Who Was Toto Riina? The Sicilian Boss Who Declared War on Italy
Mobsters DailySalvatore 'Toto' Riina was the Corleone-born boss who seized control of Sicily's Cosa Nostra in the Second Mafia War and then declared open war on the Italian state, ordering the 1992 murders of anti-Mafia judges Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino.
The Beast of Corleone
Riina rose under Luciano Leggio in Corleone, a poor farming town that produced Cosa Nostra's most violent faction. Where Carlo Gambino ruled by whispering, Riina ruled by extermination: in 1981-83 his Corleonesi murdered hundreds of rivals and relatives. He spent decades a fugitive while living in Palermo, protected by silence. His era began far from Lucky Luciano's.
Riina's story is the one Sicilian families still lower their voices for, which is why the Tony Soprano Ugly Christmas Sweater belongs in every November rewatch: Tony in a black-and-white stencil, gabagool included.
The war on Italy
When the Maxi Trial convictions were upheld in 1992, Riina answered with car bombs: Falcone on a rigged motorway, Borsellino outside his mother's door weeks later. Riina was arrested in Palermo in January 1993, and his terror strategy is still judged Cosa Nostra's greatest mistake.
Frequently asked questions
Why was Riina called 'the Beast'? For the sheer scale of his violence — rivals, officials and even children of informants were murdered on his orders.
How long was Riina boss? He effectively controlled Cosa Nostra from the early 1980s until his arrest in 1993.
Who succeeded Riina? His brother-in-law Leoluca Bagarella was arrested in 1995, and Bernardo Provenzano then led the family into a quieter era.
Keep reading: The Commission Trial · Why the Mafia fell · Who was Vito Genovese?
From the shop: Shadows of the Underworld — the real-mafia history behind the names in this story, in one gripping read.
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