Pittsburgh LCN Family Chart

Members of the Pittsburgh Mafia Organization

1. Michael Acquaro (1894-1964) Soldier
2. Frank Adragna (1892-1962) Soldier
3. George Adragna (1910-1984) Soldier
4. Giuseppe Agostino (1899-1966) Soldier
5. Frank "Big Frank" Amato Sr. (1893-1973) Boss
6. Frank "Sonny" Amato Jr. (1927-2003) Soldier
7. John Bazzano Sr. (1888-1932) Boss
8. John Bazzano Jr. (1927-2008) Boss
9. Santo Bazzano (1904-2002) Soldier
10. Ernest Biondillo (1942-1996) Soldier
11. Michele Bua (1884-1950) Underboss
12. Salvatore Calderone (1858-1933) Capo
13. Vincenzo Capizzi (1884-1937) Boss
14. Anthony Capizzi (1925-2007) Soldier
15. John Cancellieri (1885-1956) Soldier
16. Salvatore Cancellieri (1910-1947) Soldier
17. Eugene "Gino" Chiarelli (1925-2001) Soldier
18. Thomas "Sonny" Ciancutti (1929-Pr) Soldier
19. Giuseppe "Peppino" Cusumano (1881-?) Soldier
20. Anthony D'Allesandro (1920-1978) Soldier
21. Nick DeLucia (1921-?) Soldier
22. Vincent DeNiro (1922-1961) Soldier
23. Joseph DeRosa Sr. (1912-1981) Soldier
24. Joseph DeRosa Jr. (1931-1981) Soldier
25. Sam "Sammy Fashion" Fascionatta (1916-1985) Soldier
26. Augustine "Augie" Ferrone (1927-1998) Soldier
27. Pasquale "Patsy" Ferrucio (1917-2004) Soldier
28. John "Fon" Fontana (1917-1984) Soldier
29. Jack Gadazzo (1903-1934) Soldier
30. Felix Genovese (1914-?) Soldier
31. Fiore Genovese (1916-1971) Soldier
32. Francesco Genovese (1877-1965) Capo
33. Gabrial Genovese (1919-1983) Capo
34. Michael Genovese (1918-2006) Boss
35. Nick Gentile (1884-1963) Soldier - Turned FBI Informant
36. Joseph Gigliotti (1903-2001) Soldier
37. Anthony Grosso (1914-1994) Soldier
38. Robert "Bobby I" Ianelli (1930-Pr) Soldier
39. Charles "Murgie" Imburgia (1908-2002) Soldier
40. Sebastiano "John LaRock" LaRocca (1901-1984) Boss
41. John Leone (1945-2002) Soldier
42. Andrew Mangini (1893-1984) Soldier
43. Gabrial "Kelly" Mannarino (1915-1980) Underboss
44. Salvatore Mannarino (1920-1993) Soldier
45. Anthony Martrano (1950-2007) Soldier
46. Joseph Maruca (1925-1981) Soldier
47. Salvatore "Sam" Marino (1898-1974) Capo
48. Mauro Matone (1942-Pr) Soldier
49. Pasquale Meola (1899-1987) Soldier
50. Louis Miano (1890-1959) Soldier
51. Joseph Naples (1932-1991) Soldier
52. Cesario Norece (1885-1961) Capo
53. Giuseppe "The Ghost" Pangallo (1889-1932) Soldier
54. Joseph "Jo-Jo" Pecora (1919-1987) Capo
55. Giuseppe "Joe Peachey" Picci (1911-1943) Soldier
56. Giuseppe Pindelli (1897-1948) Soldier
57. Charles "Chuckie" Porter (1933-Pr) Underboss- Turned FBI Informant
58. Vincenzo "Briar Hill Jimmy" Prato (1907-1988) Soldier
59. Louis Raucci (1930-1995) Capo
60. Dante Strollo (1935-Pr) Soldier- Turned FBI Informant.
61. Lenine "Lenny" Strollo (1932-Pr) Soldier - Turned FBI Informant
62. Giuseppe Regino (1907-1985) Capo
63. Antonio Repepi (1902-1996) Capo
64. Paul Romeo (1892-1976) Capo
65. Michael Romeo (1920-2000) Soldier
66. Giuseppe Rosa (1898-1966) Soldier
67. Frank Rosa (1930-1982) Soldier
68. Joseph Sica (1908-1991) Consigliere
69. Giuseppe Spinelli (1894-1959) Soldier
70. Filippo "Joe" Spinelli (?-1935) Soldier
71. Pasquale Stanizzo (1911-1974) Soldier
72. Giovanni "John The Prince" Volpe (1894-1932) Capo
73. James Volpe (1897-1967) Soldier
74. Louis Volpe (1901-1987) Soldier
75. Arturo Volpe (1904-1932) Soldier
76. John Verilla (1924-1988) Soldier
77. Nicholas Stirone (1902-1984) Soldier
78. Henry "Zebo" Zottola (1935-1998) Soldier

Dante Strollo and Ernest Biondillo were associates, not soldiers. They were never made.

