra. Second, the Commission was entrusted with the regulation of the use of violence. It had exclusive authority to order murder of police officials, prosecutors and judges, politicians, journalists and lawyers, because these killings could provoke retaliation by law enforcement. To limit internal conflicts, it was agreed that each Family boss had to ask the Commission’s authorisation before killing any member of another Family.[5]


Until the early 1980s the Commission’s competencies were often disregarded due to its collegial character and the wide autonomy for the Family bosses. Only when Totò Riina, Bernardo Provenzano and the Corleonesi imposed their rule, the Commission became a central leadership body. However, the Commission in fact lost its autonomy and became a mere enforcement body that endorsed the decisions made by Riina and Provenzano. Salvatore Riina Salvatore Riina, also known as Totò Riina (born November 16, 1930) is one of the most infamous members of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Bernardo Provenzano in 1959, aged 26. ... Corleone ...


The first Commission

According to Buscetta the first Commission numbered "not many more than ten" and the number was variable. Among the members of the first Commission in the province of Palermo were:[6] Palermo (It. ...

The Commission, however, was not able to prevent the outbreak of a violent Mafia War in 1963. Casus belli was a heroin deal going wrong, and the subsequent killing of Calcedonio Di Pisa on December 26, 1962, who was held responsible. Instead of settling the dispute, the Commission became part of the internal conflict. Salvatore Ciaschiteddu Greco (January 13, 1923, Palermo – March 7, 1978, Caracas, Venezuela) was a powerful mafioso and boss of the Mafia Family in Ciaculli, an outlying suburb of Palermo famous for its citrus fruit groves. ... Ciaculli is an outlying suburb of Palermo, Sicily in Italy. ... Michele Cavataio (died December 10, 1969, Palermo), also known as The Cobra was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Calcedonio Di Pisa (Palermo, October 11, 1931 – Palermo, December 26, 1962), also known as Doruccio, was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Angelo La Barbera (Palermo, July 3, 1924 – Perugia, July, 1975) was a powerful member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Cinisi mafiosi at the festivities in honour of Santa Fara, the patroness of Cinisi, in 1952. ... Cinisi is a comune in the province of Palermo in Sicily. ... Casteldaccia is a town in the province of Palermo, Sicilia, Italy. ... Antonio Salamone (San Giuseppe Jato, December 12, 1918 - São Paulo (Brazil), May 31, 1998) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia and a member of the first Sicilian Mafia Commission. ... San Giuseppe Jato is a village in the Palermo province of Sicily, (Sicilia in Italian) - an autonomous region of Italy and the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. ... Calcedonio Di Pisa (Palermo, October 11, 1931 – Palermo, December 26, 1962), also known as Doruccio, was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... December 26 is the 360th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, 361st in leap years. ... 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar). ...


On June 30, 1963, a car bomb exploded near Greco’s house in Ciaculli, killing seven police and military officers sent to defuse it after an anonymous phone call. The outrage over the Ciaculli massacre changed the Mafia war into a war against the Mafia. It prompted the first concerted anti-mafia efforts by the state in post-war Italy. The Sicilian Mafia Commission was dissolved and of those mafiosi who had escaped arrest many went abroad. “Ciaschiteddu” Greco fled to Caracas in Venezuela. June 30 is the 181st day of the year (182nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 184 days remaining. ... 1963 (MCMLXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (the link is to a full 1963 calendar). ... Funeral for the seven police and military officers that were killed while trying to defuse the car bomb in Ciaculli. ...


According to Tommaso Buscetta it was Michele Cavataio, the boss of the Acquasanta quarter of Palermo, who was responsible for the Ciaculli bomb. Cavataio had lost out to the Greco’s in a war of the wholesale market in the mid 1950s. Cavataio killed Di Pisa in the knowledge that the La Barbera’s would be blamed by the Greco’s and a war would be the result. He kept fuelling the war through other bomb attacks and killings. Michele Cavataio (died December 10, 1969, Palermo), also known as The Cobra was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ...


