Cesare Manzella (; 18 December 1897 – 26 April 1963) was a boss in the

Sicilian Mafia The Sicilian Mafia or Cosa Nostra (, ; "our thing"), also referred to as simply Mafia, is a secret society, criminal society and criminal organization originating on the island of Sicily and dates back to the mid-19th century. Emerging as a form of ...

who sat on the first Sicilian Mafia Commission. He was the head of the Mafia family in Cinisi, a small seaside town near the Punta Raisi Airport. As the airport was in their territory it was an invaluable asset for the import and export of contraband, including narcotics. His deputy was

Gaetano Badalamenti Gaetano Badalamenti (; 14 September 1923 – 29 April 2004) was a powerful member of the Sicilian Mafia. ''Don Tano'' Badalamenti was the capofamiglia of his hometown Cinisi, Sicily, and headed the Sicilian Mafia Commission in the 1970s. In 1 ...

.Shawcross & Young, ''Men Of Honour'', p. 56

Expelled from the US

After a stay in the United States, where he had spent many years organising gambling houses in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, Manzella settled back in Cinisi after he was expelled by US authorities in 1947. In Cinisi he owned an extensive citrus plantation. Manzella was described as a “violent and bullying individual”, by the local

Carabinieri The Carabinieri (, also , ; formally ''Arma dei Carabinieri'', "Arm of Carabineers"; previously ''Corpo dei Carabinieri Reali'', "Royal Carabineers Corps") are the national gendarmerie of Italy who primarily carry out domestic and foreign poli ...

. “He is cunning and has a well-developed organisational ability, which enables him to enjoy an undisputed ascendancy over local criminals and mafiosi.” Gambetta, ''The Sicilian Mafia'', p. 237-39 Not only in Cinisi but also in the surrounding communities Carini,

Torretta Torretta ( Sicilian: ''Turretta'') is a ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Palermo located on the Mediterranean island of Sicily. This town is situated on a mountainous area overlooking Palermo. Olive production is Torretta's primary agricu ...

, Terrasini,

Partinico Partinico ( Sicilian: ''Partinicu'', Ancient Greek: ''Parthenikòn'', Παρθενικόν) is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Palermo, Sicily, southern Italy. It is from Palermo and from Trapani. Main sights *Church of ''San ...

, Borgetto and Camporeale. He was a member of the first Sicilian Mafia Commission that was established in 1958. Manzella loved to show off as a benefactor. As he strolled down the narrow streets of Cinisi, wearing his wide-brimmed American-style hat, he would hand out pocketfuls of sweets to orphans and street rascals. He devoted a proportion of his illicit profits to building an orphanage. His charity was rewarded by his election as president of the Azione Cattolica (Catholic Action) in Cinisi.Lewis, ''The Honoured Society'', pp. 232-33

First Mafia War

Manzella was heavily involved in cigarette smuggling and heroin trafficking. He was a protagonist in the

First Mafia War The Ciaculli massacre on 30 June 1963 was caused by a car bomb that exploded in Ciaculli, an outlying suburb of Palermo, killing seven police and military officers sent to defuse it after an anonymous phone call. The bomb was intended for Salva ...

. The conflict erupted over an underweight shipment of heroin. The shipment was financed by Manzella, the Greco cousins from Ciaculli and the La Barbera brothers from Palermo Centre. Suspicion fell on Calcedonio Di Pisa, who had collected the heroin for Manzella from the Corsican supplier, Pascal Molinelli, and had organised the transport to Manzella’s partners in New York. The case was brought before the Mafia Commission, but disagreement on how to handle it led to a bloody conflict, known as the

, between the Grecos, headed by

Salvatore "Ciaschiteddu" Greco Salvatore "Ciaschiteddu" Greco (, ; 13 January 1923 – 7 March 1978) was a powerful mafioso and boss of the Sicilian Mafia in Ciaculli, an outlying suburb of Palermo famous for its citrus fruit groves, where he was born. His nickname, "Ciaschit ...

, and the La Barberas – in particular when Di Pisa was killed on 26 December 1962. Manzella sided with the Grecos and became the target of the rival faction. Manzella was killed on 26 April 1963, when he was blown to pieces by a car bomb. Pieces of Manzella's body were found stuck to lemon trees hundreds of meters from the crater where the car had been.Dickie, ''Cosa Nostra'', p. 349

Impastato

Manzella was an uncle by marriage of

Giuseppe Impastato Giuseppe "Peppino" Impastato (; January 5, 1948 – May 9, 1978), was an Italian political activist who opposed the Mafia, which ordered his murder in 1978. Childhood Giuseppe "Peppino" Impastato was born in Cinisi, in the then province of ...

, the Anti-mafia activist who was murdered by the Mafia in 1978. Peppino Impastato's Anti-mafia activity might have been triggered by the brutal murder of Manzella when Peppino was 15 years old. Peppino was traumatized by the event, saying: "Is this really Mafia? If this is Mafia I will fight it for the rest of my life…".Condividevo ma non ho avuto lo stesso coraggio...
Interview with Giovanni Impastato, Girodivita, March 2004.

References

* Dickie, John (2004). ''Cosa Nostra. A history of the Sicilian Mafia'', London: Coronet, * Gambetta, Diego (1993). ''The Sicilian Mafia: The Business of Private Protection'', New York: Harvard University Press, * Lewis, Norman (1964/2003).
Honoured Society: The Sicilian Mafia Observed
', London: Eland, * Shawcross, Tim & Martin Young (1987). ''Men Of Honour: The Confessions Of Tommaso Buscetta'', London: Collins {{DEFAULTSORT:Manzella, Cesare 1897 births 1963 deaths Sicilian mafiosi Sicilian Mafia Commission Murdered Mafiosi People murdered in Sicily Deaths by car bomb in Italy