Judge Giovanni Falcone: the history of the fighter with "Cosa Nostra"

This man became a vivid prototype of the hero Corrado Cattani in the famous crime series of the 80s ("Sprut"). First of all, Giovanni Falcone and the police commissioner, played well by the well-known actor Mekele Placido, has a kind of dislike and even hatred for the mafia structures. Both lead an unequal struggle with them for many years, both die at the hands of criminals. Today Judge Giovanni Falcone is the national hero of Italy, who put his own life and the lives of his relatives on the altar of the country's liberation from the powerful criminal structure of "Cosa Nostra". How, then, did a man who wanted to become a military sailor in his youth succeeded in resisting criminal groups headed by influential bosses? Let's consider this issue in more detail.

Italy under the power of the Mafia

For a long time, "Cosa Nostra" occupied the dominant position in the hierarchy of the underworld on the Apennine peninsula.

In the mid-1980s, the mafia bosses tried to interfere with the country's politics in every way, and the murder of judges, deputies and high-ranking officials was then almost an ordinary occurrence. Many remember the photo that adorned the once printed edition of Der Spiegel (Germany) - it depicts a plate of spaghetti, above which a black revolver rises. It became clear to everyone: the mentality of "Cosa Nostra" was strongly transformed, but still there were heroes who could decide on an unequal fight with criminal clans.

Thunderstorm of the Italian mafia

Giovanni Falcone is a native of the Sicilian city of Palermo (Italy). He was born on May 18, 1939. His father was in charge of one of the chemical laboratories, and the family did not experience any financial difficulties. After receiving the certificate of maturity, the young man decided to enter the Naval Academy in Livorno, and he succeeded. However, he soon became interested in studying jurisprudence. In 1964 he took a job in the judiciary. The young man represented the magistrate in a number of Italian cities. Then young Giovanni began to study the textbook of criminalistics and intensively study the articles of the Criminal Code.

His work profile gradually shifted from civil law to criminal law.

Position of judge

At the age of 27, Giovanni Falcone became a judge in the provincial town of Trapani. Here, in the west of Sicily, how nowhere were the connections and authority of the Cosa Nostra strong. However, the newly-minted representative of Themis, and did not think to flutter before the mafia clans, most of all he was indignant that the criminal communities are creating outrages and lawlessness, and ordinary people feel themselves in danger, absolutely not believing that law enforcement agencies can protect them. Giovanni Falconet, whose biography is familiar to many Italian detectives today, firmly believed that victory in the fight against the "Cosa Nostra" is possible, and that the main weapon against the mafia is the well-coordinated work of law enforcement agencies. And of course, the criminal structures very quickly began to see the enemy in the young judge, they were particularly indignant after the trial in Palermo took place: Falcone sentenced severe sentences to 400 members of the Mafia.

Naturally, Giovanni was aware of the vulnerability of his position, which was unenviable, according to many experts. Therefore, serious security measures were taken: the house where the judge lived was protected from all sides, he himself worked in a bunker, and moved around the city only with security.

"Panther with the memory of an elephant"

Soon he became the legend of Sicily. However, the judge himself repeatedly stated that one should not exaggerate his merits, because he is an ordinary person who stands guard over state interests. The leaders of the underworld called him a panther with an elephant's memory, while not doubting that Giovanni Falcone is powerless against the mafia.

Confrontation intensifies

Soon the judge, who began his career in Trapani, begins to investigate the cases of bankruptcy. His colleague Rokko Chinnicci noticed with what perseverance and zeal Giovanni is trying to get to the bottom of the truth.

In the hands of Falcone falls the case of bankruptcy of the company, which the banker Michele Sindona sold to one of the ex-members of the Christian Democratic Party. All this was just the tip of the iceberg.

Giovanni began checking the work of construction firms and the activities of officials who were suspected of bribery for issuing licenses. Naturally, after this, once again, the threats came down, and he himself was tried to get to the negotiations. But the judge was adamant in his intentions and continued his work.

As a result, he managed to find a thread that led to the influential mafia leaders. All of them in the amount of 80 people were arrested, and the warrant for such a measure of restraint was signed by Judge Gaetano Costa. Of course, such strikes "Goat Nostra" does not forgive, and soon Kostu is found killed.

