Editing Gerlando Alberti (section)

==Early career==
Alberti was the son of a fruit seller and was born and grew up in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palermo Palermo], in the derelict district of [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Danisinni&action=edit&redlink=1 Danisinni]. He was born at home; the midwife begged to be allowed to bring his mother to the front door because of the lack of daylight in the house. He only went to school for four years. Alberti was initiated in the Mafia by [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gaetano_Filippone&action=edit&redlink=1 Gaetano Filippone]. His first test was to steal an entire cheese. In 1956 he was acquitted of a killing for lack of evidence.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-lodato47_2-2">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerlando_Alberti#cite_note-lodato47-2 [2]]</sup><sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-farrel115_3-1">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerlando_Alberti#cite_note-farrel115-3 [3]]</sup><sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-servadio230_5-0">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerlando_Alberti#cite_note-servadio230-5 [5]]</sup>

In the 1950s and 1960s, Alberti was considered to be an upstart Mafia boss in the shadow of men like [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pietro_Torretta Pietro Torretta], [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommaso_Buscetta Tommaso Buscetta] and the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angelo_La_Barbera La Barbera brothers]. They formed the so-called "New Mafia", which adopted new gangster techniques. Those starting their careers in their shadow were forming into new generation of mafiosi; they had initiative, and the road to leadership of a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosca cosca] had suddenly become quicker and more readily available to those who were fast with their tommy-guns.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-servadio179_6-0">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerlando_Alberti#cite_note-servadio179-6 [6]]</sup>

Alberti's official business was selling textiles, employing a squad of travelling salesmen, a wonderful cover for both his trafficking operations and smuggling jewels and works of art (he allegedly possessed a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nativity_with_St._Francis_and_St._Lawrence Caravaggio Nativity]<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-7">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerlando_Alberti#cite_note-7 [7]]</sup><sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-8">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerlando_Alberti#cite_note-8 [8]]</sup>). In 1961 he set up a textile trading business in Milan and formed a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosca cosca] in Northern Italy, with bases in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genoa Genoa] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milan Milan].<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-farrel115_3-2">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerlando_Alberti#cite_note-farrel115-3 [3]]</sup><sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-servadio230_5-1">[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerlando_Alberti#cite_note-servadio230-5 [5]]</sup>