Francesco Ciccio (1830-1922) was a Sicilian mafia clan boss. He was responsible for the murder of Vito Corleone's family in 1901, and Corleone would later return to Sicily and murder Don Ciccio in 1922. Lionele Tommasino, a close ally of Corleone, took over as the boss of Corleone upon Ciccio's murder.
Biography[]
Francesco Ciccio was born in Corleone, Sicily, Two Sicilies in 1830, and he came to rule over Corleone as the local mafia don. In 1901, he murdered Antonio Andolini for refusing to give tribute, and he killed his son Paolo at Antonio's funeral procession after Paolo swore revenge. He attempted to kill the other son, Vito, but succeeded only in killing the boy's mother. Vito managed to escape to the United States with the help of friends, and he became a respected American Mafia boss in New York City during the 1920s. In 1922, Corleone returned to Sicily and murdered Ciccio's enforcers Strollo and Mosca, and Corleone and Lionele Tommasino then arranged a meeting with Don Ciccio. The meeting's outward purpose was to get Ciccio's blessing for Tommasino's involvement with Corleone's Genco Pura Olive Oil Company. Ciccio asked Corleone the name of his father, and he whispered in his ear, "My father's name was Antonio Andolini–and this is for you!" He then stabbed Ciccio from the chest to the throat in ritual style, avenging the murder of his family. Tommasino was shot in the legs as he tried to escape, but he came to succeed Ciccio as ruler of Corleone.