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[ominous music playing]
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[narrator] Fear.
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[woman screaming]
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[narrator] The paralyzing feeling
of imminent danger.
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A dreaded nightmare about to come true.
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But when you're a mob boss
looking to consolidate your power,
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you look at human emotions
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differently.
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[man] Mob bosses rule by fear.
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It's the best weapon.
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[screaming]
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[narrator] And there's one tested method
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for putting this spine-tingling tool
to work.
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To make people understand fear,
you have to perform violence.
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[screams]
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[man 2] If you are able to say,
"I can kill you,
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I can kill your wife,
I can kill your daughter,
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don't fuck with me"...
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you become a very powerful person.
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[narrator] Nobody demonstrated this lesson
as effectively as Sicily's boss of bosses,
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Salvatore "Toto" Riina.
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Toto Riina was associated
with mass murder, with absolute power.
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Riina used violence
to incite terror on a national level.
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[narrator] Riina's unflinching methods
powered his rise to dominance
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over the legendary Sicilian Mafia
for nearly two decades
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while earning him the title "La Belva,"
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The Beast.
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So, if you're ready to see
what terror can do for you,
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buckle up.
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[gunshot]
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[theme music playing]
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During Toto Riina's tyrannical reign
over the Sicilian Mafia,
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he earned billions
through diverse pursuits,
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including global drug trafficking,
weapons smuggling, and real estate.
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But he was mainly known
for this astonishing figure.
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He is thought to have authorized
between 800 and 1,000 killings.
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[narrator] How did Riina become
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such a master of ruthless
and efficient execution?
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Practice.
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Let me show you what I mean.
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Toto Riina was born in 1930 in Corleone
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into a peasant family.
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Corleone was a typical rural town
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with a strong Mafia presence.
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Riina's father and brothers were thought
to be involved in the local Mafia,
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and Riina begins to make his way up
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with the aim of becoming
the boss of the Corleonesi.
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[narrator] After being indicted
on a murder charge in 1969,
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Riina went underground,
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but didn't miss a beat.
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[man 2] Secrecy was one of his weapons,
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and it built up
his mystique within the Mafia.
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This kind of ghost figure
that could be anywhere
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and might be listening to you
as you spoke.
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Hello?
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[narrator] Riina took over control
of the Corleonesi faction in 1974,
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but he had grander ambitions.
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He was aiming to become
the head of everything.
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To be the boss of bosses
of the Sicilian Mafia.
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He didn't need a luxurious lifestyle.
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He didn't care about that stuff,
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but what he did care about was power.
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One of the things
that Riina is supposed to have said is,
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" Comandare é meglio che fottere ,"
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which means, if I can use plain English,
"Being boss is better than fucking."
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[narrator] Couldn't have
said it better myself.
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But to follow in the Beast's path
to mob supremacy,
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you must overcome
countless obstacles along the way,
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starting with
one of the greatest irritants
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to power of them all.
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Morning paper.
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[narrator] Nothing says you've made it
like getting into the papers.
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But smart mob bosses know better.
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The Mafia is extremely invested
in its public image.
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What journalism does is to bring out
these facts about violence,
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about their business deals.
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They name names,
they expose what the Mafia is doing.
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[narrator] That's why as a mob boss,
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you'll sometimes have to kill
more than the story.
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Ready for some headlines?
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Minnesota mob boss Isadore Blumenfeld,
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better known as Kid Cann, was suspected
of having journalists Walter Liggett
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gunned down in front of his wife
and daughter after Liggett refused
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to stop reporting
on Cann's corrupt influence
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over the state's government.
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After fleeing to Benito Mussolini's Italy
to avoid a murder charge,
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New York mob boss Vito Genovese
reportedly ordered the killing
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of anti-fascist newspaper editor
Carlo Tresca
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to keep Il Duce on his side.
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While it's widely believed
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that Pablo Escobar killed the editor
and publisher of a Colombian newspaper
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known for exposing drug traffickers.
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And for good measure,
also had its offices bombed.
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As Riina continued his quest
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to consolidate power
within the Sicilian Mafia,
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he also had to deal
with challenges from the fourth estate,
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like this guy.
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Mario Francese was a journalist
for the Giornale di Sicilia ,
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which is a massive Sicilian newspaper,
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and he was about
to break a story on Riina.
