Posted on 12/30/2013 3:10:27 PM PST by rickmichaels
MONTREAL — For the third time in just over four years, the main Italian Catholic church in Montreal hosted a funeral for Canada's reputed first family of Mafia power.
A cortege of 11 limousines followed a hearse carrying the body of Vito Rizzuto, the multilingual don who ran an international crime syndicate that frustrated Canadian law enforcement for decades.
The 67-year-old Sicilian-born Montrealer died of complications from lung cancer a week earlier.
About 100 people attended Monday's funeral, mainly close relatives of the don. None of them spoke to reporters.
It was a far cry from the big crowds that attended the family's funeral home for a viewing on Sunday, which featured Vito's childhood friend and potential successor, Rocco Sollecito, as well as a stunning array of floral arrangements.
The cornucopia of flowers was also on display at the funeral. From the back of one limousine hung a set of flowers that formed the word "Nonno," which means "grandpa" in Italian.
Another bouquet sported a ribbon that read "Farewell, my Friend."
Rizzuto's wife Giovanna Cammalleri, his mother Libertina Manno, and his surviving children Leonardo and Bettina were among two dozen family members who emerged from the line of limousines in front of the red-brick building.
The same church, built by Italian immigrants in 1919, was the scene of funerals for Rizzuto's son Nick Jr. in 2009 and father Nick Sr. in 2010. Assassins gunned down both men while Vito was in a U.S. prison.
One young relative exploded in anger at the journalists on the sidewalk and punched a TV camera that struck a cameraman in the face.
Other mourners were more discreet, hustling in a side door of the ornate church, away from the cameras.
Six elderly and middle-aged men then carried Rizzuto's bronze coffin, adorned with gold, into the building. Private security guards prevented two reporters from entering the service, which lasted 45 minutes.
Nicknamed "Montreal's Teflon don" for his ability to avoid incarceration, Vito Rizzuto was finally nabbed by U.S. law enforcement for his role in a 1981 Mob triple murder.
He spent six years in prison south of the border, giving rivals a chance to kill several of his family members and associates in a takeover bid.
The crime boss returned to Canada in October 2012 and the bodies soon started piling up.
At least six rivals were shot dead and one was poisoned with cyanide.
By the time he died, experts believed Rizzuto had regained control of the underworld.
Law enforcement will be busy during the ongoing period of uncertainty that Rizzuto's death created.
Police kept a discreet distance from the church during Monday's funeral, but marked cruisers could be seen on nearby side streets and in alleyways.
QMI Agency crime analyst Francois Dore, a former Quebec provincial police officer, said Rizzuto's funeral was a police operation.
"They take the opportunity to update their photo albums, their information, who is hanging around with who," he said.
Following the funeral, Rizzuto's body was driven to the family mausoleum in east-end Montreal and laid to rest alongside those of his father and son.
Actually his son and his father got wacked a few years ago while he was in the slam in the USA. If you saw the movie “Donnie Brasco” and remember the scene where Sonny Red gets hit, in real life Vito Rizzuto was one of the shooters. Was in Montreal a couple weeks back picking my daughter up from college, and while there some wiseguy got gunned down in the parking lot of a St Hubert restaurant.
Roger that.
Just a made up Catholic ‘perk’ or ‘benefit’ to attract more customers.
I’m replying to myself so I don’t offend anyone.
Yes, Catholics usually baptize their infants. And yes, the sacrament of Baptism “saves”. I know that most other religions don’t consider an infant baptism a true “saving” baptism, but I prefer to leave the validity of that saving to the guy who makes the decisions...God. I would be remiss if I let this thread give the impression that a Catholic baptism is not valid. It is.
WHOA that was him he was inspiration of Donnie Brasco movie yeah I saw that movie
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