"My brother-in-law, Anthony Gerard Ciccone, left Earth last night," Joe Henry, husband of one of Madonna's sisters, wrote on social media this Sunday, February 26.
And to add: "I had known him since I was 15, in the spring of our lives in Michigan, so many years now gone."
Anthony Gerard Ciccone, one of the singer's brothers, died on Saturday February 25, at the age of 66.
The circumstances of his death have not yet been disclosed.
“Anthony was a complex character.
And God knows, we got confused at times, as true brothers can.
But I loved him and understood him better than I sometimes wanted to let on.
But the troubles fade away.
[...] Farewell then, Brother Anthony.
I want to believe that the god your mother (and mine) believed in is waiting to receive you,” continued Joe Henry.
"I'm a disgrace"
Madonna (64), who has not yet reacted to the news, was also at odds with Anthony Ciccone.
The latter was also the brother of Martin, Christopher, Mélanie (wife of Joe Henry), Mario, Jennifer and Paola Mae.
Alcoholic, he had been away from his siblings for several years.
As the
Daily Mail
reports , he had been homeless for a while in Michigan, his hometown.
During an interview with the British media in 2011, he notably confided that he had slept for a long time under a bridge with “a sleeping bag and his only companion, another resident of the street named Michael.”
Madonna's older brother Anthony Ciccone pictured in his hometown of Michigan.
Abaca
Several times, Anthony Ciccone had hinted in the media that his family had abandoned him.
Also in the columns of the
Daily Mail
, he said: “My family turned their backs on me when I was going through a bad period.
You can imagine that I have been asked a million times why my sister is a multi-millionaire while I sleep on the street.
And to continue: “I am a shame.
If I froze to death, my family wouldn't know for at least six months."
Madonna's wild post-Grammys video
Nevertheless, the brother of the singer had ended up following a detoxification treatment, and reconnecting with some members of his entourage, including his daughter and his brother, Christopher Ciccone, with whom he was staying.