Boss of Bosses
Page 33
Police chief Renato Cortese’s account of his part in Provenzano’s arrest is contained in Enrico Bellavia and Silvana Mazzocchi, Iddu.
Epilogue
This chapter is largely based on interviews with the assistant prosecutor Alfonso Sabella, the historian Salvatore Lupo and the anti-Mafia chief prosecutor Pietro Grasso, as well as Provenzano’s lawyer, Rosalba de Gregorio.
Angelo and Paolo Provenzano talked about their lives in the BBC documentary The Real Godfather, broadcast in September 2007. Angelo’s alleged mediation was revealed in the course of an investigation by the carabinieri, reported by the ANSA news agency 30 May 2007.
Details of Lipari’s arrest are contained in the Richiesta di applicazione di misure cautelari a carico di Lipari Giuseppe ed altri, Tribunale di Palermo, September 2007.
32
The vast operation Grande Mandamento, which scooped up Provenzano’s supporters in Villabate and Bagheria, concluded in November 2006 with the conviction of all Provenzano’s former supporters. Spera got twenty-eight years; Onofrio Morreale, the youngblood secretly initiated and promoted by his master, got eighteen. Nicola Mandalà was sentenced to thirteen years.
Bibliography
LEGAL DOCUMENTS
Nino Giuffré’s testimony in a series of trials:
Verbale dell’interrogazione del collaboratore Nino Giuffré nel procedimento contro Giuseppe Biondolillo + altri, Termini Imerese, 16 October 2002
Richiesta di misura cautelare per Umina Salvatore + 9, 14 July 2004
Processo Talpe (Michele Aiello + altri) Tribunale di Palermo, 8 March 2005
Processo a carico di Bernardo Provenzano + altri, Tribunale di Palermo, 8—10 February 2007
Sentence in the trial of Marcello dell’Utri and Gaetano Cinà, Tribunale di Palermo, 11 December 2004
Corte d’appello di Bari, 24 September 1970, sentenza
Pellegrini’s report on Provenzano’s early business expansion: Rapporto della Compagnia dei Carabinieri di Partinico alla Procura di Palermo, concerning Bernardo Provenzano and eighteen others, 27 November 1983
Colonel Michele Riccio’s report on the collaboration of Gino Ilardo: Rapporto dei carabinieri del ROS (Raggruppamento Operativo Speciale) alle direzioni distrettuali antimafia di Caltanissetta, Catania, Palermo, Messina e Genova, 30 July 1996
Ordinanza di custodia cautelare emessa dal gip di Palermo nell’ambito del-l’inchiesta Grande Oriente, nei confronti di Bernardo Provenzano + 20, 6 November 1998
Procura di Palermo, verbale di interrogatorio del collaboratore Angelo Siino, 10 June 1998
Introduction by chief prosecutor Nino Di Matteo in the trial known as ‘Grande Oriente’, Tribunale di Palermo, 13 October 2000
Verbale di interrogatorio del collaboratore Giovanni Brusca davanti al Tribunale di Palermo, nel processo Simone Castello, 12 December 2000
Atti del procedimento penale nei confronti di Saveria Benedetta Palazzolo + altri, Tribunale di Palermo, 1983. Sentence, 18 December 1990
Memoria della Procura di Palermo nel Processo Talpe (Aiello Michele + altri), 1 October 2005
Fermo disposto dalla Procura di Palermo nei confronti di Angelo Tolentino + 49, nell’ambito dell’operazione Grande Mandamento sulla mafia di Villabate, 25 January 2005
Ordinanza applicativa della custodia cautelare nei confronti di Giuseppe Morreale + altri, Tribunale di Palermo, 21 September 2006
Ordinanza applicativa della custodia cautelare nei confronti di Riina Giuseppe Salvatore + altri, Tribunale di Palermo, 2000
Processo Trash (mafia e appalti) Tribunale di Palermo, interrogazione del collaboratore Giovanni Brusca 30 May 1998
