The Leone family was introduced as an integral faction in Grand Theft Auto III. The family of Italian-American mafiosos owns property, facilitates underground gambling, and runs a prostitution ring, among other illegal activities. Based in Liberty City, Don Salvatore Leone is the leader of the crime syndicate, which is one of the three main Mafia families in Liberty City, along with the Sindaccos and the Forellis.

Since titles like San Andreas and Liberty City Stories are set as prequels to Grand Theft Auto III, the Leone family history, which is based heavily on the Corleone family from The Godfather trilogy, is well-documented. The family originated as a part of the Sicilian mob, and still has ties there. In Liberty City Stories, players even step into the shoes of a member of the Leone family, Toni Cipriani.

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The family history starts when Salvatore decides to invest in a San Andreas casino with the Sindacco and Forelli families in an attempt to unite the American Mafia. The families invest evenly, despite the fact that Sal gets control of the books and is allowed to choose the middleman, Ken Rosenburg, whom he controls. The plan fails when Carl Johnson, the protagonist of GTA: San Andreas, robs the casino. This hurts Salvatore, both financially and personally, because Johnson had been a close ally of the Leone’s up to that point, doing many personal favors for the Don, leading him to become massively paranoid. He also meets his second wife, Maria Latore, at the casino.

How The Leone Family Takes Over Liberty City

In Liberty City Stories the three major crime families in Liberty City are at odds with each other. As the turf war unfolds, Salvatore Leone gets arrested and has to request the help of Toni Cipriani, a man who had been in hiding after killing another family’s made man. Upon his return to Liberty City, Cipriani has to kill Don Paulie Sindacco as revenge for crossing the Leone family. Sal is found not guilty of his crimes, and walks free. Don Leone was not out of the woods yet, however. Uncle Leone, a member of the Sicilian mob, comes to Liberty City with his Italian mobsters to encroach on Leone family territory, even putting a hit out on Sal. Don Leone escapes, and with the help of Cipriani manages to weaken Sicilian influence in Liberty City, leaving the Leone family as the last great mob family in Liberty City.

Toni Cipriani would also introduce Don Leone to Claude, the protagonist of GTA:III. Claude does jobs for the Leones but soon found himself out of favor with the Don. Claude had attempted to gain Sal’s trust after blowing up a factory for him, however, Sal’s wife Maria falls in love with Claude, which of course infuriates the already-paranoid Sal, who then tries to kill him. Claude (the player) gets away with the help of the Yakuza. To repay the Yakuza for their assistance, Claude is ordered to assassinate Don Salvatore Leone, which he does. Toni Cipriani then becomes Don of the Leone Family.

Really, Salvatore Leone’s paranoia got the better of him, to the detriment of the Leone family. While they were the most powerful family in Liberty City in Grand Theft Auto III, the faction’s main characteristic was its double-crossing. Ironic, then, that the Don’s final moments saw him getting double-crossed himself.

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