Nicolo Rizzuto
Encyclopedia
Nicolo Rizzuto also known as Nick Rizzuto, was the crime boss
of the Sicilian faction of the Italian Mafia
in Montreal
who later pushed out the Calabria
n Cotroni family
. Rizzuto was born in Cattolica Eraclea
, Sicily
, in 1924, and immigrated to Canada
in 1954 when the family settled in Montreal. Nick's son Vito Rizzuto
was allegedly the godfather of the Sicilian Mafia in Canada and is currently serving a federal sentence for homicide in the United States.
Rizzuto had ties to organized crime in Canada, the United States, Venezuela and Italy. He began his Mafia
career in Canada as an associate of the Cotroni crime family that controlled much of Montreal's drug trade in the 1970s while answering to the Bonanno crime family
of New York
. He was, however, more closely linked to the Sicilian Mafia, in particular the Cuntrera-Caruana Mafia clan, who came from the same region in the province of Agrigento
.
n origin. Violi complained about the independent modus operandi of his Sicilian 'underlings', Nick Rizzuto in particular. "He is going from one side to the other, here and there, and he says nothing to nobody, he is doing business and nobody knows anything," Violi said about Rizzuto. Violi asked for more 'soldiers' from his Bonanno bosses, clearly preparing for war, and Violi's boss at the time, Vincent Cotroni remarked: "After all, I am 'capo decina', I have the right to expel him."
By the 1980s, the Rizzutos emerged as the city's pre-eminent Mafia crew after a turf war between the Montreal family's Sicilian and Calabrian
factions. Rizzuto allegedly participated in the murder in 1978 of Paolo Violi
, a Bonanno underboss who had been named boss of Montreal's family. He allegedly replaced the late Vic Cotroni as the clearinghouse for Corsican heroin entering Canada and the United States.
(RCMP) officer was later informed that Rizzuto was paroled early after an associate of the family delivered an CND$800,000 bribe to Venezuelan officials. October 16, 2008 Rizzuto was released from prison.
On February 11, 2010, Nicolo Rizzuto entered a guilty plea to tax evasion charges. The charges stem from a Canada Revenue Agency investigation for the tax years 1994 and 1995. Nicolo Rizzuto was accused of failing to declare the interest earned on more than 5 million dollars deposited in three Swiss bank accounts. The Court ordered Rizzuto that in addition to almost $628,000 in taxes owed, Rizzuto pay a $209,000 fine plus and administrative penalties.
of Montreal
when a single bullet from a sniper's rifle punched through two layers of glass in the rear patio doors of his Montreal mansion. His death is believed to be the final blow against the Rizzuto crime Family.
and his wife Giovanna Cammalleri, Leonardo Rizzuto and Nicolo "Nick" Rizzuto Jr.. On December 28, 2009, Nick Rizzuto Jr. was shot and killed near his car in Notre-Dame-de-Grâce
, a borough in Montreal. Paolo Renda, Nicolo's son in law, disappeared on May 20, 2010, and is presumed to have been kidnapped. A month later Agostino Cuntrera, who is believed to have taken control of the family, was killed together with his bodyguard on June 30, 2010.
Crime boss
A crime boss or boss is a person in charge of a criminal organization. A boss typically has absolute or near-absolute control over his subordinates, is greatly feared by his subordinates for his ruthlessness and willingness to take lives in order to exert his influence, and profits come from the...
of the Sicilian faction of the Italian 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...
in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
who later pushed out the Calabria
Calabria
Calabria , in antiquity known as Bruttium, is a region in southern Italy, south of Naples, located at the "toe" of the Italian Peninsula. The capital city of Calabria is Catanzaro....
n Cotroni family
Cotroni family
The Cotroni crime family is a Mafia organization based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The territory controlled by the family once covered most of southern Quebec and Ontario, until the Rizzuto family supplanted them...
. Rizzuto was born in Cattolica Eraclea
Cattolica Eraclea
Cattolica Eraclea is a comune in the Province of Agrigento in the Italian region Sicily, located about 80 km south of Palermo and about 20 km northwest of Agrigento nearby the Platani river valley....
, Sicily
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,...
, in 1924, and immigrated to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
in 1954 when the family settled in Montreal. Nick's son Vito Rizzuto
Vito Rizzuto
Vito Rizzuto , known as Montreal's Teflon Don, was alleged to be the leading Mafia boss of the Sicilian Mafia in Canada and heads the Rizzuto crime family.-Family:...
was allegedly the godfather of the Sicilian Mafia in Canada and is currently serving a federal sentence for homicide in the United States.
