Andrea Manciaracina
Encyclopedia
Andrea Manciaracina is a member of Sicilian
Mafia
. His name is sometimes spelled as Mangiaracina.
Manciaracina was born in Mazara del Vallo
in the province of Trapani
. He was initiated in Cosa Nostra in 1985 or 1986. In 1992, after the arrest of Mariano Agate
, he became "reggente" (regent) of the "mandamento" of Mazara del Vallo, a position he shared with Vincenzo Sinacori.
According to Sinacori, who became a pentito
in 1996 and started to collaborate with Italian justice, it had been Cosa Nostra boss Totò Riina who favoured the nomination of Manciaracina. His father Vito Manciaracina had been a front man for one of Riina’s companies. Father and son Manciaracina were among the few who knew how to reach the fugitive Riina. (Vito Manciaracina was initiated in 1989 and arrested on May 27, 2001 )
Manciaracina’s name was mentioned in the trial against Giulio Andreotti
. The sevenfold Prime Minister of Italy stood accused of collusion with Cosa Nostra. Investigators found that Andreotti, at the time minister of Foreign Affairs, had met Manciaracina at a meeting in Hotel Hopps in Mazara del Vallo on August 19, 1985, and held a private conversation. Initially, Andreotti denied the episode and later, when it became clear that there was undeniable proof, he claimed was not aware of the position of Manciaracina.
Manciaracina became part of a "directorate" that ruled Cosa Nostra since the mid 1990s and was established by Bernardo Provenzano
after the arrest of Totò Riina. This group "of about four to seven people met very infrequently, only when necessary, when there were strategic decisions to make." Among the other members of the directorate were Salvatore Lo Piccolo
from Palermo; Benedetto Spera
from Belmonte Mezzagno; Salvatore Rinella from Trabia
; Giuseppe Balsano from Monreale
; Matteo Messina Denaro
from Castelvetrano
; Vincenzo Virga
from Trapani
; and Antonino Giuffrè
from Caccamo
.
Manciaracina was a fugitive since 1991. Until his arrest on January 31, 2003, – with Natale Bonafede, tha Mafia boss of Marsala
– he was on the "Most wanted list" of the 30 most dangerous criminals of the Italian ministry of the Interior.
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
Mafia
Mafia
The Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...
. His name is sometimes spelled as Mangiaracina.
Manciaracina was born in Mazara del Vallo
Mazara del Vallo
Mazara del Vallo is a town and comune in southwestern Sicily, Italy, which lies mainly on the left bank at the mouth of the Mazaro river, administratively part of the province of Trapani....
in the province of Trapani
Province of Trapani
Trapani is a province in the autonomous island region of Sicily in Italy. Its capital is the city of Trapani.It has an area of 2,460 km², and a total population of 425,121...
. He was initiated in Cosa Nostra in 1985 or 1986. In 1992, after the arrest of Mariano Agate
Mariano Agate
Mariano Agate is a member of the Sicilian Mafia. He is the boss of Mazara del Vallo Mafia family since the 1970s when he replaced the old boss Mariano Licari. He also was the boss of the mandamento of Mazara, including the Mafia families of Marsala, Salemi and Vita...
, he became "reggente" (regent) of the "mandamento" of Mazara del Vallo, a position he shared with Vincenzo Sinacori.
According to Sinacori, who became a pentito
Pentito
Pentito designates people in Italy who, formerly part of criminal or terrorist organizations, following their arrests decide to "repent" and collaborate with the judicial system to help investigations...
in 1996 and started to collaborate with Italian justice, it had been Cosa Nostra boss Totò Riina who favoured the nomination of Manciaracina. His father Vito Manciaracina had been a front man for one of Riina’s companies. Father and son Manciaracina were among the few who knew how to reach the fugitive Riina. (Vito Manciaracina was initiated in 1989 and arrested on May 27, 2001 )
Manciaracina’s name was mentioned in the trial against Giulio Andreotti
Giulio Andreotti
Giulio Andreotti is an Italian politician of the now dissolved centrist Christian Democracy party. He served as the 42nd Prime Minister of Italy from 1972 to 1973, from 1976 to 1979 and from 1989 to 1992. He also served as Minister of the Interior , Defense Minister and Foreign Minister and he...