I think Zebo was a capo, but don't hold me to that.

Actually they were made members. Check out the Dan James FBI Files and Mary Ferrell sites. Those are two sites you can trust, because they show real files on the LCN that are old and are now open to the public.

I know they are identified as such by law enforcement, but I know people who know those people and they claim that Joey Naples and Lenny Strollo were the only made guys in Youngstown, even though law enforcement and the media say that Dante and Biondillo were also made. You also see Lenny Strollo identified as a capo a lot, but he was a soldier. Sometimes you see the Carrabias listed as made guys; none of them really were.

There has been a tendency to inflate the significance of the Youngstown guys.

But if you have proof they were made I'd really like to see it. Did Lenny Strollo come say those two were made or something after he flipped? I've never heard of these sites - could you provide links for them? I googled around but couldn't find what you're referring to.

Thanks!

Edit: Jimmy Prato was also a made guy in Youngstown, and of course Tony Dope Delsanter of the Cleveland family (I'm not sure if he actually lived there though).

Well, I wouldn't argue with the FBI, they make it their lives to find everything there is to know about the mob.

Mary Ferrell is a great site. She was an American historian (died in 2004), whjo accumulated an impressive range of information related to the Kennedy assasintion. Eventually the knowledge she'd collated was put onto the website, and while its nominally about the assasination, it also holds a wealth of great files on a bunch of mob guys. Great stuff, definitely check it out if you haven't already.

http://www.maryferrell.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page

Thanks for the link, bro.

I searched that site and couldn't find anything about Ernest Biondillo or Lenine Strollo.

Hey Guys,

Maybe I could clear this up for you a little bit. Henry "Zebo" Zottola was a "high ranking associate" of the Pittsburgh LCN Family. He actually was the conduit btween Youngstown and Pittsburgh. Mike Genovese would only meet with Chucky Porter, Louis Raucci and Henry "Zebo" Zottola (1980's-1990's), and everything with him was done in cash, usually with Porter. Zottola was a very trusted associate, but never made acording to Roger Greenbank, head of the OC squad in Pittsburgh. Check this link out in regards to Laborers Union 1058. Some very good intel on this report. http://www.ipsn.org/pittsburgh/t2000-08t-03-9-2001.htm

The only guys who were made since Mike Genovese took over the family were Chucky Porter (1986) and Lenny Strollo and Joey Naples from Youngstown in 1987 (Jimmy Prato was made but it was by John LaRocca). Joey Naples had his own crew that consisted of Ernie Biondillo, Frankie Lentine, Bobby Poghen (who also did murder for hire for the Cleveland Family), Paul Holowatick (Joey Naples' Driver and chauffer), Bobby Armstrong and his brother Jimmy Naples (the only one of the Naples' brothers who died of natural causes)and Mike & Joey Serrecchio ("Cyrak" is the nickname for both father and son), who ran the largest numbers bank in Youngstown for many years (like the Pittsburgh numbers bank by Tony Grosso and later by Sal and Adolfo Williams).

Lenny Strollo's crew consisted of Lawrence "Jeep" Garono, Bernie "The Jew" Altshuler, his brother Dante (Danny) Strollo as well as politicians who tuened their back on illegal activities. Lenny was a partner with Bernie the Jew and Ernie Biondillo in an illegal casino in Campbell, OH (just east of Youngstown) called the All American Club. When the FBI busted it, it was said to be the most profitable illegal casino outside of Atlantic City and Nevada). Dominic Strollo was actually a legitimate businessman who made the mistake of trusting his brother Lenny with an investment that ultimately got Dominic in hot water with the FEDS. Dominic's wife and daughters never spoke to Lenny again and were always embarrassed of the Strollo name.

Some of the major players in Youngstown, OH were the following:

1. Dominick Barber-Youngstown's first Mafia Boss, killed 10-24-1924. His brother Frank was killed exactly one year later on 10-24-1925.