Provvedimento di fermo di indiziato di reato nei confronti di Rotolo +51, part of investigation ‘Gotha’into Palermo families, Tribunale di Palermo, 20 June 2006
Richiesta di applicazione di misure cautelari a carico di Lipari Giuseppe + altri, Tribunale di Palermo, September 2007
Sentenza della corte d’assise di Palermo nei confronti di Benedetto Spera, 15 June 2002
Ordinanza di custodia cautelare nel procedimento a carico di Gariffo Carmelo, 3 May 2006
Police report, Gruppo Duomo, 12 June 2006
Books
Lirio Abbate and Peter Gomez, I complici (Fazi Editore, Rome, 2007)
Pino Arlacchi, Mafia Business (Verso, London, 1986)
Enrico Bellavia and Silvana Mazzocchi, Iddu (Baldini Castoldi Dalai, Milan, 2006)
Nino Calderone with Pino Arlacchi, Gli uomini del disonore (Mondadori, Milan, 1992)
Carlo Alberto Dalla Chiesa, Michele Navarra e la Mafia del Corleonese (La Zisa, Palermo, 1990)
John Dickie, Cosa Nostra (Hodder & Stoughton, London, 2004)
Giovanni Falcone with Marcelle Padovani, Cose di Cosa Nostra (Rizzoli, Milan, 1991)
Pietro Grasso and Francesco la Licata, Pizzini, veleni e cicoria (Feltrinelli, Milan, 2007)
Felicia Impastato, interviewed by Anna Puglisi and Umberto Santino, La Mafia in casa mia (La Luna, Palermo, 1987)
Giuseppe Lo Bianco and Sandra Rizza, Il gioco grande (Editori Riuniti, Rome, 2006)
Saverio Lodato, Ho ucciso Giovanni Falcone (Mondadori, Milan, 1999) [interview with Giovanni Brusca] Saverio Lodato, La Mafia ha vinto, (Mondadori, Milan, 1999) [interview with Tommaso Buscetta]
Saverio Lodato, Trent’anni di Mafia (BUR, Milan, 2006)
Salvatore Lupo, Storia delta Mafia (Donzelli, Rome, 1993)
Liliana Madeo, Donne di Mafia (Mondadori, Milan, 1994)
Marco Nese, Nel segno delta Mafia (Rizzoli, Milan, 1975)
Salvo Palazzolo and Ernesto Oliva, Bernardo Provenzano: il ragioniere di Cosa Nostra (Rubbettino, Catanzaro, 2006)
Michele Pantaleone, Mafia e politica (Einaudi, Turin, 1978)
Tullio Pironti (ed.), La vera storia d’Italia (Naples, 1995)
Michele Prestipino and Salvo Palazzolo, Il codice Provenzano (Editori Laterza, Rome and Bari, 2007)
Teresa Principato and Alessandra Dino, Mafia donna (Flaccovio, Palermo, 1997)
Corrado Stajano (ed.), L’atto d’accusa deigiudici di Palermo (Editori Riuniti, Rome, 1986)
Alessandro Stille, Excellent Cadavers (Pantheon, New York, 1995)
Index
Index
Villages, towns and cities are in Sicily or on the Italian mainland unless otherwise stated.
Abbate, Lirio, 267
‘Accountant, the’ see Provenzano, Bernardo
Aglieri, Pietro, 75, 80, 118, 123–4
Agrigento (town), 22, 55, 185–7
Aiello, Michele (‘the Engineer’), 172–3, 206, 210–13, 235
Altofonte (town), 41
Amato, Carmelo, 203
Andreotti, Giulio, 28, 77, 100, 106, 162
Asinara (prison island), 65
Asset Development (commercial development company), 171, 172
Badalamenti, Gaetano, 25, 26, 32, 40, 43, 46, 60
Bagarella, Calogero, 13, 18, 21, 24, 47
Bagarella, Giovanni, 198
Bagarella, Leoluca:
and Luciano Liggio, 13
and trial acquittals, 20–1
and Salvatore Riina, 47, 113
anger at Riina’s harsh rule, 79
character and personality, 116
promotes bombing strategy against state, 118–21
murder of Giuseppe Di Matteo, 122–3
feud in Villabate, 124–6
final arrest, 126
involvement in separatist politics, 162–3
Bagarella, Ninetta (wife of Salvatore Riina), 47–8, 118–19, 151, 193–6
Bagheria (town):
as Mafia base, 48–9, 56–9, 79, 140, 156, 169
description, 53
Barbagallo, Salvatore, 125, 130, 155
Bari (town), 21, 27
Basile, Emanuele, 37, 70
Belmonte Mezzagno (town), 123, 178–9, 184
Berlusconi, Silvio, 163–5, 167
Bisacquino (town), 91
‘Bloodhound’ (police agent), 3, 4, 181,
224, 233, 252–7
Bolzoni, Attilio, 197
Bontate, Stefano (‘prince of Villagrazia’):