. The sevenfold Prime Minister of Italy stood accused of collusion with Cosa Nostra. Investigators found that Andreotti, at the time minister of Foreign Affairs, had met Manciaracina at a meeting in Hotel Hopps in Mazara del Vallo on August 19, 1985, and held a private conversation. Initially, Andreotti denied the episode and later, when it became clear that there was undeniable proof, he claimed was not aware of the position of Manciaracina.
Manciaracina became part of a "directorate" that ruled Cosa Nostra since the mid 1990s and was established by Bernardo Provenzano
Bernardo Provenzano
Bernardo Provenzano is a member of the Sicilian Mafia and is suspected of having been the head of the Corleonesi, a Mafia faction that originated in the village of Corleone, and de facto capo di tutti capi of the entire Sicilian Mafia until his arrest in 2006.His nickname is Binnu u tratturi...
after the arrest of Totò Riina. This group "of about four to seven people met very infrequently, only when necessary, when there were strategic decisions to make." Among the other members of the directorate were Salvatore Lo Piccolo
Salvatore Lo Piccolo
Salvatore Lo Piccolo , also known as the Baron , is a Sicilian mafioso and one of the most powerful bosses of Palermo, Sicily. Lo Piccolo rose through the ranks of the Palermo mafia throughout the 1980s and he became the capo-mandamento of the San Lorenzo district in the early 1990s, replacing...
from Palermo; Benedetto Spera
Benedetto Spera
Benedetto Spera is a member of the Sicilian Mafia and the boss of the Belmonte Mezzagno Mafia family and the mandamento of Misilmeri in the province of Palermo, Sicily, southern Italy...
from Belmonte Mezzagno; Salvatore Rinella from Trabia
Trabia
Trabia is a comune in the Province of Palermo in the Italian region Sicily, located about 30 km southeast of Palermo.The municipality of Trabia contains the frazione San Nicola l'Arena....
; Giuseppe Balsano from Monreale
Monreale
Monreale is a town and comune in the province of Palermo, in Sicily, Italy, on the slope of Monte Caputo, overlooking the very fertile valley called "La Conca d'oro" , famed for its orange, olive and almond trees, the produce of which is exported in large quantities...
; Matteo Messina Denaro
Matteo Messina Denaro
Matteo Messina Denaro , also known as Diabolik, is a Sicilian mafioso. He got his nickname from the Italian comic book character of the same name. He is considered to be one of the new leaders of Cosa Nostra after the arrest of Bernardo Provenzano on April 11, 2006...
from Castelvetrano
Castelvetrano
Castelvetrano is a town and comune in the province of Trapani, Sicily, Italy. The archeological site of Selinunte is located within the territory of the comune. It was the birthplace of Giovanni Gentile, the key philosopher of the Fascist movement in Italy.The town is predominantly a farming town,...
; Vincenzo Virga
Vincenzo Virga
Vincenzo Virga is the boss of the Trapani Mafia family and mandamento since 1982, when the previous boss, Salvatore Minore, was murdered....
from Trapani
Trapani
Trapani is a city and comune on the west coast of Sicily in Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Trapani. Founded by Elymians, the city is still an important fishing port and the main gateway to the nearby Egadi Islands.-History:...
; and Antonino Giuffrè
Antonino Giuffrè
Antonino "Nino" Giuffrè is an Italian mafioso from Caccamo in the Province of Palermo, Sicily. He became one of the most important Mafia turncoats after his arrest in April 2002....
from Caccamo
Caccamo
Caccamo is a town and comune located on the Tyrrhenian coast of Sicily in the Province of Palermo.-History:The official founding of Caccamo was not until 1093, when the Normans began building the castle on a rocky spur overlooking a cliff. The castle itself is actually now being slowly converted...
.
Manciaracina was a fugitive since 1991. Until his arrest on January 31, 2003, – with Natale Bonafede, tha Mafia boss of Marsala
Marsala
Marsala is a seaport city located in the Province of Trapani on the island of Sicily in Italy. The low coast on which it is situated is the westernmost point of the island...
– he was on the "Most wanted list" of the 30 most dangerous criminals of the Italian ministry of the Interior.