Cavataio was backed by other Mafia families who resented the growing power of the Mafia Commission to the detriment of individual Mafia families. Cavataio was killed on December 10, 1969, in the Viale Lazio in Palermo as retaliation for the events in 1963 by a Mafia hit-squad - including Calogero Bagarella, Bernardo Provenzano, and Giuseppe Di Cristina. December 10 is the 344th day (345th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, 21 days before the next year. ... Year 1969 (MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1969 calendar). ... Bernardo Provenzano in 1959, aged 26. ... 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. ...


Triumvirate

Luciano Leggio, a member of the triumvirate that was formed in 1970, at a court appearance in 1974
Luciano Leggio, a member of the triumvirate that was formed in 1970, at a court appearance in 1974
Mafia boss Gaetano Badalamenti, member of the triumvirate and head of the Commission from 1974-1978
Mafia boss Gaetano Badalamenti, member of the triumvirate and head of the Commission from 1974-1978

The crackdown on the Mafia resulted in a period of relative peace – a "pax mafiosa" – while many mafiosi were held in jail or were banished internally. The verdict of the Trial of the 114 against the Mafia in Catanzaro in December 1968 resulted in many acquittals or short sentences for criminal association. The vast majority of mafiosi had to be released given the time they had already spent in captivity while awaiting trial. Image File history File links Luciano_Leggio. ... Image File history File links Luciano_Leggio. ... Image File history File links Tano_Badalamenti. ... Image File history File links Tano_Badalamenti. ... 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. ...


Under these circumstances, the Sicilian Mafia Commission was revived in 1970. It would consist of ten members but initially it was ruled by a triumvirate consisting of Gaetano Badalamenti, Stefano Bontade and the Corleonesi boss Luciano Leggio, although it was Salvatore Riina who actually would represent the Corleonesi, substituting Leggio who was on the run until his arrest in 1974. Gaetano Badalamenti (1923 - April 29, 2004) was an Italian-born Mafioso who was connected with the Pizza Connection drug smuggling scheme. ... Stefano Bontade (April 23, 1939 - April 23, 1981) was a powerful member of the Sicilan Mafia. ... Luciano Leggio at his murder trial in 1974 Luciano Leggio (some sources spell his surname Liggio) (1925–January 16, 1993) was a powerful member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Salvatore Riina Salvatore Riina, also known as Totò Riina (born November 16, 1930) is one of the most infamous members of the Sicilian Mafia. ...


In 1974 the 'full' Commission was restored under the leadership of Gaetano Badalamenti. Among the members were:[7]

(Several pentiti, such as Salvatore Cancemi, Francesco Di Carlo and Giovanni Brusca say that Giuseppe Farinella, for the Gangi-San Mauro Castelverde mandamento, Francesco Intile for the Caccamo mandamento and Antonio Mineo for the Bagheria mandamento, were or became members as well.[8]) Gaetano Badalamenti (1923 - April 29, 2004) was an Italian-born Mafioso who was connected with the Pizza Connection drug smuggling scheme. ... Cinisi is a comune in the province of Palermo in Sicily. ... Stefano Bontade (April 23, 1939 - April 23, 1981) was a powerful member of the Sicilan Mafia. ... Luciano Leggio at his murder trial in 1974 Luciano Leggio (some sources spell his surname Liggio) (1925–January 16, 1993) was a powerful member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Corleone is a small town of approximately 12,000 inhabitants in the province of Palermo in Sicily, Italy. ... Salvatore Riina Salvatore Riina, also known as Totò Riina (born November 16, 1930) is one of the most infamous members of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Antonio Salamone (San Giuseppe Jato, December 12, 1918 - São Paulo (Brazil), May 31, 1998) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia and a member of the first Sicilian Mafia Commission. ... San Giuseppe Jato is a village in the Palermo province of Sicily, (Sicilia in Italian) - an autonomous region of Italy and the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. ... Giovanni Brusca (born 1957 in San Giuseppe Jato) is a former member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Rosario Riccobono (February 10, 1929 - November 30, 1982) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Giuseppe Pippo Calò (born September 30, 1931 in Palermo) is a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Michele Greco (born May 12, 1924) is a member of the Sicilian Mafia, currently incarcerated for multiple murder. ... Ciaculli is an outlying suburb of Palermo, Sicily in Italy. ... Antonio Nenè Geraci, Mafia boss of Partinico. ... Partinico is a city and commune in Sicilia in Palermo Province. ... Tommaso Buscetta (in sunglasses), the first important pentito of Italian Mafia, escorted in a court of law. ... Salvatore Cancemi (Palermo) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Giovanni Brusca (born 1957 in San Giuseppe Jato) is a former member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Giuseppe Farinella, Mafia boss of San Mauro Castelverde. ... Country Italy Region Sicily Province Province of Palermo (PA) Mayor Elevation 1,011 m Area 127. ... San Mauro Castelverde is a comune in the province of Palermo in Sicily. ... Caccamo is a town located on the Tyrrhenian Coast of Sicily. ... Bagheria is a town of approximately 40,000 inhabitants in the neighbourhood of Palermo in Sicily, Italy. ...