as member of Mafia commission, 25
arrest, 26
Riina’s jealousy of, 26
humiliated by Riina, 32
murdered on Riina’s orders, 38, 72, 226
and Giulio Andreotti, 106
Borsellino, Paolo, io, 65, 78, 104, 107–8
Borzacchelli, Antonino, 206, 210, 212, 214–15
Brancaccio (town), 74, 76, 120, 168, 172
Brusca, Bernardo, 36, 37
Brusca, Enzo, 122
Brusca, Giovanni (‘the Executioner’; also ‘the Pig’):
and Bernardo Provenzano, 67, 72, 104–5, 115, 126–7, 140–2, 158–9
and Salvatore Riina, 80, 109–10, 112–13
and assassination of Falcone, 107, 141
and Ciancimino, 114
and murder of Giuseppe Di Matteo, 121–3
convicted of Ignazio Salvo murder, 122
attempts takeover of Agrigento (town), 136–7, 139
becomes collaborator (pentito), 141–2, 180
career as executioner, 195
imprisonment, 199
Buscetta, Tommaso, 68, 70, 72, 98, 218, 262
Caccamo (town), 9, 54, 80, 209
Caldarozzi, Gilberto, 234, 257
Calderone, Nino, 26, 78, 104, 109
Calderone, Pippo, 78
Caltanissetta (town), 103, 130, 131, 133
Calvaruso, Tony, 125–6
Camilleri, Andrea, 5
Campanella, Francesco, 170–2, 219–21, 227, 229
Cancemi, Salvatore, 71–2, 107, 109, 166
Cannella, Tommaso, 87, 106, 174, 192, 203
Cannella, Tullio, 162–3
Capaci (town), 122
Capizi family, 185–6
Caponetto, Antonino, 70
Carnevale, Corrado, 79
Caruso, Damiano, 24
Caselli, Giancarlo, 109, 112, 114
Cassara, Ninni, 64
Castellammare (town), 50
Castello, Simone, 58, 123, 132, 169
Castronovo (town), 22
Catania (town), 23, 26, 56, 78, 103, 132, 140
Catturandi (Palermo flying squad), 181–3, 233
Cavataio, Michele, 23–4
Chinnici, Rocco, 40
Christian Democratic Party, 73–7, 106–7, 155–7
and Palermo dam project, 15
and Salvo Lima, 28–9
dismissal of Vito Ciancimino from party, 34
and murder of Piersanti Mattarella, 37
disbanding of party, 174
Ciaculli (Palermo suburb), 19–20, 23
Ciancimino, Massimo, 114
Ciancimino, Vito, 27–34, 102, 111
Ciminna (town), 56, 176
Cinà, Dr Gaetano, 164
Cinisi (town), 22, 25, 32, 43
Ciuro, Giuseppe, 210–12, 214–15
Colletti, Carmelo, 55,
Communist Party, 39, 59, 156
Contorno, Salvatore, 78–9, 124
Corleone (town), 4, 7, 14, 16, 85–9
Corleonesi (Mafia group), 19–20, 23–6, 28–42, 54–5
Cortese, Renato, 3–4, 233–4, 256
Cosa Nostra see Mafia
Craxi, Bettino, 75, 103
Credito Siciliano (Villabate), 219
Cuffaro, Salvatore, 170, 174–5, 211, 213–16, 267
Cusimano, Mario, 171, 172, 221, 223, 228
Dalla Chiesa, General Carlo Alberto, 21, 39–40, 41
De Caprio, Sergio (‘Capitano Ultimo’), 114, 170
De Donno, Giuseppe, 111
Dell’Utri, Marcello, 163–6, 167
Denaro, Matteo Messina:
hides out in Bagheria, 59
as boss of Trapani, 80
personality and character, 80
loyalty to Salvatore Riina, 80, 103
and Falcone assassination, 105
and war on state, 120
and Giuseppe Guttadauro, 168
writes to Bernardo Provenzano, 231–2
Di Carlo, Francesco, 26, 41, 164
di Cristina, Giuseppe, 35–6, 72
Di Gregorio, Rosalba, 265
Di Maggio, Balduccio, 112, 142
Di Matteo, Giuseppe, 121–3
Di Matteo, Nino:
on Provenzano’s friends and advisers, 102, 160
on Mafia war against state, 102–3
on Mafia ‘submersion’ strategy, 130, 145, 167
on Provenzano’s leadership style, 146–8
Mafia business activities, 168, 171–2
Di Matteo, Santino, 122
Di Noto, Dr Vincenzo, 181
Di Peri family, 124, 125–6
DIA (Direzione Investigativa Antimafia), 210, 212, 214
DiGati, Maurizio, 185–6
‘Director, the’ (police agent), 4
drug trafficking see Mafia: drug trafficking and money-laundering
Emilia (region), 227, 228
Episcopo, Nino, 176–7, 205
Eucaliptus, Nicoló, 81, 228
Falcone, Giovanni:
anti-Mafia investigations, 49, 79, 104–5
and Mafia maxi-trial, 65
use of pentiti, 78–9
assassination, 104–7, 122, 199–200