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[narrator] The subject,
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Riina's corrupt role
in a lucrative public works project.
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[Robin] Mario Francese investigated
all of the moneys, public funds
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that were going to go
into the building of this dam,
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$200 million at the time.
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[narrator] That's a lot of damn money.
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To protect his interests,
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Riina needed to act fast.
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Francese had been investigating
Riina's illicit activities for years,
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and now, the big picture
is finally coming into focus.
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[Robin] He was putting the names
of the mafiosi,
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but also the names of businesspeople
who were working with the Mafia.
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[narrator] Riina can't have
the reporter connecting the dots.
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So he gives an order
to his brother-in-law, Leoluca Bagarella.
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Francese leaves work late that night.
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And as he approaches
his home on Viale Campania...
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[gunshot]
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With his nosy adversary
now out of the way,
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Toto Riina finds the next morning's paper
much more to his liking.
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The violence was sending a direct message
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to other journalists and people
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who were also interested
in exposing the Mafia,
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"Stay away, or you'll meet the same fate."
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[narrator] Making an example
of pesky reporters
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checks one problem off your list.
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But when your goal is total domination...
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Be right back.
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...you're going to need to deal with rivals
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who aren't going
to just fight with their pens.
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How do you bring them to heel?
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[Alexander] To be at the top
of the pyramid,
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you've got to be the toughest
and meanest dog in the kennel,
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and that means using your teeth.
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[man] Universal motivation
of the mob is violence.
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You could be
the best businessman in the world.
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Without having violence,
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you're not lasting
in the street as a businessman.
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That doesn't work.
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[narrator] By the early '80s,
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Riina was dead set on increasing
his power within the Sicilian Mafia.
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But he faced a stubborn obstacle.
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Something called the Commission.
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[Dana] The Mafia Commission,
also called the Cupola,
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is a governing body of sorts of the Mafia.
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It was made up of the head boss
of the different families.
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It was a way of collaborating
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to make sure
that business stayed on track.
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Riina begins to sit
in the Commission in about 1969
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but begins to have
ambitions of domination.
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[narrator] Riina's modest goal,
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force the Commission to name him
Capo dei Capi, the Boss of Bosses.
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But there was one small problem.
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That position didn't exist.
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He believed
that he should have absolute power.
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He did not want to share.
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[narrator] So Riina decided to turn
the job he had into the job he wanted.
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The Beast's plan, destroy
his top rivals' organizations from within.
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It starts by making secret side deals
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with members of other Mafia families
across Sicily.
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In return,
they do Riina's dirty work for him...
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taking out their bosses
and filling the ranks with mafiosi
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loyal to Riina.
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Before long, only a few rivals
remain from the old guard.
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Dealing with them will require
a more customized approach.
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[Dana] Stefano Bontate was the head
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of one of the most powerful
Palermo crime families.
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Bontate's closest ally was a man
named Salvatore Inzerillo.
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Both Inzerillo and Bontate opposed Riina,
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and so then for Riina,
something needs to be done.
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[narrator] One night,
Stefano Bontate is celebrating
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his 42nd birthday at his home in Palermo.
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Tipped off to the celebration,
Riina's men stake out positions nearby.
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At 8:30 p.m, Bontate leaves the party
to spend the night at his country villa...
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and runs into a most unwelcome surprise.
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Two and a half weeks later,
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Salvatore Inzerillo's wrapping up
a visit to his mistress
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with his bulletproof Alfa Romeo
parked outside.
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Riina's assassins have done
their homework on this target too.
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So when Inzerillo departs
from his afternoon tryst,
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Riina gets the ultimate satisfaction.
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But the Beast isn't done yet.
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When at his father's funeral,
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Inzerillo's young son, Giuseppe,
vows to exact revenge
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on his father's killer,
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Riina decides to make
an example of him as well.
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[Alexander] They kill
Inzerillo's 16-year-old son.
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[Robin] And before they killed him,
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Riina had his arm chopped off.
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This says to anyone
who might go against Riina
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how they might end up.
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[narrator] Riina's plan
worked to perfection.
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Riina was quite successful
at terrorizing a group of hardened killers
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into seeing things his way,
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and the end result was compliance.