During these years tensions between different coalitions within the Commission increased. In this period the Commission was increasingly dominated by the coalition led by Totò Riina and Bernardo Provenzano that was opposed by Gaetano Badalamenti and Stefano Bontade. Riina and Provenzano secretly formed an alliance of mafiosi in different families, cutting across clan divisions, in defiance of the rules concerning loyalty in Cosa Nostra. This secretive inter-family group became known as the Corleonesi. The wing headed by Badalamenti and Bontade defended the existing balance of power between the single Mafia families and the Commission. Salvatore Riina Salvatore Riina, also known as Totò Riina (born November 16, 1930) is one of the most infamous members of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Bernardo Provenzano in 1959, aged 26. ... Gaetano Badalamenti (1923 - April 29, 2004) was an Italian-born Mafioso who was connected with the Pizza Connection drug smuggling scheme. ... Stefano Bontade (April 23, 1939 - April 23, 1981) was a powerful member of the Sicilan Mafia. ... Corleone ...


Thanks to a shrewd manipulation of the rules and elimination of its most powerful rivals (in particular the killings in 1978 of Giuseppe Calderone and Giuseppe Di Cristina, members of the Interprovincional Commission) the Corleonesi coalition was able to increase its power within the Commission. Their rivals were overwhelmed and lost any power to strike back. Beside using violence, the Corleonesi also imposed their supremacy by shrewdly exploiting a competence of the Commission: the power to suspend leaders of a Family and to name a reggente, a temporary boss. Giuseppe “Pippo” Calderone (Catania, November 1, 1925 – Palermo, September 30, 1978) was an influential Sicilian mafioso from Catania. ... 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. ...


The 1978 Commission

Michele "The Pope" Greco, at the Maxi Trial in the mid 1980s
Michele "The Pope" Greco, at the Maxi Trial in the mid 1980s

In 1978, Gaetano Badalamenti was expelled from the Commission and as head of his Family. Michele Greco replaced him as the secretary of the Commission. Badalamenti’s removal marked the end of a period of relative peace and signified a major change in the Mafia itself. In 1978 the Commission was composed by:[9] Image File history File links Michele_Greco. ... Image File history File links Michele_Greco. ... Gaetano Badalamenti (1923 - April 29, 2004) was an Italian-born Mafioso who was connected with the Pizza Connection drug smuggling scheme. ... Michele Greco (born May 12, 1924) is a member of the Sicilian Mafia, currently incarcerated for multiple murder. ...

The Commission was divided between the Corleonesi (Riina, Calò, Madonia, Brusca, Geraci, Greco Scarpuzzedda, Motisi and probably Scaglione as well) and the group Bontade, Inzerillo and Pizzuto. A third group, Michele Greco, Riccobono and Salamone were not hostile to the group of Bontade but were against Gaetano Badalamenti. Michele Greco (born May 12, 1924) is a member of the Sicilian Mafia, currently incarcerated for multiple murder. ... Ciaculli is an outlying suburb of Palermo, Sicily in Italy. ... 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 is a small town of approximately 12,000 inhabitants in the province of Palermo in Sicily, Italy. ... Bernardo Provenzano in 1959, aged 26. ... 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. ... Giuseppe Pippo Calò (born September 30, 1931 in Palermo) is a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Antonio Salamone (San Giuseppe Jato, December 12, 1918 - São Paulo (Brazil), May 31, 1998) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia and a member of the first Sicilian Mafia Commission. ... San Giuseppe Jato is a village in the Palermo province of Sicily, (Sicilia in Italian) - an autonomous region of Italy and the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. ... Giovanni Brusca (born 1957 in San Giuseppe Jato) is a former member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... The title of this article contains the character ã. Where it is unavailable or not desired, the name may be represented as Sao Paulo, Sao Paolo or Saint Paul. ... Rosario Riccobono (February 10, 1929 - November 30, 1982) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Antonio Nenè Geraci, Mafia boss of Partinico. ... Partinico is a city and commune in Sicilia in Palermo Province. ... San Lorenzo. ...