and law on maximum security terms, 167
Falsone, Giuseppe, 185
Ferro, Salvatore, 134, 136
Florence: Uffizi gallery bombing, 120
Fontana, Ezio, 221–3
Fontana, Nino (‘Mister Millionaire’), 58
Forza Italia (political party), 155, 157, 163–4, 166–9, 174
founding of, 157
and Silvio Berlusconi, 167
wins 1994 election, 168
Francese, Mario, 34–5
Gambino family, 38
Ganci, Calogero, 83
Ganci, Raffaele, 123
Gariffo, Carmelo (nephew of Bernardo Provenzano), 56, 62, 93, 173, 249–50
Gariffo, Mariangela see Lo Bue, Mariangela
Gela (town), 69, 151
Genovese, Salvatore, 158–9
Geraci, Nené, 142
Geraci, Salvatore, 225
Giammanco, Enzo, 169
Giomale di Sicilia (newspaper), 35
Giuffré, Nino (‘Little Hand’):
comments on Bernardo Provenzano, 8–10, 30, 54–5, 58, 72, 157, 159, 168, 174, 203–4
political corruption, 76–7, 155–7, 167, 174–5
comments on Salvatore Riina, 100, 141, 162
Falcone investigations, 105–6
Provenzano’s ‘submersion’ strategy, 130, 145–8, 153–7
keeps Provenzano’s letters (pizzini), 132, 211
comments on Giovanni Brusca, 141
comments on Benedetto Spera, 178–80
deteriorating relationship with Provenzano, 184–7
arrest and collaboration, 207–11, 261–2
Giuliano, Boris, 36–7
Godfather, The (film), 239
Gotha (anti-Mafia operation), 266
Grande Mandamento (anti-Mafia operation), 227–8
Grasso, Pietro:
on Bernardo Provenzano, 8, 42, 226–7, 230, 233, 262
on Salvatore Riina, 105
interviews Gioacchino La Barbera, 110
targeted by Riina, 110
and Nino Giuffré as pentito, 208
arrest of Provenzano, 257
Graviano family, 42, 74
Graviano, Filippo, 120
Greco family, 19–20
Greco, Carlo, 75, 117, 118
Greco, Leonardo, 53, 55, 56
Greco, Michele (‘the Pope’), 33–4, 35, 37, 40, 65–6, 79
Greco, Pino (‘the Shoe’), 40–1, 59, 77
Greco, Salvatore, 19, 23
Gruppo Duomo (anti-Mafia investigation team), 233–5, 252
Gualtieri, Giuseppe:
arrest of Bernardo Provenzano, 3
on Provenzano, 6, 153, 235, 250
&n
bsp; on Provenzano and Saveria Palazzolo, 189
streamlining of police investigative group, 234
Guttadauro, Giuseppe:
home in Bagheria, 59
appearance, 168
as boss of Brancaccio, 168, 172
successfully operates on Saveria Palazzola, 191
receives protection from Provenzano, 192
involvement in politics, 213–14, 216
and Salvatore Cuffaro, 216
Guttuso, Renato, 53
ICRE (ironworks; Bagheria), 53–4
Ilardo, Gino:
Provenzano and family life, 90
mafioso pedigree, 130–1
as police informer, 130–2, 140
disillusionment with Cosa Nostra, 131
on Provenzano’s communication methods, 131–2
receives letters from Provenzano, 132–4, 138–9
murdered, 140
Impastato, Giovanni, 43–4, 46, 266
Ingroia, Antonino, 210, 211
Intile, Ciccio, 54
Inzerillo family, 38–9, 245, 266–7
Inzerillo, Totuccio, 36, 38, 42, 55
Italcostruzione (Mafia front company), 50
John Paul II, Pope, 151
La Barbera family, 19–20, 29
La Barbera, Angelo, 19, 113
La Barbera, Gioacchino, 110
La Barbera, Nicola (‘Cola Truppicuni’), 136–7, 138, 181–3, 235
La Casamance (nr Marseilles, France), 223
La Licorne Clinic (nr Marseilles, France), 222
La Repubblica (newspaper), 197, 238
La Torre, Pio, 39, 40, 41, 59
Liggio, Luciano:
as Corleonesi leader, 6–7, 13
early criminal activities, 12–13
character and personality, 13
murders Placido Rizzotto, 13–14
murders Michele Navarra, 15–16, 25
personality, 15, 21–2
trial acquittals, 20–1
involvement in kidnapping, 22
activities in prison, 31, 35, 38, 65, 77
appears in Mafia maxi-trial (1986), 65–6
appoints Riina and Provenzano joint leaders, 67, 69–70
makes insulting comment on Provenzano, 152
see also Provenzano, Bernardo; Riina, Salvatore
Lima, Salvo:
and Giulio Andreotti, 28, 100
and political corruption, 28–9, 73, 100, 226