Giuseppe Marchese
Encyclopedia
Giuseppe Marchese was a member of the Sicilian
Mafia
, who turned state witness (pentito
). Giuseppe Pino Marchese was born in Palermo
. His father Vincenzo Marchese was a powerful Mafia boss and his uncle Filippo Marchese
was the head of the Corso dei Mille Mafia family.
In 1980, just 17 years old, Giuseppe Marchese was initiated into the Mafia by Salvatore Riina
and Leoluca Bagarella
as ‘reserved’ man of honour affiliated with the Corleonesi
. His membership of Cosa Nostra was to be kept confidential in order to work exclusively for Riina and his uncle. He became one of the many killers at the disposal of the Corleonesi in the Second Mafia War
.
, three Mafiosi – including Giovanni Di Peri, the boss of Villabate
– and an innocent bystander were murdered. Giuseppe Greco
and Marchese's uncle Filippo Marchese
also took part in the bloodshed.
Giuseppe Marchese was captured on January 15, 1982, and imprisoned for his role in the Christmas Massacre. His conviction was secured by the fact that his fingerprint
was found on the steering wheel of one of the getaway-cars (the forensic scientist, Dr. Paolo Giaccone, who found and identified the fingerprint was subsequently shot to death by Rosario Rotolo, one of Filippo Marchese's killers; at the Maxi Trial
, Rotolo was convicted of this murder.)
, boss of the mandamento
of Ciaculli
and a fellow convict
and hitman
for the Corleonesi. Puccio had been plotting to overthrow the Corleonesi bosses, Salvatore Riina
and Bernardo Provenzano
.
Giuseppe and Antonino Marchese had been ordered to kill Puccio by Riina but were unaware that Riina, on the same day, had Puccio's brother murdered. A deliberate ploy by Riina to ensure the Marchese brothers were unable to claim they had carried out the killing of Vincenzo Puccio during a spontaneous act of self-defence. The two Marcheses were subsequently given additional life sentences.
and started to collaborate with the authorities. He claimed he was disillusioned by Riina's tactics of murder and treachery, complaining he had been used then discarded by Riina. Marchese admitted to have participated in more than 20 murders, including the one on Stefano Bontade
and Salvatore Inzerillo
. He was the first mafioso from the winning faction of the Corleonesi
in the Second Mafia War
to become state witness.
Giuseppe Marchese was an in-law
of Leoluca Bagarella
from Corleone
, who married Pino’s sister Vincenza in 1991. She later committed suicide after Giuseppe Marchese began collaborating with authorities. Another version was that she was clinically depressed, after a series of miscarriages. She allegedly also was shocked by the killing of the 13-year old Giuseppe Di Matteo in January 1996 in retaliation for the “betrayal” of his father Santo Di Matteo
who had turned state witness after his arrest on June 4, 1993. The body of the little Giuseppe was dissolved in acid. Vincenza Marchese’s body has never been found.
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...
, who turned state witness (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...
). Giuseppe Pino Marchese was born in Palermo
Palermo
Palermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...
. His father Vincenzo Marchese was a powerful Mafia boss and his uncle Filippo Marchese
Filippo Marchese
Filippo Marchese was a leading figure in the Sicilian Mafia and a hitman suspected of dozens of homicides. He was the boss of the Mafia family in the Corso Dei Mille neighbourhood in Palermo....
was the head of the Corso dei Mille Mafia family.
Early Mafia career
He learned the hard way what it meant to be born in a Mafia family. When he was 16 he wanted to marry a girl. However, her parents were separated, which, according to the rules of Cosa Nostra, was not allowed. Giuseppe’s brother made the suggestion that he "clean up the family mess" and marry an orphan instead of the daughter of separated parents. In other words, Giuseppe was supposed to kill his girlfriend’s father. If he would not do it, his brother would. Giuseppe broke off the relationship.In 1980, just 17 years old, Giuseppe Marchese was initiated into the Mafia by Salvatore Riina
Salvatore Riina
Salvatore "Totò" Riina is a member of the Sicilian Mafia who became the most powerful member of the criminal organization in the early 1980s. Fellow mobsters nicknamed him The Beast due to his violent nature, or sometimes The Short One due to his diminutive stature...