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And so many members of the Commission
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chose to cede Riina his power
rather than meet the same ends.
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[narrator] You've successfully used
the blood of your rivals
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to fuel your climb
to the top of mob boss mountain.
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As you continue your terrifying reign,
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expect another set of enemies
inside the government
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to put you in their sights.
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How do you show them
who's really in charge?
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As boss of bosses,
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you need to demonstrate to everyone
that you have the ultimate power.
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No!
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It's very important for a mob boss
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to be the guy
holding the strings over lawmakers
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because it allows them
to expand their control and their rule.
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[narrator] And when heroic officials
forget who's running things,
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remind them.
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Like Toto Riina did.
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In the early '80s,
there was a culture of fear
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because people saw bodies
on the streets on almost a daily basis.
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People were terrified to go out.
They were terrified to leave their houses.
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[newscaster] Sicily is
where the Mafia began,
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but this is new and disturbing.
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Around 100 Mafia executions
so far this year.
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The citizens were crying out
to public officials to do something.
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[women crying]
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The national government decides
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to send their most prestigious
and powerful police official,
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General Alberto Dalla Chiesa,
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to Palermo with special powers
to combat the Mafia.
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[narrator] But when it came
to preserving his dominance,
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Riina had special powers of his own.
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In May 1982,
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Dalla Chiesa arrives in Palermo
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along with his new young wife, Emanuela.
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A few months into their stay,
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the couple leaves police headquarters
for an evening out
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accompanied by a police escort.
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But as they cross a major street,
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they're surrounded.
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Dalla Chiesa valiantly tries
to shield his wife.
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But it's no use.
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They're shot 30 times.
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When you take,
for example, spectacular overkill,
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you know, machine gun fire
in the middle of the street,
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that serves as a message
to the community and sometimes the nation.
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[narrator] Dalla Chiesa's funeral
draws a crowd,
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and the mourners are angry.
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They pelt officials with coins,
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frustrated by the government's inability
to keep the Mafia under control.
244
00:15:13,372 --> 00:15:16,165
[Alexander] At the time
of Dalla Chiesa's funeral,
245
00:15:16,249 --> 00:15:18,543
someone carried a sign that says,
246
00:15:18,627 --> 00:15:21,713
"Here dies the hope
of every honest Sicilian."
247
00:15:22,422 --> 00:15:25,050
[narrator] In other words,
mission accomplished.
248
00:15:25,801 --> 00:15:28,178
[Robin] Killing Dalla Chiesa showed,
249
00:15:29,012 --> 00:15:30,764
"We can take out anyone,
250
00:15:31,640 --> 00:15:32,849
and we will kill you
251
00:15:33,850 --> 00:15:36,269
if you get into our business."
252
00:15:37,854 --> 00:15:40,065
[narrator] Show me a better case
for total submission.
253
00:15:41,692 --> 00:15:43,234
But as the playbook will show,
254
00:15:43,318 --> 00:15:45,778
you'll only maintain
your absolute authority
255
00:15:45,862 --> 00:15:48,490
as long as you keep up
your high standards.
256
00:15:49,074 --> 00:15:50,074
One slip...
257
00:15:50,158 --> 00:15:51,701
[tires screeching]
258
00:15:51,785 --> 00:15:53,161
could lead to disaster.
259
00:15:58,625 --> 00:15:59,584
[growling]
260
00:15:59,668 --> 00:16:00,501
[screams]
261
00:16:00,585 --> 00:16:04,423
[narrator] When your goal is to terrorize
an entire society into submission,
262
00:16:05,382 --> 00:16:07,384
there is no room for half measures.
263
00:16:09,386 --> 00:16:12,388
If you're gonna harm your enemies,
make sure you do it complete,
264
00:16:12,472 --> 00:16:13,807
so they can never come after you.
265
00:16:14,891 --> 00:16:17,393
[Bobby] If you had trouble
with somebody at one point,
266
00:16:17,477 --> 00:16:19,228
that trouble's always gonna be there.
267
00:16:19,312 --> 00:16:21,273
This is why they have to be taken home.
268
00:16:22,357 --> 00:16:24,776
[narrator] That's why
these wise men of honor
269
00:16:24,860 --> 00:16:27,654
always made sure to tie up loose ends.
