Interesting stuff about the relations between Trapani and Palermo
What is now certain is that Messina Denaro often came to Palermo. Investigations revealed that in 2012 the godfather went shopping in a well-known delicatessen on Via Daita, a stone's throw from the Politeama Theater. In November 2014, he bought a car (a Fiat 500) at the “Nuova Co.ri.” on Via Tasca Lanza, under the name of the architect Massimo Gentile . In 2020, the boss went to Carini for another 500. And in 2022, this time under the name Bonafede, he also bought an Alfa Romeo Giulietta in Palermo at a dealership on Corso Calatafimi. And then he went to the ophthalmologist on Via Pietro Scaglione, once under the name Bonafede and another time, in 2016, under the name Giuseppe Giglio . The owner said he never knew the patient's true identity. In the capital he also got tattoos in via Rosolino Pilo, right in the center of Palermo.
To reconstruct the boss's protections, old papers are also reread. The historical axis remains the one with Brancaccio even though the Graviano brothers have been in prison since 1994. The axis with Palermo was maintained with the Lo Piccolos in the early 2000s, when the notes traveled between Francesco Luppino , from Campobello, and Mimmo Serio (a man of the San Lorenzo bosses), but also later. Between 2008 and 2009 there were some important events where "Diabolik" (one of the nicknames of the mafia boss) had expressly given his opinion on the attempt to revive the provincial commission of Cosa Nostra and the hierarchy in the San Lorenzo district. Reading the documents of the “Perseo” operation it is clear that the Palermo mafia bosses had sought out the boss of Castelvetrano to gain support for the reorganization of the provincial commission. The promoter of this ambitious project was Benedetto Capizzi , a representative of the Villagrazia-Santa Maria del Gesù district, which he aspired to lead. To achieve his goal he had asked for help from the bosses Giuseppe Scaduto and Benedetto Spera, respectively the district head of Bagheria and Belmonte Mezzagno. In particular, these two had the task of convincing the dissidents, represented in particular by Gaetano Lo Presti (Porta Nuova district head), who were absolutely against the reorganization.
Double game At first it seemed that Matteo Messina Denaro was in agreement with the reconstruction of the provincial commission. It was the Bagheria boss Scaduto who was in contact. "So for the matter of Matteo Denaro - we read in the wiretaps - ... I am in contact with him and things... if you need a contact... a contact with Matteo". Salvatore and Giovanni Adelfio , believed to be close to Capizzi, had also made it clear that the desire to reform the provincial commission started right there, from the super fugitive. The intermediary of the Castelvetrano boss with the Palermo affairs was Franco Luppino who would have guaranteed maximum support for the success of the thing.
But when it was time to give the final say, it was Messina Denaro himself who intervened, with lots of notes. The protagonist was always the boss Scaduto who informed his interlocutors about a meeting that had taken place the day before with the group of dissidents (in which the then fugitive Giovanni Nicchi had also participated ). Scaduto actually reported that the faction linked to Lo Presti Gaetano had pulled out a note from Matteo Messina Denaro and had the Bagheria man read it. “While I was there - Scaduto said in the wiretap - (…) I also get notes, meetings they had with Trapani (… ) notes that arrived from Trapani... I saw the notes too... I read them... I recognized the handwriting of the notes that arrive to me... the same handwriting... that tells us: “we don't know anyone, we are stuck as we have been” it says “we are in contact with everyone,… we are available to anyone in need... for other things we don't recognize anyone”…”. This last intervention makes it clear that the boss of Castelvetrano was anything but in agreement with the refoundation of the provincial commission.
The connection with the Biondinos Another point of contact is with the Biondino family. A relationship that was solid even before Girolamo Biondino (brother of Salvatore, Totò Riina 's well-known driver ), was released from prison. Also between 2008 and 2009 there were the two cousins, with the same name, Giuseppe Biondino . Strong in their name, they were inserting themselves into the business of the San Lorenzo district, in particular in the collection of protection money, even in those premises that had already been fixed up. Mariano Troia, at the time the recognized regent of San Lorenzo, warned: "That this whole mess is... all these things... you guys are kindly requested to stay inside". The situation was edgy. Salvatore's son even implied that Messina Denaro himself had given the ok ("you see, if there's anyone who should stay inside, it's you... he told me that the territory here is mine"). Through Franco Luppino, an initial response arrived from the Trapani mafia boss himself: “Sandro, but neither now nor ever... I can tell you right away, go easy from now on. First, because it has never been discussed... but don't touch them because they are the children of friends, of picciotti that I care about”. Despite this, in the end, a new balance was found on San Lorenzo with official sponsorship for one of the two Biondinos, Girolamo's son, with the other one who had been arrested in the meantime. Manuel Pasta, arrested in 2009 and then becoming a collaborator of justice, tells the magistrates the facts. After the operation that leads to the Lo Piccolos being sent to prison, Pasta says, “ Giuseppe Biondino, son of Girolamo, manages to be... to take back control of San Lorenzo. Initially he finds an opponent in the architect Giuseppe Liga , who was our district boss, but, since Giuseppe Biondino, son of Girolamo, was sponsored by Messina Denaro and Gianni Nicchi , he manages to win, so to speak, the war of succession with Troia Mario and therefore he is allowed to take control of San Lorenzo. So from January 2008 the Biondinos regain control of San Lorenzo”.
