Father of the Sicilian mafia name. Mafia

culture

The mafia appeared in the middle of the 19th century in Sicily. The American mafia is a branch of the Sicilian, which worked on the "waves" of Italian immigration at the end of the 19th century. Members and associates of the mafia group needed to commit murder in order to intimidate the prisoners and dissuade them from trying to cut the term.

Sometimes the killings were committed out of revenge or because of disagreements. Murder has become a profession in the mafia. Throughout history, the skill of assassination has been constantly honed. Planning, executing, and covering their tracks were all part of a "trading" deal with a skilled killer. However, most killers ended their lives with violent death or spending a large portion of it in prison.

10. Joseph "The Animal" Barboza

Barbosa is known as one of the worst killers in the 1960s, believed to have killed more than 26 people. He got his nickname during an incident that occurred in a nightclub, when, after a small disagreement, he "blew" the offender's whole face. Some time after that, he continued his career as a boxer, winning 8 out of 12 fights under the pseudonym "Baron".

Despite the fact that he nevertheless made several attempts to return to a legal life, "nature took its toll", because no matter how much you feed the wolf, he still looks into the forest, so he soon began to engage in crime again. In 1950, he served 5 years in the Massachusetts Penitentiary, while he repeatedly attacked the guards and other prisoners. After serving three years of the appointed term, he escaped, but he was soon caught.

After his release, he immediately connected with a gang of gangsters, and began his "own business" of burglary. At the same time, his career began to develop as a "hit man" within the Patricia Crime Family. Over the years, the number of his victims has grown, as well as his reputation as a hired killer. His weapon of choice was a silenced pistol, although he also enjoyed experimenting with car bombs.

Over time, Barbosa became a respected figure in the underworld, however, with his reputation, it was impossible not to make dangerous enemies. After being imprisoned on murder charges and learning that an assassination attempt was underway, he agreed to testify against mob boss Raymond Patriarca in exchange for FBI protection. For some time he was protected under the witness protection program, but the enemies still managed to get him. In 1976, near his house, he was ambushed and killed on the spot with a shotgun.

9. Joe "Crazy" Gallo ("Crazy" Joe Gallo)

Joseph Gallo was a prominent member of the Profasi crime group based in New York. He killed ruthlessly and was believed to be involved in many contract killings on the orders of the boss Joe Profaci (Joe Profaci). Ironically, his nickname has nothing to do with his "killer" reputation.

Many "colleagues" called him crazy because he liked to quote dialogue from gangster films and impersonate fictional characters. His reputation took a turn for the worse in 1957, when Joe was suspected (although never proven) of being among those who killed the highly influential mob boss Albert Anastasia.

A year later, Gallo assembled a team to overthrow Profasi family leader Joseph Profasi. The attempt was unsuccessful, after which many of his friends and relatives were killed. Things went very poorly for Gallo, and in 1961 he was convicted of robbery and sentenced to 10 years in prison.

During his time in prison, he attempted to kill several other prisoners by courteously inviting them into his cell and slipping strychnine into their food. Most of them became seriously ill, but none died. After serving 8 years of his sentence, he was released early.

Upon his release, Gallo was determined to take on the role of leader of the Colombo crime family. In 1971, then-leader Joe Colombo was shot three times in the head by an African-American mobster. However, Gallo will soon meet his own tragic end. In 1972, while dining at a fish restaurant with his family and a bodyguard, he was shot five times in the chest. The prime suspect in the murder was believed to be Carlo Gambino, who did it in retaliation for the murder of Joe Colombo's friend.

8. Giovanni Brusca

Giovanni Brusca is known as one of the most brutal and sadistic members of the Sicilian Mafia. He claims to have killed more than 200 people, although this is actually unlikely, even officials did not accept this figure. Brusca grew up in Palermo, and began dealing with the underworld from early childhood. In the end, he became a member of the "death squad" who committed crimes on the orders of the boss Salvatore Riina (Salvatore Riina).