Early life
Rizzuto was born in Sicily in the town of Cattolica Eraclea. In 1925, his father Vito left for the United States of America with his brother-in-law Calogero Renda and 4 others. Vito's wife stayed with Nicolo in Sicily. In 1933, Vito was murdered in New York by rival gangsters forcing Nicolo to grow up with a stepfather. Nicolo married a girl named Labertina Manno, during the early 1940s, the daughter of a local Mafia leader. In 1954, Nicolo took his new family and settled in Montreal, Canada. He was able to form his own crew with help from several other Sicilian relatives and associates living there.Rizzuto had ties to organized crime in Canada, the United States, Venezuela and Italy. He began his 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...
career in Canada as an associate of the Cotroni crime family that controlled much of Montreal's drug trade in the 1970s while answering to the Bonanno crime family
Bonanno crime family
The Bonanno crime family is one of the "Five Families" that dominates organized crime activities in New York City, United States, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the Mafia ....
of New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. He was, however, more closely linked to the Sicilian Mafia, in particular the Cuntrera-Caruana Mafia clan, who came from the same region in the province of Agrigento
Province of Agrigento
Agrigento is a province in the autonomous island region of Sicily in Italy. It has an area of 3,042 km², and a total population of 454,370...
.
Mob war
Rizzuto did not care much about the formal and ceremonial command lines in the Cotroni family, who were of CalabriaCalabria
Calabria , in antiquity known as Bruttium, is a region in southern Italy, south of Naples, located at the "toe" of the Italian Peninsula. The capital city of Calabria is Catanzaro....
n origin. Violi complained about the independent modus operandi of his Sicilian 'underlings', Nick Rizzuto in particular. "He is going from one side to the other, here and there, and he says nothing to nobody, he is doing business and nobody knows anything," Violi said about Rizzuto. Violi asked for more 'soldiers' from his Bonanno bosses, clearly preparing for war, and Violi's boss at the time, Vincent Cotroni remarked: "After all, I am 'capo decina', I have the right to expel him."
By the 1980s, the Rizzutos emerged as the city's pre-eminent Mafia crew after a turf war between the Montreal family's Sicilian and Calabrian
Calabrian
Calabrian may refer to:* Calabrian languages, the languages and dialects spoken in Calabria* Calabrians, the people of Calabria, southern Italy...
factions. Rizzuto allegedly participated in the murder in 1978 of Paolo Violi
Paolo Violi
Paolo Violi was an Italian-Canadian mobster and longtime underboss of the Bonanno crime family's faction in Montreal, the Cotroni crime family. The Violi and Cotroni families were from Calabria while the Rizzuto crime family, like the Bonannos, were from Sicily...
, a Bonanno underboss who had been named boss of Montreal's family. He allegedly replaced the late Vic Cotroni as the clearinghouse for Corsican heroin entering Canada and the United States.
Legal problems
Rizzuto was arrested on November 23, 2006. Before the arrest, Rizzuto appeared to be immune to police investigations in Canada. But he did serve five years in prison in Venezuela between 1988 and 1993 after being convicted of cocaine possession. An undercover Royal Canadian Mounted PoliceRoyal Canadian Mounted Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
(RCMP) officer was later informed that Rizzuto was paroled early after an associate of the family delivered an CND$800,000 bribe to Venezuelan officials. October 16, 2008 Rizzuto was released from prison.
On February 11, 2010, Nicolo Rizzuto entered a guilty plea to tax evasion charges. The charges stem from a Canada Revenue Agency investigation for the tax years 1994 and 1995. Nicolo Rizzuto was accused of failing to declare the interest earned on more than 5 million dollars deposited in three Swiss bank accounts. The Court ordered Rizzuto that in addition to almost $628,000 in taxes owed, Rizzuto pay a $209,000 fine plus and administrative penalties.
Assassination
On November 10, 2010, Rizzuto was killed at his residence in the Cartierville boroughAhuntsic-Cartierville
Ahuntsic-Cartierville is a borough of the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada.-Geography:The borough is located in the northern part of Montreal along the banks of the Rivière des Prairies, and includes some islands in the river such as Île aux Chats, Île Perry, and Île de la Visitation...
of Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
when a single bullet from a sniper's rifle punched through two layers of glass in the rear patio doors of his Montreal mansion. His death is believed to be the final blow against the Rizzuto crime Family.
Family
Rizzuto had two grandsons by his son VitoVito Rizzuto
Vito Rizzuto , known as Montreal's Teflon Don, was alleged to be the leading Mafia boss of the Sicilian Mafia in Canada and heads the Rizzuto crime family.-Family:...
and his wife Giovanna Cammalleri, Leonardo Rizzuto and Nicolo "Nick" Rizzuto Jr.. On December 28, 2009, Nick Rizzuto Jr. was shot and killed near his car in Notre-Dame-de-Grâce
Notre-Dame-de-Grâce
Notre-Dame-de-Grâce , also nicknamed NDG, is a residential neighbourhood of Montreal located in the city's west-end. It is one of five districts of the borough of Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce...
, a borough in Montreal. Paolo Renda, Nicolo's son in law, disappeared on May 20, 2010, and is presumed to have been kidnapped. A month later Agostino Cuntrera, who is believed to have taken control of the family, was killed together with his bodyguard on June 30, 2010.
External links
- Mob Boss Rivalry, You Tube