Cosimo Cordì
Encyclopedia
Cosimo Cordì was a member of the 'Ndrangheta, a criminal and mafia-type organisation in Calabria
, Italy
. He was the head of the Cordì 'ndrina
based in Locri
, a hotbed of 'Ndrangheta activity. The Cordì 'ndrina is involved in a long blood feud with the Cataldo 'ndrina
, from the same town, since the end of the 1960s.
His brother Domenico Cordì, was killed in Locri on June 23, 1967, in the so called Piazza Mercato massacre, which signed the beginning of a long blood feud with the Cataldo 'ndrina
. The motive for the elimination of Domenico Cordì was the alleged fleecing of some 1,700 cases of cigarettes that were smuggled into Catanzaro by Sicilian mafiosi of the Tagliavia and Spadaro families in Palermo to Antonio Macrì
, the undisputed head of the 'Ndrangheta in Siderno
allied with the Cataldos.
Cosimo Cordì took over as the head (capobastone) of the clan with his other brother, Antonio Cordì – known as ‘U Ragiuneri. Antonio Cordí was also a municipal counciler for the Italian Socialist Party
(Partito Socialista Italiano – PSI) and a powerful vote broker in national elections.
Cordì was arrested in March 1991, suspected of killing the brain surgeon Domenico Pandolfo who unsuccessfully operated Cordìs’s nine-year-old daughter Paola suffering from a complicated brain tumor. The girl died after three days and Pandolfo was killed in retaliation.
In the ongoing feud with the Cataldo 'ndrina, Cordì was killed on October 13, 1997, in Locri, while on a bycicle in the company of his nephew Salvatore Cordì. His pupil, Pietro Criaco
is said to have moved through the spectating crowd to kiss his boss goodbye, whose head had been nearly blown away in the attack. The Locri football club mourned the death of the boss with one minute of silence at the start of a game. His brother Antonio Cordì, ‘U Ragiuneri, took over the leadership of the clan.
Calabria
Calabria , in antiquity known as Bruttium, is a region in southern Italy, south of Naples, located at the "toe" of the Italian Peninsula. The capital city of Calabria is Catanzaro....
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. He was the head of the Cordì 'ndrina
Cordì 'ndrina
The Cordì 'ndrina is a clan of the 'Ndrangheta, a criminal and mafia-type organisation in Calabria, Italy. The 'ndrina is based in Locri, a hotbed of 'Ndrangheta activity.-Feud with Cataldo clan:...
based in Locri
Locri
Locri is a town and comune in the province of Reggio Calabria, Calabria, southern Italy. The name derives from the ancient Greek town Locris.-History:...
, a hotbed of 'Ndrangheta activity. The Cordì 'ndrina is involved in a long blood feud with the Cataldo 'ndrina
Cataldo 'ndrina
The Cataldo 'ndrina is a clan of the 'Ndrangheta, a criminal and mafia-type organisation in Calabria, Italy. This particular 'ndrina is based in Locri, a hotbed of 'Ndrangheta activity...
, from the same town, since the end of the 1960s.
His brother Domenico Cordì, was killed in Locri on June 23, 1967, in the so called Piazza Mercato massacre, which signed the beginning of a long blood feud with the Cataldo 'ndrina
Cataldo 'ndrina
The Cataldo 'ndrina is a clan of the 'Ndrangheta, a criminal and mafia-type organisation in Calabria, Italy. This particular 'ndrina is based in Locri, a hotbed of 'Ndrangheta activity...
. The motive for the elimination of Domenico Cordì was the alleged fleecing of some 1,700 cases of cigarettes that were smuggled into Catanzaro by Sicilian mafiosi of the Tagliavia and Spadaro families in Palermo to Antonio Macrì
Antonio Macrì
Antonio Macrì , popularly known as Zzi 'ntoni, was a historical and charismatic boss of the 'Ndrangheta, a criminal and mafia-type organisation in Calabria, Italy...
, the undisputed head of the 'Ndrangheta in Siderno
Siderno
Siderno is a town and comune located in Calabria, Italy about 3 kilometres from Locri.Siderno Marina is the newer town located on the Ionian coast. It is popular with both Italian and foreign tourists and has a bathing beach....
allied with the Cataldos.
Cosimo Cordì took over as the head (capobastone) of the clan with his other brother, Antonio Cordì – known as ‘U Ragiuneri. Antonio Cordí was also a municipal counciler for the Italian Socialist Party
Italian Socialist Party
The Italian Socialist Party was a socialist and later social-democratic political party in Italy founded in Genoa in 1892.Once the dominant leftist party in Italy, it was eclipsed in status by the Italian Communist Party following World War II...
(Partito Socialista Italiano – PSI) and a powerful vote broker in national elections.
Cordì was arrested in March 1991, suspected of killing the brain surgeon Domenico Pandolfo who unsuccessfully operated Cordìs’s nine-year-old daughter Paola suffering from a complicated brain tumor. The girl died after three days and Pandolfo was killed in retaliation.
In the ongoing feud with the Cataldo 'ndrina, Cordì was killed on October 13, 1997, in Locri, while on a bycicle in the company of his nephew Salvatore Cordì. His pupil, Pietro Criaco
Pietro Criaco
Pietro Criaco is an Italian criminal and a member of the 'Ndrangheta, the Calabrian mafia. He was a fugitive since 1997 and included in the list of most wanted fugitives in Italy until his capture on December 28, 2008, in Africo near the southern city of Reggio Calabria.He tried to enter the...
is said to have moved through the spectating crowd to kiss his boss goodbye, whose head had been nearly blown away in the attack. The Locri football club mourned the death of the boss with one minute of silence at the start of a game. His brother Antonio Cordì, ‘U Ragiuneri, took over the leadership of the clan.