Brusca was involved in the assassination of anti-mafia prosecutor Giovanni Falcone in 1992. A huge bomb weighing almost half a ton was placed under the motorway in Palermo. When the car drove through the place where the bomb was planted, the explosive device went off, killing, in addition to Falcone, many more ordinary people who were nearby at that fateful moment. The explosion was so powerful that it punched a hole in the road, and the locals thought that an earthquake was starting.

Shortly thereafter, Brusca began to face numerous problems. His former friend Giuseppe di Matteo (Giuseppe di Matteo) became an informant and spoke about the involvement of Brusca in the murder of Falcone. In order to silence Matteo, Brusca kidnapped his 11-year-old son and tortured him for two years. He also regularly sent horrifying photos of the boy to his father, demanding that he retract his testimony. In the end, the boy was strangled and his body was dissolved in acid to destroy the evidence.

Brusca was sentenced to life imprisonment, however, he was able to escape and became active in organized crime. However, the authorities still managed to get to him, and he was arrested in a small house in the Sicilian village.

The officers who took part in the arrest were wearing ski masks in order to hide their faces from the criminals, because otherwise they would have faced imminent reprisals. He was convicted on charges of numerous murders, he is currently in prison, where he will remain until the end of his days.

7 John Scalise

John Scalice was one of the Al Capone clan's top hitmen during Prohibition in the 1930s and 1940s. When he was twenty years old, he lost his right eye in a knife fight, which was later replaced with a glass eye. After that, to consolidate his reputation, he began to take orders for murder from the brothers Gennas (Gennas brothers). Later, he secretly began collaborating with Al Capone. John also spent 14 years in prison for manslaughter and was severely beaten by fellow inmates.

Perhaps he was most famous for participating in the St. Valentine's Day massacre, when seven people were lined up along a wall and brutally shot by gunmen dressed as policemen. Skalis was arrested and charged with the murders, however, he was soon released because his guilt was not proven.

Al Capone later learns that Scalice and two other assassins were involved in a plot to overthrow his leadership. He invited all three to a banquet, beat each one almost to death, and the final chord was bullets fired in the forehead of the traitors.

6. Tommy DeSimone

The family of this man is recognizable, since in 1990 the actor Joe Pesci played Tommy in the movie Goodfellas. However, despite the fact that in the film he is depicted as a small and short man, in life he was a large, broad-shouldered killer, almost 2 meters tall and weighing more than 100 kilograms. It has been proven that 6 people personally died at his hands, although according to some sources this number is more than 11. Informant Henry Hill (Henry Hill) described him as a "pure psychopath".

De Simone committed his first murder in 1968. While walking with Henry Hill through the park, he saw an unknown man walking towards them. He turned to Henry and said, "Hey, look!" Then he shouted a swear word to a stranger and shot him point-blank. It won't be his last impulsive kill.

In one of the bars, he flared up because, in his opinion, the bill for drinks was incorrect. Drawing his pistol, he demanded that the bartender dance for him. When the latter refused, he shot him in the leg. A week later, once again in the same bar, he began to taunt the bartender wounded in the leg, to which he unflatteringly sent him to hell. Tommy reacted very quickly: he took out a gun and killed the bartender by shooting him three times.

After his involvement in the famous Lufthansa heist, Tommy went on to work as a hitman for friend and thief mastermind Jimmy Burke. He eliminated possible informants and thereby increased his share of the loot. One of those killed was a very close friend of Tommy Stacks Edwards, whom he was reluctant to kill. Burke told Tommy that he could become a full-fledged member of the mafia group by killing Edwards, and De Simone agreed.

In the end, Tommy's temper led him to his death. In another fit of blind rage, he killed two close friends of boss John Gotti (John Gotti), who considered it his duty to personally get even with Tommy. According to Henry Hill, the murder process was a long one, as Gotti wanted De Simone to suffer greatly. He was killed in 1979 and his remains have never been found.

5 Salvatore Testa

Salvatore was a Philadelphia gangster who served as a hitman for the Scarfo crime ring from 1981 until his death in 1984. His father, a highly influential man in criminal circles, was shot in the head in 1981, leaving Salvatore with several of his legal and illegal businesses. As a result, at the age of 25, Testa was very rich.