While the more established Mafia families in the city of Palermo refrained from openly killing authorities because that would attract too much police attention, the Corleonesi deliberately killed to intimidated the authorities in such a way that the suspicion fell on their rivals in the Commission. In 1979 Pino Greco from Ciaculli also known as Scarpuzzedda and Riina’s favourite hit man entered the Commission as well. Palermo (Palermo in Italian, Palermu, Palemmu, Paliermu or Paliemmu in Sicilian) is the principal city and administrative seat of the autonomous region of Sicily, Italy as well as the capital of the Province of Palermo. ... Pino Greco (died late 1985) was a hitman and member of the Sicilan Mafia. ...


Second Mafia War

Mafia boss Stefano Bontade, the "Prince of Villagrazia", who was killed by the Corleonesi in 1981
Mafia boss Stefano Bontade, the "Prince of Villagrazia", who was killed by the Corleonesi in 1981

The Second Mafia War raged from 1981-1983. On April 23, 1981, Bontade was machine gunned to death in his car in Palermo. Bontade’s close ally, Salvatore Inzerillo, was killed three weeks later with the same kalashnikov. The Corleonesi slaughtered the ruling families of the Palermo Mafia to take control of the organisation while waging a parallel war against Italian authorities and law enforcement to intimidate and prevent effective investigations and prosecutions. More than 200 mafiosi were killed and many simply disappeared. In 1982 the Commission members were:[10] Image File history File links Stefano_Bontade. ... Image File history File links Stefano_Bontade. ... April 23 is the 113th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (114th in leap years). ... 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Salvatore Inzerillo (died May 11, 1981) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Look up Kalashnikov in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Salvatore Riina, after is arrest in 1993
Salvatore Riina, after is arrest in 1993

The Commission was now dominated by Riina and Provenzano. More and more the independence of Mafia families was superseded by the authoritarian rule of Riina. Nor did the killing ended when the main rivals of the Corleonesi were defeated. Whoever could challenge Riina or had lost its usefulness was eliminated. Rosario Riccobono and a dozen men of his clan were killed in November 1982. In 1985 Pino Scarpuzzedda Greco, Riina’s favourite hit man, was murdered on the orders of Riina, who thought Greco was getting a bit too ambitious for his own good. Salvatore Riina Salvatore Riina, also known as Totò Riina (born November 16, 1930) is one of the most infamous members of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Bernardo Provenzano in 1959, aged 26. ... Corleone is a small town of approximately 12,000 inhabitants in the province of Palermo in Sicily, Italy. ... Giuseppe Pippo Calò (born September 30, 1931 in Palermo) is a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Michele Greco (born May 12, 1924) is a member of the Sicilian Mafia, currently incarcerated for multiple murder. ... Ciaculli is an outlying suburb of Palermo, Sicily in Italy. ... Bagheria is a town of approximately 40,000 inhabitants in the neighbourhood of Palermo in Sicily, Italy. ... Rosario Riccobono (February 10, 1929 - November 30, 1982) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Country Italy Region Sicily Province Province of Palermo (PA) Mayor Elevation 350 m Area 35. ... Antonio Nenè Geraci, Mafia boss of Partinico. ... Partinico is a city and commune in Sicilia in Palermo Province. ... Giovanni Brusca (born 1957 in San Giuseppe Jato) is a former member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... San Giuseppe Jato is a village in the Palermo province of Sicily, (Sicilia in Italian) - an autonomous region of Italy and the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. ... Map showing the location of Mazara del Vallo, Italy Mazara del Vallo is a town in South-Western Sicily, Italy, which lies mainly on the left bank at the mouth of the Mazaro river, administratively part of the province of Trapani. ... Trapani (It. ... Pino Greco (died late 1985) was a hitman and member of the Sicilan Mafia. ... Ciaculli is an outlying suburb of Palermo, Sicily in Italy. ... Picture of Salvatore Riina, Mafia boss. ... Picture of Salvatore Riina, Mafia boss. ... Rosario Riccobono (February 10, 1929 - November 30, 1982) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Pino Greco (died late 1985) was a hitman and member of the Sicilan Mafia. ...


