Fanucci's Gold Coin

After Vito kills Fanucci and takes his wallet he finds a five-dollar gold piece in it "probably a luck token". Then he discards the wallet, "knowing even then that he must leave the gold piece in the wallet".

Why did he 'have to' leave the gold piece there? Was it because he did not want to get caught with it, thereby linking him to Fanucci? Or was it some kind of supersticious act?

SK

i'm not too positive about this, but i think it's so the police think that the killing of fanucci was a robbery and would not investigate it any further than that. i wasn't sure if in america they had 5 dollar gold pieces or not in hthose days, if not, than that cements my theory because the coin would have no other value as well.
it's also a bit of an honour thing as well i think, because he only takes what is after all, rightfully his, nothing more.

i'm not too positive about this, but i think it's so the police think that the killing of fanucci was a robbery and would not investigate it any further than that. i wasn't sure if in america they had 5 dollar gold pieces or not in hthose days, if not, than that cements my theory because the coin would have no other value as well.
it's also a bit of an honour thing as well i think, because he only takes what is after all, rightfully his, nothing more.

How would leaving the gold piece behind make the police think it was a robbery? I would think that would make the police think the reverse. I don't think it was a question of "honor", either. The book says he "knew" he had to leave it behind.

Since the book later states that Vito was surprised that he was never even questioned about the murder, I think it was a case of him not wanting to be in possesion of any of Fanucci's personal items, since he was expecting to be questioned. His alibi was that Fanucci was seen leaving his apartment alive.

It was an issue of respect I believe. That was a personal possesion of this man, in Sicily, respect comes hand in hand and even in death a man of power is to be respected. To take his "lucky" coin would be "disrespectful".
This is just my opinion.

Sinceramente,
Don Ferro