Testa had an extremely aggressive personality and personally killed 15 people during his "active" period. One of his victims was the man who plotted to kill his father, gangster and bodyguard Rocco Marinucci. His body was found exactly one year after the death of Father Salvatore. He was completely covered in bullet wounds and had three unexploded bombs in his mouth.

A huge number of assassination attempts were made on Salvatore, however, he always managed to survive after them. The first assassination attempt took place on the terrace of an Italian restaurant, when a Ford sedan slowed down, passing Testa's table, and a sawn-off shotgun appeared in the window and shot through his stomach and left arm. However, he survived, and the assassins were forced to go underground after he found out who they were.

Testa met his death after being ambushed by his former friend. He was killed at close range by a shot to the back of the head. The motive for the murder was the fears of the boss of the criminal group Scarfo that Testa was preparing a conspiracy against him.

4. Salvatore "Sammy the Bull" Gravano (Salvatore "Sammy the Bull" Gravano)

Sammy the Bull was a member of the Gambino crime family. But he gained great popularity, most likely, after he became an informant against former boss John Gotti. His testimony helped put Gotti behind bars for the rest of his days. Throughout his criminal career, Gravano committed a huge number of murders and contract killings. He got the nickname "bull" because of his size, height, and also the habit of holding fisticuffs with other mafiosi.

He began his mafia activity in the late 1960s in the Colombo crime family. He was involved in armed robberies and other petty crimes, although he quickly moved into the rather lucrative field of loansharking. He committed his first murder in 1970, it helped the Bull to earn respect among the representatives of the underworld.

By the early 1970s, Gravano was a member of the Gambino crime group. He was arrested on suspicion of murder, however, he was soon released. After that, he began a series of serious robberies, which he did for a year and a half. After this period, he had significant weight in the Gambino group. He "signed" his first contract for contract killing in 1980.

A man named John Simon was the mastermind of a conspiracy to assassinate Philadelphia crime boss Angelo Bruno without permission from a special mafia commission, for which he was sentenced to death. Simon was killed in a wooded area, and his body was disposed of.

Bull committed his third murder in the early 1980s after being offended by a wealthy tycoon. He was caught in the street, and while Gravano's friends held him, the Bull first fired two shots into his eyes and then a control shot into his forehead. After the tycoon fell, Gravano spat on him.

Gravano later becomes the right-hand man of Gambino crime family boss John Gotti, he was Gotti's favorite hitman during this period. However, after facing numerous charges against him for various crimes, he offered to provide information on Gotti in exchange for a reduction in his sentence. He confessed to 19 murders, but received only 5 years in prison. After his release, he went underground, however, he soon became involved again with organized crime in the state of Arizona. He is currently in custody.

3. Giuseppe Greco

Giuseppe was an Italian gangster who worked as a contract killer in Palermo, Italy in the late 1970s. Unlike other hitmen, Greco has been on the run from the law throughout his career. He rarely worked alone, employing "death squadrons," Kalashnikov-wielding thugs who ambushed victims and then killed them. He was found guilty of 58 murders, although the total number of victims, according to some information, reached 80. He once killed a teenager and his father by dissolving the bodies of both in acid.

By 1979, Greco was a high-ranking and respected member of the mafia commission. He committed most of his murders from 1980 to 1983, during the Second Mafia War. In 1982, Palermo boss Rosaria Riccobono was invited to a barbecue at Greco's estate. After the arrival of Rosaria and his associates, they were all killed by Greco and his death squad. Greco received the order to kill him from his boss, Salvatore Riina. No bodies were found, and according to available information, they were fed to hungry pigs.

Greco was killed in his home in 1985 by two former members of his death squad. Ironically, the commissioner was Salvatore Riina, who believed that Greco had become too ambitious and thought too independently to stay alive. When he was killed, he was 33 years old.