The Commission in fact lost its autonomy and became a mere enforcement body that endorsed the decisions made by Riina and Provenzano and their close group of allies. According to Buscetta: "With the power gained by the Corleonesi and their allies the traditional organizational structures had a purely formal value … the decisions were taken before … and the Commission was nothing but the faithful executor of orders." [11]


Meanwhile new mandamenti were formed in 1983, whose members entered the Commission: Raffaele Ganci for the Noce mandamento, Giuseppe Giacomo Gambino for the San Lorenzo mandamento and Salvatore Buscemi for the Passo di Ragano-Boccadifalco mandamento. In 1986-87 the Santa Maria di Gesù mandamento (the former fiefdom of Stefano Bontade) was reinstated, represented by Pietro Aglieri. Stefano Bontade (April 23, 1939 - April 23, 1981) was a powerful member of the Sicilan Mafia. ... Mafia boss Pietro Aglieri, U Signurinu Pietro Aglieri (Palermo, June 6, 1959) was a powerful mafioso from the Guadagna neighbourhood in Palermo. ...


Since the arrests as a result of the revelations of pentiti such as Tommaso Buscetta, Salvatore Contorno, Francesco Marino Mannoia and Antonino Calderone, and the Maxi Trial in the 1980s many Commission members ended up in jail. They were substituted by a so-called sostituto or reggente. Tommaso Buscetta (in sunglasses), the first important pentito of Italian Mafia, escorted in a court of law. ... Undated photograph of Tommaso Buscetta Tommaso Buscetta (July 13, 1928, Palermo, Sicily - April 4, 2000, New York) was a Sicilian mafioso, and later repented. ... 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. ... Francesco Mannoia (centre, foreground) in custody, circa 1986 Francesco Marino Mannoia (born 1951) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia who became a pentito. ... Catania Mafia boss and pentito Antonino Calderone Antonino Calderone (b. ... Giovanni Falcone, one of the architects of the Maxi Trial. ...


The 1992 Commission

In 1992 the Commission, that decided to kill the politician and Prime Minister Giulio Andreotti’s right-hand man on Sicily Salvo Lima and the judges Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino, was composed by:[12] Giulio Andreotti Giulio Andreotti (born in Rome, 14 January 1919) is an Italian political figure, among the most powerful in post-war Italy. ... Salvatore Lima (died March 12, 1992) was an Italian politician from Sicily who was murdered by the Mafia, with whom he was alleged to have ties with. ... Giovanni Falcone. ... Paolo Borsellino (January 19, 1940 Palermo - July 19, 1992 Palermo) was an Italian anti-mafia judge. ...

  • Salvatore Riina and Bernardo Provenzano for the Corleone mandamento
  • Salvatore Cancemi for the Porta Nuova mandamento (Palermo), substituting Giuseppe Calò who was in prison
  • Raffaele Ganci for the Noce mandamento (Palermo)
  • Matteo Motisi for the Pagliarelli mandamento (Palermo)
  • Salvatore Biondino for the San Lorenzo mandamento (Palermo), substituting Giuseppe Giacomo Gambino who was in prison
  • Pietro Aglieri and Carlo Greco for the Guadagna-Santa Maria di Gesù mandamento (Palermo)
  • the brothers Giuseppe Graviano and Filippo Graviano for the Brancaccio-Ciaculli mandamento, substituting Giuseppe Lucchese who was in prison
  • Francesco Madonia for the Resuttana mandamento (Palermo)
  • Michelangelo La Barbera for the Passo di Ragano-Boccadifalco mandamento (Palermo), substituting Salvatore Buscemi who was in prison
  • Giuseppe Farinella for the Gangi-San Mauro Castelverde mandamento
  • Giovanni Brusca for the San Giuseppe Jato mandamento, substituting his father Bernardo Brusca who was in prison
  • Giuseppe Montalto for the Villabate mandamento, substituting his father Salvatore Montalto who was in prison
  • Antonino Giuffrè for the Caccamo mandamento
  • Nenè Geraci for the Partinico mandamento
  • Benedetto Spera for the Belmonte Mezzagno mandamento

