Salvatore Toto Riina
The former boss of the Sicilian Mafia was born in Corleone in 1930. His reputation precedes him as one of the most feared mob bosses ever; during his criminal career, he murdered at least 40 people, something he started at an early age of only 17 when he became a member of Cosa Nostra.
Riina’s murder spree had him order the execution of many other than the 40 he took out, businessmen, his criminal rivals, journalists, anti-Mafia prosecutors, and judges who stood in his way. This action led to his arrest and later charges of multiple murders resulting in a life sentence cut short by his medically induced coma after two surgeries in Parma Prison. He later died after his 87th birthday, but his name still screams danger.
Lucky Luciano
Born in Lercara Friddi in 1897, Charles Luciano grew up to become a notorious Italian-American mobster, the father of organized crime. The mobster who played an essential role in the National Crime Syndicate teamed up with his boss’s rival and aided in his assassination.
Lucky Luciano had a lot of blood on his hands, having ordered the murders of many people. In 1936, he was charged with 62 counts of compulsory prostitution with a sentence of 30 years minimum in prison. However, he struck a deal to help keep New York docks free of strikes and sabotage, which led to his deportation to Italy where he continued to be under police surveillance. Even then, he continued his criminal activities till his death in 1962 due to a heart attack at Naples International Airport.
Carlo “Don Carlo” Gambino
As he was referred to, the Godfather was a member of Cosa Nostra at only 19 as an assassin, became a member of the Young Turks, a gang headed by Lucky Luciano, and became captain for the Mangano crime family doing illegal gambling and taking charge of loan sharking. He became the head of the crime family in 1957, renamed it the Gambino crime family, and headed it for 20 years until his death in 1976 in Massapequa, NY.
Matteo Messina Denaro
Matteo Messina Denaro, also known as “Diabolik”, born in 1962 in Castelvetrano, is one of the topmost wanted men globally, having been a fugitive since 1993. The boss of all bosses is linked to numerous deaths, corruption, narcotics, and protection rackets. Despite police seizing his assets, the Sicilian mafia boss is still at large with no information of his whereabouts.
To this day, police allegedly do not have any photos of Denaro without sunglasses, and do not know what his voice sounds like. He has been one of the most elusive criminals of all time. Denaro has been sentenced to life imprisonment in multiple absentia trials.