2. Dominic Mallamo (a.k.a. Big Dom, Big D)-Big Dom ran Youngstown from the 1940's until he retired in the early 1980's. Youngstown was a wide open territory for many years until the 1970's when it was split between Pittsburgh and Cleveland.

3. Jimmy Prato (a.k.a. Briar Hill Jimmy, Two Guns Jimmy)- Jimmy was the nephew of Big Dom Mallamo, and also was credited with grooming Joey Naples to take it over upon his retirement.

4. Sandy Naples- Older brother to Joey, was killed by a shotgun blast in March of 1960 (I think-I know it was the 60's) along with his girlfriend on her front porch. He was partners with Vince DeNiro in the Youngstown numbers bank known as "the bug."

5. Billy Naples- Older brother of Joey and younger brother of Sandy, killed in his garage by a remote detonated car bomb in 1963. He was the hothead of all the brothers.

6. Cadillac Charlie Cavallaro-Killed in the 1960's by a car bomb on Market Street and his son was with him in the car and was badly disfigured and maimed.

I have most of the FBI files on alot of these players. You can call the FBI in Washington or send them an email under the freedon of information act and they can copy their files and send them to you for a fee.

Here is another piece of info that is interesting from the now defunct Pennsylvania Crime Commission, since most people don't know about John Verilla from Altoona, part of the LaRocca Family in Pittsburgh. http://clevelandmob.com/files/Penn1985Rptpart5and6005.pdf

Great info JCB1977! I didn't know Zebo was never made.

BTW, I think Cavallaro had two songs with him when he was bombed - one died, one lived but was badly injured.

tahnks do u have an interest ion the pgh mob too?

Hey guys,

Yes I am very interested in the now defunct Pittsburgh LCN. Here is an article for your review on Henry "Zebo" Zottola and his and his group of associates in trying to take over the Sand Diego Rincoln Indian Casino. Good intel on Zottola.

http://www.usnews.com/usnews/news/articles/930823/archive_015665.htm

Regards,

JCB1977

Hey Guys,

Here is an article in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette. It features Roger Gennbank of the FBI's OC squad, who I have had the pleasure of working with on research projects. This article was written by Torsten Ove of the post gazette, who I consider to be a very honest, resourceful investigative journalist and very knowledgeable on the Pittsburgh LCN.

I have FBI files on Genovese, LaRocca, and a very interesting capo from Pittsburgh named Antonio Ripepi. Ripepi is from the same region in Reggio Calabria, Italy as my whole family as well as many "early" racketeers from Youngstown. He was maybe as powerful as LaRocca because of his direct connections to the Ndrangheta, which is Calabria, Italy's version of the mafia. They are feared and brutal. Ripepi's son in law was John Bazzano Jr., who's father was one of the first mafia bosses in Pittsburgh/Western PA. He was an old time "zip." I will post a few more articles that are very repuatble and accurate. I have included articles on bazzano Jr. and Ripepi. Stay tuned.

http://www.post-gazette.com/regionstate/20001105greenbank1.asp

http://www.lacndb.com/php/Info.php?name=Antonio%20Ripepi

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08211/900171-122.stm

Regards,

JCB1977

Hey Guys,

Check this article out. It reiterates that Joey Naples and Lenine Strollo were made in 1987 (in which they were the only made members for the entire 22 year reign of godfather Mike Genovese. Genovese took over in late December of 1984 and died on Halloween night of 2006.

http://www.post-gazette.com/regionstate/20001106mobhistory2.asp

Correction-

Naples and Strollo were the only two made member from Youngstown,OH. Chucky Porter was also made in 1986 and promoted immediately to underboss.

Hey Guys,

Here is a very well written article from a small publication in Cleveland, OH called The Scene Magazine. This provides some detailed insight into the world of Youngstown, OH and the Mahoning Valley.

http://www.clevescene.com/cleveland/end-of-the-line/Content?oid=1472059

Another article written in November of 2000 in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.

http://www.post-gazette.com/regionstate/20001106mobnow6.asp

Hey Guys,

Here is another interesting article on maybe the most powerful Ohio made mafia member, more powerful than Strollo/Naples and we was from Canton, OH. He was a mde member of the LaRocca Family but worked with the Lonardo's from Cleveland as well. He is described by the FBI as a liason between Pittsburgh & Cleveland. His power stretched all the way back to Kelly Mannarino, LaRocca's underboss from New Kensington, PA, who was partners with Lucky Luciano, Russell Bufalino (Bufalino Family of Northeast PA) and Meyer Lansky in the Sans Souci Casino in Havana, Cuba. Very interesting guy, I have the FBI file and he was connected all over the country with New York and Chicago being very reliant on his video poker machines.