Salvatore Riina Salvatore Riina, also known as Totò Riina (born November 16, 1930) is one of the most infamous members of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Bernardo Provenzano in 1959, aged 26. ... Corleone is a small town of approximately 12,000 inhabitants in the province of Palermo in Sicily, Italy. ... Salvatore Cancemi (Palermo) was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Giuseppe Pippo Calò (born September 30, 1931 in Palermo) is a member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... Mafia boss Pietro Aglieri, U Signurinu Pietro Aglieri (Palermo, June 6, 1959) was a powerful mafioso from the Guadagna neighbourhood in Palermo. ... Brancaccio is a suburb of Palermo. ... Ciaculli is an outlying suburb of Palermo, Sicily in Italy. ... Giuseppe Lucchese (born c1961) is a member of the Sicilian Mafia from the Brancaccio neighbourhood in Palermo. ... Giuseppe Farinella, Mafia boss of San Mauro Castelverde. ... Country Italy Region Sicily Province Province of Palermo (PA) Mayor Elevation 1,011 m Area 127. ... San Mauro Castelverde is a comune in the province of Palermo in Sicily. ... Giovanni Brusca (born 1957 in San Giuseppe Jato) is a former member of the Sicilian Mafia. ... San Giuseppe Jato is a village in the Palermo province of Sicily, (Sicilia in Italian) - an autonomous region of Italy and the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. ... Country Italy Region Sicily Province Province of Palermo (PA) Mayor Elevation 47 m Area 3. ... Mafia turncoat Antonino Giuffrè Antonino Nino Giuffrè (Caccamo, July 21, 1945) is a Sicilian mafioso from Caccamo in the Province of Palermo. ... Caccamo is a town located on the Tyrrhenian Coast of Sicily. ... Antonio Nenè Geraci, Mafia boss of Partinico. ... Partinico is a city and commune in Sicilia in Palermo Province. ... Benedetto Spera was the right-hand-man to Sicilian Mafia boss Bernardo Provenzano and one of the most feared and respected men in the Sicilian Mafia until his arrest in January of 2001. ... Country Italy Region Sicily Province Province of Palermo (PA) Mayor Elevation m Area 29. ...

References

  1. ^ Gambetta, The Sicilian Mafia, p. 112
  2. ^ Gambetta, The Sicilian Mafia, p. 112
  3. ^ Gambetta, The Sicilian Mafia, p. 110
  4. ^ Paoli, Mafia Brotherhoods, p. 52-53
  5. ^ Paoli, Mafia Brotherhoods, p. 53-54
  6. ^ Padovani and Falcone, Men of Honour.
  7. ^ Padovani and Falcone, Men of Honour.
  8. ^ (Italian) Sentenza di secondo grado Riina + 7 (omicidio Francese)
  9. ^ Padovani and Falcone, Men of Honour.
  10. ^ Padovani and Falcone, Men of Honour.
  11. ^ Paoli, Mafia Brotherhoods, p. 55
  12. ^ (Italian) Sentenza appello Strage di Capaci
  • Men of Honour: The Truth About the Mafia (1992) Marcelle Padovani and Giovanni Falcone, HarperCollins, ISBN 1-85702-024-3
  • The Sicilian Mafia: The Business of Private Protection (1993), Diego Gambetta, Harvard University Press, ISBN 0-674-80742-1
  • Octopus. How the long reach of the Sicilian Mafia controls the global narcotics trade (1990) Claire Sterling, Simon & Schuster, ISBN 0-671-73402-4
  • Mafia Brotherhoods: Organized Crime, Italian Style (2003) Letizia Paoli, Oxford University Press ISBN 0-19-515724-9
  • Cosa Nostra. A history of the Sicilian Mafia (2004) John Dickie, Coronet, ISBN 0-340-82435-2

 

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