Farewell to Canada’s last Don: Montreal ‘godfather’ and drug trafficking mastermind Vito Rizzuto, 67 given final send off in gold casket

  • Hundreds of mourners gather to pay their respects to the head of Montreal's Mafia
  • 67-year-old died of natural causes in hospital on December 23
  • Rizzutto's death has left a huge void at the top of the city's mob, with police waiting to see who will succeed him

Hundreds of mourners braved bitterly cold weather to pay their last respects to Canada's 'godfather', drug trafficking mastermind Vito Rizzuto.
The 67-year-old was laid to rest in a gold casket following an hour-long mass at the Notre-Dame-de-la-Défense Church in Montreal yesterday.
Rizzuto's coffin was followed from the church by his two surviving adult children, Leonardo and Bettina, the Montreal Gazette reported.
The body of Montreal Mafia boss Vito Rizzuto is carried from the church following his funeral, in a gold casket
The body of Montreal Mafia boss Vito Rizzuto is carried from the church following his funeral, in a gold casket

Montreal mobster Vito Rizzuto
Libertina Manno, left, mother of Vito Rizzuto, head of the infamous crime family, arrives for his funeral in Montreal
Mobster Vito Rizzuto, left, died of natural causes at a Montreal hospital on December 23. Right, his mother Libertina Manno, left, arrives for his funeral in the Canadian city

Members of the Rizzuto family leave the Montreal church after the Mafia boss's funeral. His son Leonardo was among the mourners
Members of the Rizzuto family leave the Montreal church after the Mafia boss's funeral. His son Leonardo was among the mourners

Nine limousines waited outside the Notre-Dame-de-la-Défense Church in the heart of Montreal's Little Italy, for Vito Rizzuto's family
Nine limousines waited outside the Notre-Dame-de-la-Défense Church in the heart of Montreal's Little Italy, for Vito Rizzuto's family

Nine limousines waited in the street outside to transport the family as dozens of photographers, TV crews, onlookers gathered alongside police officers who were busy gaining intelligence from those who came to pay their respects to the Mafia boss.
Rizzuto, who ruled for decades at the helm of Montreal's Mafia, died of natural causes in a Montreal hospital on December 23.
His funeral was held in the same church where masses were held for his son Nick in 2009 and his father Nicolo in 2010.
 

Both were gunned down while Vito Rizzuto was held in prison in the US for his part in the murders of three Mafia bosses in New York in 1981.
Rizzuto's health problems first came to light in 2007 when he was up in front of an American judge, who sentenced him to the equivalent of 10 years behind bars.
The Mob boss, who oversaw a heroin and cocaine network that spanned the length and breadth of the country, told the judge two months earlier a doctor had recommended he have a CT scan after noticing a spot on his lung.
The Rizzuto family were joined by friends as hundreds gathered to pay their respects. The funeral was held at the same church where masses were held for Rizzuto's son Nick in 2009 and father Nicolo in 2010. Both were gunned down while Rizzuto was in prison in the US
The Rizzuto family were joined by friends as hundreds gathered to pay their respects. The funeral was held at the same church where masses were held for Rizzuto's son Nick in 2009 and father Nicolo in 2010. Both were gunned down while Rizzuto was in prison in the US

Igino Incantalupo, who conducted the funeral said it was a simple service, noting the 'surprising level of calm and seriousness'
Igino Incantalupo, who conducted the funeral said it was a simple service, noting the 'surprising level of calm and seriousness'

Vito Rizzutto's death has left a huge void at the top of Montreal's Mafia with police investigators in the Canadian city waiting to see who will make the first claim to succeed the 67-year-old 'godfather'
Vito Rizzutto's death has left a huge void at the top of Montreal's Mafia with police investigators in the Canadian city waiting to see who will make the first claim to succeed the 67-year-old 'godfather'

It is understood the Sicilian Mafia boss was suffering from the complications of lung cancer when he passed away last week.
Igino Incantalupo, the priest who oversaw the ceremony, told the Toronto Star: 'It was a very simple funeral.

'People displayed a very, very surprising level of calm and seriousness.'
Those who tried to enter the church to pay their respects were screened, and asked if they were known by the family. But for those waiting outside, the freezing cold did not deter their sense of intrigue.
Marjolaine Martin, 65, grew up nearby and told the Star she was attracted by the air of mystery surrounding the family, having watched from the street at the funerals of Rizzuto's father and son as well.
'When I think that when I grew up here and played in the neighbourhood, and they were probably around here,' she said.
A mourner arrives at the funeral home to pay his respects to Vito Rizzuto before his body was moved to the church for the funeral service. All mourners were screened and asked how they knew the family before being allowed inside for the service, it was reported
A mourner arrives at the funeral home to pay his respects to Vito Rizzuto before his body was moved to the church for the funeral service. All mourners were screened and asked how they knew the family before being allowed inside for the service, it was reported

Police officers watched nearby, gathering intelligence
Mourners leaving the funeral home after visiting Vito Rizutto's body ahead of his funeral
Police officers watched outside the funeral home as mourners, right, arrived to visit Vito Rizzuto's body before his funeral. Officers were said to be gathering intelligence


'We don’t know their secrets, that’s for sure, but their names are mentioned all the time in the newspapers and on the news.'
Following his release from an American prison in 2012, Rizzuto quickly reestablished himself at the head of the Mafia network, regaining control of his turf.
His sudden death has opened a vacuum at the top of Montreal's Mafia network, with police waiting to see who will take the first steps to fill the void.
'The successor will very likely come from within the family,' one source told The Gazette.
'Someone acting as a consigliere (a counsellor), likely Rocco Sollecito will look at everything and advise the family on who should take over. But for the Rizzutos (based on the past) it will be a relative, someone from the family.'
Police in Montreal had for years thought Rizzuto's son Nick was the one being groomed to take over from this father while Leonardo practised law. But Nick's death in 2009 changed that, leaving the succession open.