2. Abraham "Kid Twist" Reles

The man was the most notorious hitman involved with Murder Inc, a covert group of hitmen that worked for the Mafia in the 1920s and 1950s. He was most active in the 1930s, it was precisely the period when he killed members of various criminal groups in New York. His weapon of choice was an ice pick, which he skillfully used to pierce the victim's head and pierce the brain.

Reles was prone to blind rage and often killed on impulse. He once killed a parking attendant because the latter, as it seemed to him, parked his car for too long. On another occasion, he invited a friend to dinner at his mother's house. After finishing the meal, he pierced his head with an ice pick and quickly disposed of the body.

As a teenager, Reles was regularly involved in criminal cases, and soon became quite a popular figure in the world of organized crime. His first victim was a former friend of Meyer Shapiro. Reles and some of his friends were ambushed by Shapiro's gang, however, no one was hurt that time.

Later, Shapiro kidnapped Reles' girlfriend and raped her in a cornfield, naturally Reles decided to take revenge by killing the offender and his two brothers. After several unsuccessful attempts, Abraham managed to get even with one of his brothers, and two months later with Shapiro himself. A little later, the second brother of the rapist was buried alive.

By 1940, Reles was charged with a huge number of crimes and most likely would have been executed if he had been convicted. To save his life, he turned in all his former friends and members of the Murder Inc group, six of whom were executed.

Later, he was to testify against mafia boss Albert Anastasia, and on the night before the trial he was in a hotel room under constant guard. The next morning he was found dead on the sidewalk. It is still unknown whether he was pushed, or whether he himself tried to escape.

1. Richard "Ice Man" Kuklinski

Perhaps the most infamous hitman in history is Richard Kuklinski, who is believed to have killed more than 200 people (no women or children among them). He worked in New York and New Jersey from 1950 to 1988 and was a contract killer for the DeCavalcante crime group, as well as several others.

At 14, he committed his first murder, beating a bully to death with a piece of wooden stick. In order to avoid identification of the body, Kuklinski cut off the boy's fingers and pulled out his teeth before throwing the remains of the body off the bridge.

During his teenage years, Kuklinski became a notorious Manhattan serial killer, brutally killing homeless people just for the thrill of it. Most of his victims were shot or stabbed to death. Anyone who opposed him, for a maximum of a year, lost his life. His tough reputation soon attracted the attention of various criminal gangs who sought to use "his talent for their own good" by turning him into a hired killer.

He became a full-fledged member of the Gambino criminal group, actively participating in robberies and deliveries of pirated pornographic videos. One day, a respected member of the Gambino faction was riding with Kuklinski in a car. After they parked, the man chose a random target and ordered Kuklinski to kill him. Richard carried out the order without delay, shooting an innocent man point-blank. This was the beginning of his career as a hit man.

For the next 30 years, Kuklinski worked successfully as a contract killer. He got his nickname "Ice Man" from his method of freezing the bodies of his victims, which helped to hide the time of death from the authorities. Kuklinski was also famous for using various methods of killing, the most unusual of which was the use of a crossbow aimed at the forehead of the victim, although he most often used cyanide.

When authorities finally figured out who Kuklinski was, they found no evidence to convict him of premeditated murder. As a result, they carried out a special operation, after which Kuklinski was arrested and charged with trying to poison a man with cyanide. He received five life sentences after confessing to numerous murders. He died in prison of old age when he was 70 years old.

So, the promised ... today I will talk about what excites the mind of a person as soon as the word Sicily is pronounced - about the famous Sicilian mafia. However, fans of The Godfather will be disappointed: thanks to the tireless struggle of the prosecutor Falcone, the capital of Sicily today has become almost the quietest and most peaceful city in all of Italy. They say that the mafia is even more than that - it is very interested in the fact that tourists come to Sicily and Palermo as well, because tourism makes up a significant part of the income for this island.

"Mafia" is an exclusively Sicilian concept. In other regions of Italy, similar organizations bore and bear different names ("Ndrangetta" - in Calabria, "Sacra Crown Unit" - in Apulia, "Camorra" - in Naples).

