It seems like the character was someone made in Sicily since he was an "old friend" of Vito's and was Connie's godfather. Maybe the idea was that he was whomever took over Don Ciccio's operations after Vito killed him (perhaps one of Cicico's men who sold the old don out?), that could explain his closeness with the family and being a friend of Vito's (he would have been in charge of the exporting of the olive oil to the Genco Pura Company then). Speaking, of course, from a hypothetical situation here since the character has no backstory.