270
00:16:29,197 --> 00:16:32,450
After Whitey Bulger
allegedly marked rival gang leader
271
00:16:32,534 --> 00:16:34,077
Al Notarangeli for death,
272
00:16:34,578 --> 00:16:37,163
the hunt led to the murders
of Notarangeli's brother
273
00:16:37,247 --> 00:16:38,623
and an unlucky bartender
274
00:16:38,707 --> 00:16:42,502
before Whitey's top assassin
finally eliminated his target.
275
00:16:43,712 --> 00:16:45,964
Australian mobster Robert Trimbole
276
00:16:46,048 --> 00:16:49,550
took two attempts to get rid
of anti-drug campaigner Donald Mackay.
277
00:16:49,634 --> 00:16:52,387
First, trying to lure him
with a fake business deal
278
00:16:52,471 --> 00:16:55,515
before ultimately having him
shot to death in a parking lot.
279
00:16:56,892 --> 00:16:59,852
While Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman
spent a decade
280
00:16:59,936 --> 00:17:03,523
trying to kill rival cartel leader,
Ramón Arellano Félix,
281
00:17:03,607 --> 00:17:06,860
including a failed assault
on a Puerto Vallarta nightclub.
282
00:17:07,611 --> 00:17:09,904
When Arellano was finally taken down,
283
00:17:09,988 --> 00:17:14,367
El Chapo reportedly called it the most
pleasurable experience of his life.
284
00:17:15,118 --> 00:17:18,413
With hundreds of suspected murders
already on his résumé,
285
00:17:18,497 --> 00:17:21,708
Riina had a solid record
of handling his affairs.
286
00:17:22,793 --> 00:17:24,502
But there was one Mafia rival
287
00:17:24,586 --> 00:17:27,547
who remained frustratingly
beyond his reach.
288
00:17:28,882 --> 00:17:31,634
Tommaso Buscetta was known
as the "Boss of Two Worlds"
289
00:17:31,718 --> 00:17:35,096
because he had business interests
on both sides of the Atlantic.
290
00:17:35,180 --> 00:17:39,267
He was involved in the drug trade
and ended up moving to Brazil.
291
00:17:40,352 --> 00:17:43,563
[narrator] Buscetta helped form
the Sicilian Mafia Commission
292
00:17:43,647 --> 00:17:46,733
and was an ally
of Riina's top rivals-turned-victims,
293
00:17:47,359 --> 00:17:48,985
Palermo bosses Bontate
294
00:17:50,153 --> 00:17:51,154
and Inzerillo.
295
00:17:52,280 --> 00:17:56,034
Riina saw him as a threat,
and he wanted him back,
296
00:17:56,118 --> 00:17:57,577
and he wanted to take him out.
297
00:17:58,912 --> 00:18:01,789
[narrator] Riina decides
to lure Buscetta into the open
298
00:18:01,873 --> 00:18:04,584
by using extreme methods of persuasion.
299
00:18:05,418 --> 00:18:07,879
Much to the misfortune
of Buscetta's eldest sons
300
00:18:09,005 --> 00:18:11,632
who, after taking
their new car out for a spin,
301
00:18:11,716 --> 00:18:14,136
are kidnapped and never heard from again.
302
00:18:15,512 --> 00:18:18,348
It's believed they fell victim
to lupara bianca,
303
00:18:18,974 --> 00:18:20,183
the white shotgun.
304
00:18:22,853 --> 00:18:26,773
[Dana] Lupara bianca is a killing
where the body disappears,
305
00:18:26,857 --> 00:18:30,277
and this is another way
that the Mafia exercises fear over people.
306
00:18:30,777 --> 00:18:32,987
So not only is
the evidence impossible to find,
307
00:18:33,071 --> 00:18:36,992
but it doubly punishes families
who can't grieve their dead.
308
00:18:38,660 --> 00:18:40,870
[narrator] Riina hopes
that Buscetta's grief
309
00:18:40,954 --> 00:18:44,541
and desire for revenge
will draw him out of hiding.
310
00:18:45,625 --> 00:18:46,543
It does not.
311
00:18:48,503 --> 00:18:50,171
So the day after Christmas,
312
00:18:50,255 --> 00:18:53,967
Riina sends his butchers to a pizzeria
near Palermo's Statue of Liberty...