It is generally accepted that the mafia is a fairly complex branched criminal organization with its own strict laws and traditions, whose history goes back to the Middle Ages. In those distant times, people armed with swords and lances, hiding their faces under hoods, were hiding in the underground galleries of Palermo - members of the mysterious religious sect "Beati Paoli". The very name "mafia" appeared in the XVII century. It is assumed that the word is based on an Arabic root meaning "protection"; there are also other interpretations of it. - “refuge”, “poverty”, “secret murder”, “witch” ... In the 19th century, the mafia was a brotherhood that protected “unfortunate Sicilians from foreign exploiters”, in particular, the time of the Bourbons. The struggle ended with a revolution in 1860, but the peasants, instead of their former oppressors, found new ones in the person of their compatriots. Moreover, the latter managed to introduce into the life of Sicilian society the relations and code of conduct that had developed in the bowels of a secret terrorist organization. The criminal orientation quickly became the cornerstone of the “brotherhood”, the corruption with which it allegedly fought was in fact the basis of its existence, mutual assistance turned into mutual responsibility.

In general, after the death of Falcone and Borsellino, the most severe repressions were carried out on the island, aimed at destroying the mafia bosses, or at least ensuring that they were in prison. And they say that now the mafia has a female face, which means that the clans are controlled by the wives of mafiosi who are in prison, carrying out all activities at their direction.

For those who are interested, a bit of history... Today, Palermo Airport bears the names of Falcone and Borsellino, who have become a legend in today's Italy.

In the 1950s and 60s of the last century, the Italian government, under pressure from democratic forces, began an official fight against mafia crime. A special body was created - "Antimafia", a number of major leaders of this organization were arrested. The next wave of the fight against the mafia swept across the country in the late 70s and early 80s. Prosecutor Giovanni Falcone and his successor Paolo Borsellino, like no other, worked hard to clear Sicily of the mafia. Falcone, who became the prototype of the famous Commissioner of Catania, announced in 1980 that he was starting to fight the "curse of Sicily." For the first time, he ensured that the arrested criminal violated the omerta law - a conspiracy of silence that makes the mafia invulnerable - and testified against other mafiosi. Departure from the "omerta" according to the laws of the underworld is punishable by death. And Falcone convinced the state that people who testify against the mafia and their families need to be protected. By this, he somewhat dispelled the fear of the revenge of the powerful clans of Sicily. In addition, Falcone achieved the adoption of an article in the criminal code, according to which the mafiosi who ended up in prison must be kept in absolute isolation. Thus, the offender could not direct the actions of his family from imprisonment. In just one of the many trials against the mafia, Falcone sent 342 criminals to jail for a total of 2,665 years. Naturally, the activities of Falcone could not please the mafia, accustomed to considering itself the only real power in Sicily. And the criminal community has taken retaliatory steps. In 1992, Giovanni Falcone, along with his wife, was blown up in a car on their way from the airport to the city.

Today, mafia members aren't as flashy as we had the pleasure of seeing in The Godfather or Once Upon a Time in America, they don't roam the city in smart suits and polished shoes. Rather, all these attributes of wealth, of course, are present in the current members, but the mafia has firmly established itself in politics and business, having completely lost its former gloss. Today in Sicily there are no companies, either small or large, that do not deduct their percentage of the mafia, no matter who writes about this and what.

It is reliably known that small shops pay from 500 to 1000 euros per quarter, jewelry stores and others selling expensive goods - 2500-3000 euros, large shops pay 5000 euros. Shopkeepers whose family members are in prison are exempted from fees, as are those merchants whose relatives serve in the police. Store owners who have lost a loved one are exempted from payments for one quarter. If a person decides to open a new store in Sicily, then he has to pay a large amount of money in order to get permission from the mafia. Mafiosi who come to Sicily from other regions must give 3% of their income to local mafia bosses.

No one would ever dare, living on this island, to do something like this ... this is not my opinion, but heard from various people with whom we managed to talk on this topic. They all began to speak rather reluctantly, trying to keep quiet, but the husband knows how to chat with anyone, and people began to tell him their stories and how everything really is.