and Leoluca Bagarella
Leoluca Bagarella
Leoluca Bagarella is an Italian criminal and member of the Sicilian Mafia. He is from the town of Corleone and was a member of the Corleonesi.-Biography:...
as ‘reserved’ man of honour affiliated with the Corleonesi
Corleonesi
The Corleonesi is the name given to a faction within the Sicilian Mafia that dominated Cosa Nostra in the 1980s and the 1990s. It was called the Corleonesi because its most important leaders came from the town of Corleone, first Luciano Leggio and later Totò Riina, Bernardo Provenzano and Leoluca...
. His membership of Cosa Nostra was to be kept confidential in order to work exclusively for Riina and his uncle. He became one of the many killers at the disposal of the Corleonesi in the Second Mafia War
Second Mafia War
The Second Mafia War was a conflict within the Sicilian Mafia, mostly taking place in the early 1980s. As with any criminal organization, the history of the Sicilian Mafia is replete with conflicts and power struggles, and the violence that results from them, but these are generally localised and...
.
Arrest
He was only 19 when he participated in the so-called "Christmas Massacre" when, on the afternoon of December 25, 1981, in BagheriaBagheria
Bagheria is a town and comune in the Province of Palermo in Sicily, Italy.-Etymology:According to some sources, the name Bagheria originates from the Phoenician term Bayharia meaning "land that descends toward the sea." Other sources claim that it derives from the Arabic Bāb al-Gerib, or "windy...
, three Mafiosi – including Giovanni Di Peri, the boss of Villabate
Villabate
Villabate is a comune in the Province of Palermo in the Italian region Sicily, located about 8 km southeast of Palermo. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 19,441 and an area of 3.8 km²....
– and an innocent bystander were murdered. Giuseppe Greco
Giuseppe Greco
Giuseppe "Pino" Greco was a hitman and high-ranking member of the Sicilian Mafia. A number of sources refer to him exclusively as Pino Greco although Giuseppe was his Christian name; "Pino" is a frequent abbreviation of the name Giuseppe.One of the most prolific killers in criminal history, he...
and Marchese's uncle Filippo Marchese
Filippo Marchese
Filippo Marchese was a leading figure in the Sicilian Mafia and a hitman suspected of dozens of homicides. He was the boss of the Mafia family in the Corso Dei Mille neighbourhood in Palermo....
also took part in the bloodshed.
Giuseppe Marchese was captured on January 15, 1982, and imprisoned for his role in the Christmas Massacre. His conviction was secured by the fact that his fingerprint
Fingerprint
A fingerprint in its narrow sense is an impression left by the friction ridges of a human finger. In a wider use of the term, fingerprints are the traces of an impression from the friction ridges of any part of a human hand. A print from the foot can also leave an impression of friction ridges...
was found on the steering wheel of one of the getaway-cars (the forensic scientist, Dr. Paolo Giaccone, who found and identified the fingerprint was subsequently shot to death by Rosario Rotolo, one of Filippo Marchese's killers; at the Maxi Trial
Maxi Trial
The Maxi Trial was a criminal trial that took place in Sicily during the mid-1980s that saw hundreds of defendants on trial convicted for a multitude of crimes relating to Mafia activities, based primarily on testimony given in as evidence from a former boss turned informant...
, Rotolo was convicted of this murder.)
Betrayed by Riina
On May 11, 1989 Giuseppe Marchese and his brother Antonino battered to death Vincenzo PuccioVincenzo Puccio
Vincenzo Puccio was a member of the Sicilian Mafia. He was from Palermo and joined the Ciaculli Mafia family sometime in the late 1970s, although like many other members of that particular family he operated a great deal under the orders of the Corleonesi.- Criminal career :He was arrested...