Apogee of struggle

However, cruel punishment of the judge did not frighten Giovanni. In the early 80's, he joined the association of prosecutors and judges, which was engaged in the promotion of cases involving mafia structures. To such a measure, Falcone went after the head of the Palermo police, Boris Giuliano, was deprived of life, who collected a major dirt on the bosses of the criminal world of Italy.

In 1982, the prefect in Palermo was appointed Carlo Alberto Dalla Chiesa, who became famous for exposing the activities of the "Red Brigades". However, after three months with a small one he was killed in a crowded street, having been shot from a machine gun.

After a short while, the criminals cruelly deal with Judge Rocco Cinnici, putting an explosive device in his car, and Falcone becomes the head of the unit for combating the "Cosa Nostra". The federal center was already tired of the atrocities of criminal communities and instructed Giovanni to reveal high-profile cases in which the hand of the mafia could be traced. Special attention of officials from Rome was focused on the murder of Dalla Chiesa. And Falcone coped with this task. Representatives of the top of the mafia structures again came to prison.

Ill-wishers among colleagues

Noteworthy is the fact that the enemies of Giovanni Falcone were not only the leaders of the criminal world of Italy. His activities to capture and expose the mafia leaders tried to stop his colleagues from working. In the late 80's several attendants of Themis wrote statements about their departure in protest against the fighter against the Mafia. But Falcone knew how easy it was sometimes to bribe a judge, so he did not lose himself in vain illusions.

Murder

But, in the end, the hands of the mafia nevertheless reached their main enemy. In May 1992 Giovanni Falcone was killed. The death of the judge caused a wide public response. Who is the perpetrator of the murder and under what circumstances did it happen? The crime was committed by a certain Giovanni Bruska, who was in one of the criminal gangs of Italy. It was he who pressed the remote control button. On his account more than a hundred murders, so he had more than enough experience in criminal matters.

At six in the evening on May 23, 1992, three cars drove from the airport towards Palermo. In the second armored car of the cart was sitting ex-judge Falcone together with his wife. The explosion thundered suddenly, shortly before the cars had to turn towards the town of Capachi. As it later turned out, the car was laid 600-kilogram explosives. The first car, in which the bodyguards were, was thrown up after the explosion, and it landed several tens of meters from the road. The second car after the explosion tore off the motor. Surviving in two cars was not. The third machine suffered, but not critical.

The perpetrators suffered a well-deserved punishment

The investigation thoroughly investigated this resonant case. A huge number of members of the Cosa Nostra, who subsequently cooperated actively with the law enforcement bodies, were brought to criminal responsibility, many of them had already served their terms. Only the perpetrator of the crime - Giovanni Bruska - is in prison for committing a blatant murder.

Falcone remembers the whole of Italy. He is called the main fighter against the mafia, he is a symbol of saving the country from a monstrous hydra called "Cosa Nostra". Traditionally in Italy, there are commemorative ceremonies in honor of a man who at times alone confronted a powerful criminal organization.

Regalia

Today, the Italians can not underestimate the feat accomplished by Giovanni Falcone. Awards and recognition, which this man was awarded, is a further confirmation of this. After the death, the judge was awarded a gold medal "For Civil Valor".

In the fall of 2006, the printed edition of Time recognized Falcone as a real hero. In honor of the judge in Italy named streets, schools, squares and even one of the administrative districts of the capital. In Palermo there is an airport that is named after the fighter against the mafia.

Movie about the hero

A year after the death of the judge, director Giuseppe Ferrara made a film about Giovanni Falconet, based on real events. And the truthfulness of the plot is confirmed by testimony and written documents. Paradoxically, the main role of Giovanni Falcone ( D. Ferrer's film ) went to actor Mekele Placido, who already played a fighter against mafia structures in the famous Crimean saga "Sprut".

The picture of the confrontation of the judge from Palermo and the powerful "Cosa Nostra" begins with the murder of three ministers of the Themis. In the center of the plot is the unfolding confrontation between the uncompromising judge and the leaders of criminal communities, whose representatives have already taken the seats of high-ranking officials. In the finale of the film "Giovanni Falcone" (1993), the protagonist and his wife are killed, but the names of the customers of the crime remain undisclosed. The director's work has been done on a qualitative level, which confirms the selection of actors and the realism of the scenes.