You are probably right m2w!

Italian media present five mafia candidates
The Italian media, on the other hand, are already presenting five favorites for the mafia throne, also known as the “dome”. There would be drug baron Stefano Fidanzati (70), called “Don Tano”. He is the little brother of the once powerful mafia boss Gaetano Fidanzati (1935-2013), who built up a large heroin and cocaine trade in New York in the 80s in complicity with the Sicilian gangster syndicate. Stefano Fidanzati took over the international business.

At 85, Settimo Mineo (85) is the senior among the contenders. He was appointed as his successor in May 2018 after the death of the legendary mafia boss Salvatore “Toto” Riina (1935-2017). He was arrested seven months later and sentenced to 16 years in prison in 2020 for his leadership position in Cosa Nostra. In November 2022, “Uncle Settimo” was finally acquitted. He would be available again for the Cosa Nostra.

Even younger mafiosi want to be on the throne of the Cosa Nostra
Like Matteo Messina Denaro, “The Skinny”, Giovanni Motisi (64), nicknamed “The Fat”, has been on the run for decades. The boss of the clan of the same name has been wanted for murder since 1998. He was a “trust killer” for super boss Salvatore “Toto” Riina. Motisi is at the top of the European wanted list.

But the young mafia also has ambitions for the post of chief godfather. Sandro Capizzi (41) is the son of mafia boss Benedetto Capizzi (78), who tried to use force in 2008 to seize power in “Cosa Nostra”. Fearing a new mafia war, the Sicilian judiciary intervened and had father and son arrested. The junior, who has been free since 2015, is now aiming for the dome. Giuseppe Auteri (48), a specialist in extortion and treasurer of the richest clan in Palermo, also appears to be ambitious. “The tray”, as he is called, has also been on the run for a year – but is quite active from the Sicilian underground.

Giovanni Motisi, close confidante of the historical leader of Cosa Nostra
The 63-year-old Sicilian from Palermo is nicknamed u’ pacchiuni (meaning “plump” in dialect) because of his height. Motisi has made a name for himself in recent weeks when he was tipped off as a potential new head of Cosa Nostra in Sicily following the arrest of Matteo Messina Denaro.

However, as Palermo Attorney General Maurizio De Lucia explains, the Sicilian mafia has not had a single leader for some time. Neither was Messina Denaro, who played a very important role in his home region of Trapani. Since the arrest of Totò Riina in 1993, the Cosa Nostra Commission has apparently not met, although it formally exists.

So Giovanni Motisi is probably not the leader of Cosa Nostra, but he is certainly a very important mafioso. He has been wanted since 1998 for murder, mafia association and massacre. Since December 1999 there has also been an international search for him. Motisi was one of Totò Riina’s closest confidants. He committed several murders and, according to investigators, was one of the organizers of the assassination of Prefect Carlo Alberto Dalla Chiesa. The last known picture of him is from 1999, when he attended his daughter’s birthday party. Nothing has been heard from him since then.

What kind of ceremony do they have in Italy when they induct a new boss of bosses? I imagine its a very big event that may take place over a couple days of celebration? Lots of food, dancing and people gathering together ushering in the new boss paying their respects.

When a guy is getting made there is always a celebration with a lot of food and alcohol.

i don't think there is a particular ceremony to elect a new boss of bosses, the only ceremony is when they get made

Who commands Cosa Nostra after the death of Matteo Messina Denaro: the possible heirs of the Castelvetrano boss
Published on:25-09-2023 16:01

With the death of Matteo Messina Denaro a season ends, but Cosa Nostra does not end. Several magistrates remembered this - from Piero Grasso to Luigi De Magistris - immediately after the news of the death of the Castelvetrano boss. Who will take up the legacy, however, is a mystery. There are many names: from Giovanni Motisi to Stefano Fidanzati, passing through Settimino Mineo, Sandro Capizzi and Giuseppe Auteri. Here's who the eligible candidates are .

The best known name is that of Giuseppe Motisi, one of the most wanted fugitives, as evidenced by the profile on the Ministry of the Interior website . Born in Palermo, he has been wanted since 1998 for murders, mafia association, massacre and other crimes: he was sentenced to life imprisonment. Motisi himself, head of the Pagliarelli district for years, would have been expelled from Cosa Nostra by Nino Rotolo, according to what was written by investigating judge Walter Turturiciin a precautionary custody order linked to the Santa Rosalia Village. There is one thing, however: according to the revelations of Tommaso Buscetta, one can exit (or at least used to exit) "only with death or by collaborating with justice". Motisi is not a repentant, it seems that he is not dead, he is certainly wanted. Known as u patiuni , or the fat one , he was sentenced to life imprisonment for killing the deputy commissioner Ninni Cassarà and the agent Roberto Antiochia, in 1995. Then he seems to have left the scene. It is unlikely that he will be able to take up the legacy of Matteo Messina Denaro .

In the photo is Gaetano Fidanzati, historic boss arrested in Milan in a hideout on Via Marghera in December 2009 (and died in 2013). In the box, however, there is Stefano Fidanzati, his brother. The photo is taken from Pippo Bono's wedding in New York on November 16, 1980, which ended up in the FBI files. After Messina Denaro's arrest, Stefano Fidanzati's name ended up in the newspapers as a possible successor to the Scarlet Pimpernel. After the arrest of Gaetano - who has always been close to the Corleonesi together with Bono and the first to understand the opportunity to make tons of money in Milan - he takes the reins of the Arenella-Acquasanta clan in Palermo. Stefano Fidanzati, free since 2018, as reported by LiveSicilia., would shuttle between Palermo and Milan.

Nicknamed Tonton Settimo, Settimino Mineo was born in Palermo on 28 November 1938. He is currently locked up in Sassari prison, at 41-bis. After Riina's death, on 29 May 2018, the new head of Cosa Nostra was elected, being arrested on 4 December of the same year. In December 2022, however, the Palermo Court of Appeal sentenced him to 21 years in an abbreviated sentence, considered to be the head of the new Cupola.

Sandro Capizzi was arrested in December 2008. He was then released. He is the son of the boss Benedetto Capizzi, mafia leader of the Santa Maria del Gesù clan, that of Riina's sworn enemy, Stefano Bontade. Benedetto Capizzi died on September 12, 2023, in hospital , just like Matteo Messina Denaro: he too was at 41-bis.

Giuseppe Auteri is very close to the boss Tommaso Lo Presti, it seems that he was the cashier of the clan together with another prominent figure of Porta Nuova in Palermo, namely Giuseppe Incontrera, murdered last June 30th. Nicknamed "Tray", he is a fugitive.