Mosca of Montelepre (1923-1980) was a notorious Sicilian assassin. In 1980, he murdered Don Lionele Tommasino, and he was killed after a failed assassination attempt on Michael Corleone.
Biography[]
Mosca of Montelepre was born in Montelepre, Sicily, Italy in 1923, and he became a notorious assassin, known to never fail in his contracts. He was an old associate of American Mafia boss Osvaldo Altobello, who kept him as his "ace in the hole", using him to remove opponents on occasion.
In 1980, Altobello hired Mosca to assassinate Michael Corleone during his visit to Sicily. Mosca, disguised as a priest, planned to infiltrate Don Lionele Tommasino's home and kill Corleone, and he asked Tommasino for a ride. However, Tommasino recognized Mosca, and Mosca blasted him with his lupara shotgun before he could drive away.
Death[]
Mosca's death
Mosca later headed to the Teatro Massimo in Palermo to assassinate Corleone as he watched his son's operatic debut; Mosca was again disguised as a priest. Mosca murdered three Corleone bodyguards using a knife, but he failed to shoot Corleone with a sniper rifle, as Corleone had left his seat to be warned of the poisoning of Pope John Paul I. Mosca decided to kill Corleone as he left the theater, and he was signalled to shoot Corleone by his assistant Spara's donkey-braying sound. Mosca fired two shots with his pistol, hitting Corleone in the arm and fatally wounding his daughter Mary in the back. Mosca was then restrained by several nearby priests, only for Vincent Mancini to shoot the immobilized Mosca dead.