Luca Brasi (1894-December 1945) was a trusted enforcer of the Corleone crime family under Don Vito Corleone. He was infamous as a savage killer, and he had a slowed brain due to his over-consumption of pills. In 1945, he was murdered by the Tattaglia crime family during an attempt to spy on Virgil Sollozzo.
Biography[]
Luca Brasi was born in Rhode Island in 1894 to a family of Sicilian immigrants, and he killed his abusive father with a two-by-four as a child. He also pushed a neighbor off his roof for impregnating his mother, and he rose to become a feared street enforcer during the 1930s. Brasi was involved with a band of stick-up merchants in New York City, and he started a relationship with an Irish immigrant named Kelly O'Rourke. He occasionally abused her, leading to her having a one-night stand with Tom Hagen; Brasi nearly killed Hagen for this. Kelly refused to have an abortion of her pregnancy with Tom, and Brasi brutally beat her. She died in childbirth, and Brasi had the midwife throw the baby into a furnace, as he did not wish for any of his bloodline to live. Brasi allowed himself to be arrested after taking an overdose of pills that left him with permanent brain damage, slowing his speech and thought patterns. He failed to kill himself in prison, but he was rescued by Don Vito Corleone, who sought Brasi's undying loyalty as an enforcer.
Corleone enforcer[]
Brasi at the wedding
Brasi became a feared Corleone enforcer, killing two Chicago Outfit hitmen who were sent to murder Don Corleone. Brasi committed his murders alone, and he was able to dispose of any witnesses to the crime, making him an effective enforcer. He killed six hitmen in two weeks after they injured Corleone in an assassination attempt, and Corleone had to tell him to stop his killing spree after Corleone recovered from his wounds. He later sent Brasi to force bandleader Les Halley to release Johnny Fontane from his contract, and Brasi succeeded after telling Halley that either his brains or his signature would be on the contract. Brasi was often kept away from Corleone's presence to avoid Corleone from being associated with the brutal Brasi, but he was respected enough to be invited to Connie Corleone's wedding in August 1945. Honored by this, Brasi gave the largest sum of money to Connie.
Recruiting Trapani[]
Trapani and Brasi in 1945
As he left the wedding, Brasi was contacted by Don Corleone, who asked him to perform a small favor for him. Serafina Trapani, the widow of the late Corleone soldier Johnny Trapani, had asked for Don Corleone to rescue their son Aldo from the rough crowd with which he had become involved, and Brasi was sent to rescue Aldo. He confronted the gang in an alleyway, where he bludgeoned gang leader Mike Brody to death with a tire iron and helped Aldo in fighting back against Stefano Gambaro and Alberto Castanza. Brasi took Trapani under his wing, and he had Trapani take over Emilio's Butcher Shop from the Tattaglia crime family and taught him how to shoot. Not long after, Trapani began extorting businesses to make money for the Corleones, and Brasi created a highly effective member of the family.
Secret assignment[]
Brasi in 1945
In the last months of 1945, Tattaglia associate Virgil Sollozzo approached Don Corleone about joining him in the heroin business, but Corleone refused the offer. Worried about Sollozzo's connections to the other Five Families, Corleone sent Brasi to go to the Tattaglias, make them think that he was not happy with the Corleones, and find out what he could about Sollozzo. He hung around Bruno Tattaglia's nightclub, the Luna Bar, and he eventually went to bed with one of the bargirls and complained about the Corleones. This got to Tattaglia, who arranged a three-person meeting including Brasi, himself, and Sollozzo.
Death[]
Brasi's death
One night, the three men met alone at the Luna Bar, and they conversed in Italian. Brasi voiced his loyalty to Don Corleone, but he also expressed interest in a deal with Sollozzo after he promised him friendship, a job, and $50,000. However, as Brasi accepted Tattaglia's lighter for his cigarette, Sollozzo rammed a knife into his hand, pinning him to the bar as assassin Guido Lucci strangled him with a garrotte. Brasi's death removed the fear that he would come after the assassins should Don Corleone be murdered, and Sollozzo and the Tattaglias would go on to make an attempt on the Don's life.