313
00:18:56,720 --> 00:19:00,264
where they gun down
Buscetta's son-in-law and two nephews.
314
00:19:00,348 --> 00:19:02,058
[guns firing]
315
00:19:02,684 --> 00:19:06,271
Somehow they don't recognize
Buscetta's daughter behind the counter.
316
00:19:08,565 --> 00:19:11,526
Two days later,
the holiday massacre continues.
317
00:19:14,154 --> 00:19:16,364
[glass shatters]
318
00:19:16,448 --> 00:19:20,577
Buscetta's brother and nephew are shot
to death at the family glass business.
319
00:19:21,411 --> 00:19:24,789
[Alexander] Riina killed
around a dozen family members
320
00:19:24,873 --> 00:19:26,249
of Tommaso Buscetta.
321
00:19:27,083 --> 00:19:30,002
Most of these people
had absolutely nothing to do
322
00:19:30,086 --> 00:19:31,254
with Mafia business.
323
00:19:32,505 --> 00:19:35,258
[narrator] But despite
Riina's extraordinary efforts,
324
00:19:35,342 --> 00:19:37,886
Tommaso Buscetta refuses to take the bait.
325
00:19:38,678 --> 00:19:40,513
[Dana] Buscetta wasn't convinced.
326
00:19:40,597 --> 00:19:41,640
He didn't come back.
327
00:19:42,682 --> 00:19:46,144
[narrator] Finally, Buscetta's exile
comes to an involuntary end.
328
00:19:49,606 --> 00:19:51,816
[Alexander] Brazilian authorities
arrest him.
329
00:19:52,317 --> 00:19:55,528
They extradite him back to Italy in 1984.
330
00:19:56,071 --> 00:20:00,449
So, Buscetta finds himself
in Italian police custody.
331
00:20:00,533 --> 00:20:03,119
He then is met by Giovanni Falcone.
332
00:20:05,205 --> 00:20:08,541
Giovanni Falcone was
a powerful anti-Mafia prosecutor.
333
00:20:09,209 --> 00:20:13,255
[narrator] Buscetta decides to make
the most of his current circumstances
334
00:20:13,922 --> 00:20:16,716
by exacting revenge against the Beast.
335
00:20:17,384 --> 00:20:21,971
Buscetta collaborates
with Giovanni Falcone,
336
00:20:22,055 --> 00:20:26,726
and he gives
very detailed information about the Mafia.
337
00:20:27,936 --> 00:20:30,063
To bring down Riina,
338
00:20:31,106 --> 00:20:37,612
as a vendetta, his testimony enabled
the anti-Mafia prosecutors
339
00:20:37,696 --> 00:20:41,532
to charge the members of the Commission
340
00:20:41,616 --> 00:20:44,786
for approving hundreds of murders.
341
00:20:46,538 --> 00:20:49,040
[narrator] When it came to finishing
the job with Buscetta,
342
00:20:49,124 --> 00:20:53,044
Riina failed with disastrous consequences.
343
00:20:53,962 --> 00:20:57,674
He and the entire Mafia were now
in the authorities' crosshairs.
344
00:20:58,341 --> 00:21:00,384
But even when all seems hopeless,
345
00:21:00,468 --> 00:21:02,387
you can still regain your hold
346
00:21:02,971 --> 00:21:07,809
by getting back on side with the playbook
and showing how far you're willing to go.
347
00:21:12,897 --> 00:21:14,273
[crowd clamoring]
348
00:21:14,357 --> 00:21:17,694
[narrator] There's a word
for when you've got nothing left to lose,
349
00:21:18,778 --> 00:21:19,904
freedom.
350
00:21:19,988 --> 00:21:23,032
So when it seems like your enemies
are getting the upper hand,
351
00:21:23,116 --> 00:21:25,410
it's your chance to take off the gloves.
352
00:21:26,911 --> 00:21:29,539
[woman] Mob bosses
are dangerous when cornered.
353
00:21:30,749 --> 00:21:32,792
You don't know what they're gonna do.
354
00:21:34,544 --> 00:21:36,796
[narrator] And with Buscetta
singing like a canary,
355
00:21:37,297 --> 00:21:39,758
the walls were closing in on Toto Riina.