Mafia is alive! And there's nothing you can do about it!

The modern world has many criminal gangs, and each has its own leader, boss, head. But, comparing the current leaders of the mafia and criminal organizations with the bosses of past dashing years is a business doomed to failure and criticism. Past bosses of the criminal world created entire empires of evil and violence, extortion and drug trafficking. Their so-called families lived according to their own laws, and the violation of these laws foreshadowed death and cruel punishment for disobedience. We bring to your attention a list of the most legendary and influential mafiosi in history.

10
(1974 - present)

Once the leader of one of the largest drug cartels in Mexico, which is called Los Zetas. At the age of 17, he joined the Mexican army, and later worked in a special squad to combat the drug cartel. The switch to the side of the merchants occurred after he was recruited into the Golfo cartel. The Los Zetas private mercenary force that the organization hired later grew into the largest drug cartel in Mexico. Heriberto dealt with his competitors very cruelly, for which his criminal gang was given the nickname "Executioners".

9
(1928 — 2005)

Since 1981, he led the Genovese family, while everyone considered the boss of the family, Antonio Salermo. Vincent was nicknamed "Nutty Boss" for his, to put it mildly, inappropriate behavior. But, it was only for the authorities, Gigante's lawyers brought certificates for 7 years, indicating that he was crazy, thereby avoiding the term. Vincent's people controlled crime throughout New York and other major cities in America.

8
(1902 – 1957)

The boss of one of the five families of the mafia of criminal America. The head of the Gambino family, Albert Anastasia, had two nicknames - "The Chief Executioner" and "The Mad Hatter", and the first was given to him for having about 700 deaths on his account of his group "Murder Corporation". He was a close friend of Lucky Luciano, whom he considered his teacher. It was Anastasia who helped Lucky take over the entire criminal world, carrying out contract killings for him of the bosses of other families.

7
(1905 — 2002)

The patriarch of the Bonanno family and the richest mobster in history. The history of the reign of Joseph, who was called "Banana Joe" has 30 years, after this period, Bonanno voluntarily resigned and lived in his personal huge mansion. The Castelamarese War, which lasted 3 years, is considered one of the most iconic events in the criminal world. Ultimately, Bonanno organized a crime family that still operates in the United States.

6
(1902 – 1983)

Meir was born in Belarus, the city of Grodno. A native of the Russian Empire became the most influential person in the United States and one of the leaders of the country's crime. He is the creator of the "National Crime Syndicate" and the parent of the gambling business in the states. Was the largest bootlegger (illegal liquor dealer) during Prohibition.

5
(1902 – 1976)

It was Gambino who became the founder of one of the most influential families in criminal America. After taking control of a number of highly profitable areas, including illegal bootlegging, a state port and an airport, the Gambino family becomes the most powerful of the five families. Carlo forbade his people from selling drugs, considering this type of business dangerous and attracting public attention. At its peak, the Gambino family consisted of more than 40 groups and teams, and controlled New York, Las Vegas, San Francisco, Chicago, Boston, Miami and Los Angeles.

4
(1940 – 2002)

John Gotti was a famous figure, he was loved by the press, he was always dressed to the nines. Numerous accusations from New York law enforcement have always failed, Gotti avoided punishment for a long time. For this, the press nicknamed him "Teflon John". He received the nickname "Elegant Don" when he began to dress only in fashionable and stylish suits with expensive ties. John Gotti has been the leader of the Gambino family since 1985. During the reign, the family was one of the most influential.

3
(1949 – 1993)

The most cruel and daring Colombian drug lord. He entered the history of the 20th century as the most brutal criminal and head of the largest drug cartel. He established the supply of cocaine to different parts of the world, mainly to the United States, on a grandiose scale, up to transporting tens of kilograms on airplanes. For all his activities as the head of the Medellin cocaine cartel, he was involved in the murders of more than 200 judges and prosecutors, more than 1,000 policemen and journalists, presidential candidates, ministers, prosecutors general. Escobar's net worth in 1989 was over $15 billion.

