On August 29, 1991, exactly 31 years ago, the hitmen of Cosa Nostra killed in Palermo Fat Free, entrepreneur who he refused to pay the protection money and for this he had become a symbol of the fight against the mafia. The murder took place at half past seven in the morning: four shots were fired at Grassi while he was walking to work.
The letter dedicated to the "Dear extortionist"
In the eyes of the mafiosi, Grassi was not only guilty of rebelling against the racket, but also – if not above all – of having publicized his fight in the media. On January 10, 1991, in fact, the Giornale di Sicilia he had published his own letter on the refusal to give in to the blackmail of the mafia. The title was "Dear Extortionist". Here is an excerpt:
“I wanted to warn our unknown extortionist to spare the threatening telephone calls and expenses for the purchase of fuses, bombs and bullets, as we are not willing to contribute and have placed ourselves under the protection of the Police. I built this factory with my own hands, I've been working all my life and I don't intend to close. If we pay the 50 million, they will then come back asking us for more money, a monthly fee, we will be destined to close shop in a short time. This is why we said no to the "Surveyor Anzalone" and we will say no to all those like him".
Clashes and controversies
Later, Grassi collaborated with the police to identify extortionists (the brothers Antonino and Gaetano Avitabile, of the Madonia clan of Resuttana, who were arrested on March 19, 1991 together with an accomplice) and refused the offer of a personal escort.
The entrepreneur also pointed the finger at Sicindustria, accusing it of having turned its back on him. "The only support for my action, apart from the police forces - wrote Grassi in a letter published in the Corriere della Sera on April 30, 1991 - came from Confesercenti in Palermo".
Grassi then defined as "scandalous" the decision of the Catania judge Luigi Russo (dated 4 April 1991) in which he affirms that it is not a crime to pay "protection" to mafia bosses.
The then President of the Republic, Francesco Cossiga, also attended his funeral.