356
00:21:41,926 --> 00:21:47,723
[Alexander] Falcone begins to draw up
arrest warrants for 366 people,
357
00:21:47,807 --> 00:21:49,100
which is a hell of a lot.
358
00:21:51,102 --> 00:21:53,229
[narrator] Riina was included
in the arrest list
359
00:21:53,313 --> 00:21:55,190
but continued to evade capture.
360
00:21:57,150 --> 00:22:01,154
Many of the top mafiosi
working underneath him weren't so lucky.
361
00:22:02,280 --> 00:22:04,866
Toto Riina felt a massive threat.
362
00:22:05,784 --> 00:22:08,869
Everything that he worked for
was being dismantled
363
00:22:08,953 --> 00:22:10,372
with each of these arrests.
364
00:22:11,456 --> 00:22:13,416
[narrator] What followed
were landmark proceedings
365
00:22:14,209 --> 00:22:16,294
that became known as the Maxi Trials,
366
00:22:16,920 --> 00:22:19,214
with Giovanni Falcone at the helm.
367
00:22:19,798 --> 00:22:22,091
[Alexander] The whole premise
of the Maxi Trial
368
00:22:22,175 --> 00:22:26,178
is that you are putting the organization
of the Mafia itself on trial.
369
00:22:26,262 --> 00:22:30,391
[speaking in Italian]
370
00:22:30,475 --> 00:22:35,397
So the ambition of the Maxi Trial
was actually eliminating the Mafia.
371
00:22:36,981 --> 00:22:39,651
[narrator] And when you're
the Mafia's boss of bosses...
372
00:22:41,569 --> 00:22:42,737
that's personal.
373
00:22:44,948 --> 00:22:46,907
[Dana] Many mafiosi assumed
374
00:22:46,991 --> 00:22:49,827
that because of Riina's
vast political connections,
375
00:22:49,911 --> 00:22:52,163
that they would be not found guilty.
376
00:22:52,247 --> 00:22:58,420
But out of these 475 people on trial,
342 were convicted.
377
00:22:58,920 --> 00:23:00,671
But dozens of them were in absentia
378
00:23:00,755 --> 00:23:03,591
because they were in hiding,
and this includes Toto Riina.
379
00:23:04,843 --> 00:23:06,594
[Robin] By finding them guilty,
380
00:23:07,387 --> 00:23:12,100
Falcone proved that the Sicilian Mafia
was not invincible.
381
00:23:12,684 --> 00:23:16,563
You had what was called
"l'emergenza pentiti ,"
382
00:23:17,480 --> 00:23:21,025
the emergency of mafiosi
becoming state's witnesses.
383
00:23:21,985 --> 00:23:26,739
And so Riina had to try
to somehow show the mafiosi
384
00:23:26,823 --> 00:23:29,867
that if they became collaborators,
they weren't safe either.
385
00:23:29,951 --> 00:23:31,411
He could get to anyone.
386
00:23:32,787 --> 00:23:34,455
INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
387
00:23:34,539 --> 00:23:36,833
[narrator] On May 23rd, 1992,
388
00:23:37,333 --> 00:23:39,043
the hero of the Maxi Trials,
389
00:23:39,127 --> 00:23:42,213
Giovanni Falcone,
returns to Palermo with his wife.
390
00:23:43,673 --> 00:23:45,884
Their arrival doesn't go unnoticed.
391
00:23:47,594 --> 00:23:49,720
Falcone makes a bold choice.
392
00:23:49,804 --> 00:23:52,348
Rather than riding
with his security detail,
393
00:23:52,432 --> 00:23:56,019
he insists on driving his own car
from the airport to his country home,
394
00:23:57,437 --> 00:24:00,940
unaware that Riina and his allies
have been plotting their revenge.
395
00:24:04,736 --> 00:24:07,780
As Falcone's caravan approaches
the town of Capaci,
396
00:24:08,531 --> 00:24:09,866
the trap is sprung.
397
00:24:13,661 --> 00:24:16,455
Falcone and his wife
suffer fatal injuries,
398
00:24:16,539 --> 00:24:21,377
and the explosion is so massive,
it registers on local earthquake sensors.
399
00:24:24,214 --> 00:24:26,216
But Riina isn't finished.