2
(1897 – 1962)

Originally from Sicily, Lucky became in America, in fact, the founder of the underworld. His real name is Charles, Lucky, which means "Lucky" in translation, he began to be called after he was taken to a deserted highway, tortured, beaten, cut, burned his face with cigarettes, and he remained alive after that. The people who tortured him were Maranzano gangsters, they wanted to know the location of the cache of drugs, but Charles remained silent. After unsuccessful torture, they left the bloodied body with no signs of life by the road, thinking that Luciano was dead, where he was picked up by a patrol car after 8 hours. He received 60 stitches and survived. After this incident, the nickname "Lucky" remained with him forever. Lucky organized the "Big Seven" - a group of bootleggers, whom he gave protection from the authorities. He became the boss of Cosa Nostra, which controlled all areas of activity in the criminal world.

1
(1899 – 1947)

The legend of the underworld of those times and the most famous mafia boss in history. He was a prominent representative of criminal America. His areas of activity were bootlegging, prostitution, and gambling. Known as the organizer of the most cruel and significant day in the criminal world - the Massacre on Valentine's Day, when seven influential gangsters from the Irish gang of Bugs Moran were shot dead, including the right hand of the boss. Al Capone was the first among all the gangsters to launder money through a huge network of laundries, the prices of which were very low. Capone was the first to introduce the concept of "racketeering" and successfully dealt with it, laying the foundation for a new vector of mafia activity. Alfonso received the nickname "Scarface" at the age of 19, when he worked in a billiard club. He allowed himself to object to the cruel and hardened criminal Frank Galluccio, moreover, insulted his wife, after which a fight and a stabbing took place between the bandits, as a result of which Al Capone received a famous scar on his left cheek. By right, Al Capone was the most influential and terrifying person on everyone, including the government, which was able to put him in jail just for not paying taxes.

This spontaneous uprising of the inhabitants of the island of Sicily against the French invaders, called the Sicilian Vespers, broke out in the city of Palermo on Easter, March 29, 1282. But his memory has been preserved for centuries. According to many historians, the motto of the rebellious Sicilians Morte Alla Francia, Italia Anela “Death to all the French,” calls Italy”), in the form of an abbreviation, turned into the name of the Sicilian organized […]

For a long time the American mafia "Cosa Nostra" was run by five Italian families. Of these, the most influential was the Gambino family, and the most odious head of this clan was John Gotti. Being an extraordinary personality, he tried to reform the mafia, whose traditions were carefully and rigidly kept by the dons of the old formation. The reforms of John Gotti significantly increased the income of the mafia and made the crime boss a real celebrity. […]

Salvatore Giuliano is an iconic figure in gangster Sicily. Having lived only 27 years old, he became a legend during his lifetime, being a Robin Hood in the Sicilian manner and at the same time a bloodthirsty bandit. His name is also associated with the last attempts of Sicily to gain independence. The life story of Giuliano, the last bandit of Sicily, marks the restoration of the power of the mafia, crushed by the fascist […]

In 1992, John Gotti, the godfather of one of the five largest Sicilian mafia clans in the US, was sentenced to life imprisonment in the United States. The decisive evidence at the trial was a videotape in which John whispers to his brother Peter literally the following: "We will make this rat answer." Peter vows to avenge his brother and deal with the "rat". But who […]

In the ranking of the Italian mafia, the Neapolitan Camorra takes an honorable third place, right after the Calabrian mafia and the Sicilian Cosa Nostra. But in terms of bloodthirstiness and lawlessness, the Camorra is the undisputed leader. She has tens of thousands of deaths to her credit. Despite the active struggle of the state against the mafia in general and the Camorra in particular, the Neapolitan lads are still very strong. “I see nothing, hear nothing, […]