, boss of the mandamento
Mandamento
Historically a mandamento was the part of Italian territory under the jurisdiction of a "pretore" which is a kind of magistrate. These divisions were abolished in 1923....
of Ciaculli
Ciaculli
Ciaculli is an outlying suburb of Palermo, Sicily in Italy. It counts less than 5000 residents. Ciaculli is close to the suburb of Croceverde. Ciaculli has been important within the history of the Cosa Nostra. The best known Mafia family is the Greco Mafia clan...
and a fellow convict
Convict
A convict is "a person found guilty of a crime and sentenced by a court" or "a person serving a sentence in prison", sometimes referred to in slang as simply a "con". Convicts are often called prisoners or inmates. Persons convicted and sentenced to non-custodial sentences often are not termed...
and hitman
Hitman
A hitman is a person hired to kill another person.- Hitmen in organized crime :Hitmen are largely linked to the world of organized crime. Hitmen are hired people who kill people for money. Notable examples include Murder, Inc., Mafia hitmen and Richard Kuklinski.- Other cases involving hitmen...
for the Corleonesi. Puccio had been plotting to overthrow the Corleonesi bosses, Salvatore Riina
Salvatore Riina
Salvatore "Totò" Riina is a member of the Sicilian Mafia who became the most powerful member of the criminal organization in the early 1980s. Fellow mobsters nicknamed him The Beast due to his violent nature, or sometimes The Short One due to his diminutive stature...
and 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...
.
Giuseppe and Antonino Marchese had been ordered to kill Puccio by Riina but were unaware that Riina, on the same day, had Puccio's brother murdered. A deliberate ploy by Riina to ensure the Marchese brothers were unable to claim they had carried out the killing of Vincenzo Puccio during a spontaneous act of self-defence. The two Marcheses were subsequently given additional life sentences.
Pentito
In September 1992 he became a pentitoPentito
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...
and started to collaborate with the authorities. He claimed he was disillusioned by Riina's tactics of murder and treachery, complaining he had been used then discarded by Riina. Marchese admitted to have participated in more than 20 murders, including the one on Stefano Bontade
Stefano Bontade
Stefano Bontade was a powerful member of the Sicilian Mafia. Some sources spell his surname Bontate. He was the capomafia of the Santa Maria di Gesù Family in Palermo...
and Salvatore Inzerillo
Salvatore Inzerillo
Salvatore Inzerillo was an Italian criminal, a member of the Sicilian Mafia, also known as Totuccio . He rose to be a powerful boss of Palermo's Passo di Rigano family...
. He was the first mafioso from the winning faction of the Corleonesi
Corleonesi
The Corleonesi is the name given to a faction within the Sicilian Mafia that dominated Cosa Nostra in the 1980s and the 1990s. It was called the Corleonesi because its most important leaders came from the town of Corleone, first Luciano Leggio and later Totò Riina, Bernardo Provenzano and Leoluca...
in the Second Mafia War
Second Mafia War
The Second Mafia War was a conflict within the Sicilian Mafia, mostly taking place in the early 1980s. As with any criminal organization, the history of the Sicilian Mafia is replete with conflicts and power struggles, and the violence that results from them, but these are generally localised and...
to become state witness.
Giuseppe Marchese was an in-law
In-law
In-law may refer to:*Affinity , kinship by marriage, such as a**Mother-in-law**Father-in-law**Brother-in-law**Sister-in-law**Daughter-in-law**Son-in-law**Cousin-in-law**Uncle-in-law**Aunt-in-law**Nephew-in-law**Niece-in-law...
of Leoluca Bagarella
Leoluca Bagarella
Leoluca Bagarella is an Italian criminal and member of the Sicilian Mafia. He is from the town of Corleone and was a member of the Corleonesi.-Biography:...
from Corleone
Corleone
Corleone is a small town and comune of approximately 12,000 inhabitants in the Province of Palermo in Sicily, Italy....
, who married Pino’s sister Vincenza in 1991. She later committed suicide after Giuseppe Marchese began collaborating with authorities. Another version was that she was clinically depressed, after a series of miscarriages. She allegedly also was shocked by the killing of the 13-year old Giuseppe Di Matteo in January 1996 in retaliation for the “betrayal” of his father Santo Di Matteo
Santo Di Matteo
Mario Santo Di Matteo , also known as Mezzanasca, is a member of the Mafia from the town of Altofonte in the province of Palermo, Sicily....
who had turned state witness after his arrest on June 4, 1993. The body of the little Giuseppe was dissolved in acid. Vincenza Marchese’s body has never been found.