400
00:24:27,050 --> 00:24:30,970
Two months later, Falcone's colleague
in the anti-Mafia task force,
401
00:24:31,054 --> 00:24:33,556
Paolo Borsellino, is also killed
402
00:24:34,265 --> 00:24:37,018
by a car bomb
outside his mother's apartment building.
403
00:24:37,810 --> 00:24:39,771
Riina's message is undeniable.
404
00:24:40,396 --> 00:24:45,484
The message is, "If you mess with us,
we don't care how high we have to go,
405
00:24:45,568 --> 00:24:47,653
we don't care how protected you are,
406
00:24:47,737 --> 00:24:48,863
we will kill you."
407
00:24:54,577 --> 00:24:57,372
[narrator] But in making
his case so vigorously,
408
00:24:58,331 --> 00:25:01,167
Riina triggered
some unintended consequences.
409
00:25:02,544 --> 00:25:07,590
The Italian state is so embarrassed
by the killings of Falcone and Borsellino,
410
00:25:07,674 --> 00:25:13,930
they send 7,000 army troops to Sicily
to take back control of the territory.
411
00:25:15,390 --> 00:25:16,474
[narrator] Six months later,
412
00:25:16,975 --> 00:25:19,977
with the remnants
of Riina's Mafia under siege,
413
00:25:20,061 --> 00:25:23,356
a frightened associate
leads authorities to Riina's hideout.
414
00:25:23,940 --> 00:25:26,985
And the Beast is taken into custody.
415
00:25:28,403 --> 00:25:31,238
[newscaster] The boss of bosses
of the Sicilian underworld,
416
00:25:31,322 --> 00:25:34,117
Salvatore Riina,
was arrested two days ago.
417
00:25:34,951 --> 00:25:38,162
[narrator] So now, after executing
his reign of terror entirely
418
00:25:38,246 --> 00:25:39,289
from underground,
419
00:25:40,582 --> 00:25:43,334
Riina is finally ready for his close-up.
420
00:25:44,002 --> 00:25:46,504
It was kind of like a Wizard of Oz moment.
421
00:25:46,588 --> 00:25:50,300
You know, you pull the curtain,
and it's just a little old man.
422
00:25:51,551 --> 00:25:53,844
[narrator] And what harm
could he possibly have done?
423
00:25:53,928 --> 00:25:59,016
[in Italian] I was only a farmer.
I worked the land as an honest man.
424
00:25:59,100 --> 00:26:01,185
Salvatore Riina has four children.
425
00:26:01,269 --> 00:26:02,645
He loves children.
426
00:26:02,729 --> 00:26:04,314
He loves everything and everyone.
427
00:26:05,315 --> 00:26:07,066
[narrator] Oh, right.
428
00:26:13,865 --> 00:26:15,074
After a dominating reign
429
00:26:15,158 --> 00:26:18,244
over one of organized crime's
most storied institutions,
430
00:26:18,870 --> 00:26:21,539
Toto Riina would die in a prison hospital
431
00:26:22,040 --> 00:26:24,459
one day after his 87th birthday.
432
00:26:25,627 --> 00:26:27,754
He remained a mystery to the end,
433
00:26:28,254 --> 00:26:29,713
never speaking about his crimes
434
00:26:29,797 --> 00:26:32,925
or giving up his connections
in business and politics.
435
00:26:35,178 --> 00:26:39,056
But if wreaking havoc from the shadows
isn't your idea of a good time,
436
00:26:39,140 --> 00:26:41,517
there is another way
to chart a course as mob boss
437
00:26:41,601 --> 00:26:43,561
that will let you take center stage.
438
00:26:44,646 --> 00:26:46,439
It's just not the right one.
439
00:26:48,733 --> 00:26:51,277
Case in point, John Gotti,
440
00:26:51,361 --> 00:26:52,778
the New York Mafia kingpin
441
00:26:52,862 --> 00:26:55,782
who set the playbook ablaze
in his quest to make his own rules
442
00:26:56,866 --> 00:26:58,117
and become a star,
443
00:26:58,618 --> 00:27:01,871
bringing down
his entire organization in the process.
444
00:27:02,830 --> 00:27:05,083
Ready to learn what not to do?
445
00:27:07,960 --> 00:27:09,879
[theme music playing]