In gangster movies, the cliché is "Sorry mate, it's just business, nothing personal." An example of this law was the fate of the gangster Roy Demeo, who betrayed his friends and, as a result, was betrayed by his friends. Membership in mafia families gave criminals not only the rights, but also the obligation to unquestioningly obey their superiors. Perhaps the last mobster who allowed himself to spit on the orders of the boss, […]

During Prohibition in America, an "alcohol war" between mafia families unfolded in New York. On opposite sides of the barricades, representatives of "Little Italy" converged: the old and new generations of natives of the Apennines. The result was the famous "Castellammare War", which claimed the lives of more than 110 mafiosi. The "Castellammare War" became a real confrontation between the generations: the "mustachioed Petes" - representatives of the first wave of migrants, and young gangsters, […]

Until the middle of the XIX century, the concept of "organized crime" in the United States was absent. The first sign was the clash of New York gangs, about which Martin Scorsese made his famous film. The groups "Swamp Angels", "Dead Rabbits", "Gophers" originated in the cellars of old breweries and the slums of the Irish who came to the New World in search of a better life. They recruited 10-11-year-old killers into their ranks, organized dog […]

If you ask which state is the birthplace of the mafia from the first person you meet, then even the uninformed will give the right answer without much thought: Italy. This country can actually be called the “flower garden” of the mafia, which has become one of the favorite topics in history and cinema textbooks.

It cannot be said that the mafiosi have done something positive and outstanding, but many still admire the unsurpassed talent of the most famous criminals, most of whom, of course, have Italian roots.

Al Capone (Al 'Capone), of course, this name is "on hearing" not only in the sunniest country located on the Apennine Peninsula, but throughout the world. The name of the infamous gangster is probably the most recognizable. And no wonder: several films were made about Capone, the most popular of which was the 1987 film The Untouchables with Robert De Niro in the title role.

Born in Brooklyn in 1889, after his family had migrated to the United States, the story of the notorious mobster begins in 1919, when he entered the service of Johnny Torii. In 1925, he became head of the Torii family, and since then, his "criminal" career has skyrocketed. Soon, Capone was no longer afraid of anyone and nothing: his people were engaged in gambling, drug sales and prostitution. He earned a reputation as an honest, intelligent, but endlessly cruel man.

One need only recall the famous massacre on Valentine's Day, when a group led by a gangster destroyed many mafia leaders.

When the police were lucky enough to detain the great criminal, they simply could not show him anything other than tax evasion. However, in the end, Al Capone still ended up behind bars: he was in the famous Alcatraz prison, from where he came out seven years later with a fatal illness and soon died.

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Bernardo Provenzano

Bernardo Provenzano, a native of a small village that is located on, was simply destined to become one of the members of the group of the same name. Already in his youth, he got into the Corleone clan, and after a couple of years he already killed several people and turned a lot of illegal deals. For 10 years, the name Provenzano hung in police stations at the Wanted stand, but the local carabinieri did not even try to find this dangerous criminal. Meanwhile, he continued to move up the career ladder and gain authority for himself. It was rumored that Provenzano for some time controlled the entire illegal business in Palermo, from the sale of drugs to prostitution. He was known for his intransigence and stubbornness, for which he received the nickname Bulldozer.

Many years later, the police managed to detain the criminal: they saw a thin old man in ordinary jeans and a T-shirt. Provenzano will spend the rest of his days in prison.

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Albert Anastasia

Like many of his other colleagues, Albert Anastasia was born in sunny Italy (the city of Tropea), but soon after birth he migrated with his parents to America. The first time he went to prison was when he was a teenager, when he killed a longshoreman in Brooklyn. He was sentenced to several years, but after some time the main witness in the Anastasia case died under mysterious circumstances, and the criminal himself was released.

Albert Anastasia has made a name for himself as one of America's most ruthless killers.

He was in the Masseria gang, but over time he went over to the side of his boss's competitors, and after a couple of years he was completely present at the murder of his former boss. After that, Anastasia became the head of a gang of highly professional killers "Murder Inc.", the Gambino clan. Police say the group was involved in at least 400 deaths. The killer himself was killed by order of one of the American mafiosi.

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