http://mob-who.blogspot.com/2011/04/ferruccio-pasquale-patsy-1917-2006.html

Regards,

JCB1977

Here is an article from 1997 in the LA Times regarding the infiltration of the Rincon Indian Casino in San Diego.

http://articles.latimes.com/1997-04-19/news/mn-50405_1_organized-crime

Hey Guys,

Here is article from the testimony of Angelo "Big Ange" Lonardo, underboss of the Cleveland La Cosa Nostra Family from 1988. At the time, he was the highest ranking member of the mafia to ever testify and turn state's evidence.

http://www.nevadaobserver.com/Reading%20Room%20Documents/Cleveland%20LCN%20-Statement%20of%20Angelo%20Lonardo%20(1988).htm

JCB1977

Hey Guys,

Here is the obituary of Freank "Sonny" Amato Jr in Pittsburgh, another capo who had his own territory and was the son of Frank Amato Sr., one of the earlier mob bosses in Pittsburgh.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1129&dat=20031107&id=r-cyAAAAIBAJ&sjid=g3ADAAAAIBAJ&pg=6525,4998999

Great stuff JCB, this will keep me busy for some time.

Maybe I should start a "Dante Strollo and Ernest Biondillo were never made" thread and have the mods sticky it.

Wow! This guy is talking to himself. Cough....... Huuahhh!


Nice try and ZEBO was made by the way!!!!

Huh?

Not trying to upset you, just stating the facts of my research. Zottola was NOT made as Genovese never opened the books again because of the 1990 racketeering trial of Porter and Raucci. Source for this info is the FBI in Pittsburgh and the testimony of key informants during the trial in 1990. Show me your proof that he was made. Give me a source.

Again...Genovese only made 3 guys during his 22 reign, Porter, Naples and Strollo. After his "right and left" hands (Porter and Raucci) were convicted in the biggest racketeering trial in Pittsburgh history, he never opened the books again to make anybody else. Zottola was well respected and trusted, but never made. The Genovese family in NY had to give the permission to open the books since they represented the Pittsburgh family. Mike Genovese was well insulated. After Porter perjured himself on the stand during trial, he later cooperated with the Feds but couldn't testify because he already was deemed not credible as a witness. His information did lead to the take down of the Strollo enterprise in Youngstown including Zottola who would have been in jail if he didn't die in 1998. Porter also helped the Feds in averting mob hits in NJ, Pittsburgh and New England.

Indeed. He died peacefully of natural causes a free man.

So he got away with it - all the Youngstown mayhem, the drug dealing, everything. Did he ever do any time at all?

Mike genovese did do some time back in the 1960's for refusing to answer questions in regards to Apalachin and the Kefauver Hearings.

You guys have the same IA, so you're either great friends, live with eachother or the same person.

You should appreciate a chart somebody took a lot of time into and say "thank you," like a real person who is not insecure and/or jealous that somebody else came up with the same thing you wanted to. Spark is the one who made it, I just reposted with better info.

"Same IA"? You mean IP? That would be kind of hard, given that I'm in Ohio, and he's in Massachusetts.



Dude what are you flipping out for? The chart is great; I just pointed out a couple of tiny inaccuracies in it. I didn't mean to piss you off. One of the purposes of these forums is gather together the most accurate information possible about the mob.

Take it easy now.

Somebody said you guys had the same IA, he said it means internet address. Well, you two definitely know eachother really well. I just don't like to see good info somebody spent time on get tarnished.

JCB, you amazing!

I hardly know the guy; we just have a common interest in Youngstown and he is knowledgeable about it.

Thank you for coming up with the chart. I do not know Ivan, although we are both originally from Ohio. You seem to take this very offensively and you shouldn't. A chart is a chart. Where is your resource for this chart, please don't tell me news articles! Just trying to clear up some obvious questions in regards to Pittsburgh and Yooungstown.

Regards,

JCB1977

NJ Boy,

I am writing from Sandwich, MA on Cape Cod where I live. I am originally from Youngstown, OH (suburb called Poland) to be exact. I have been a "researcher" for almost 13 years and have helped several authors and other researchers with my knowledge. I have some family history of organized crime in Youngstown and while I when I got old enough to understand, I got very interested in the topic. Again, thank you for the time you spent on the chart, however, there are things on the chart that are absolutely wrong and I'm not going to spend another second wasting my time justifying myself or my knowledge to you. Other people on this site are looking for more concrete evidence than a chart. I am providing "accurate" information that I write on this forum.

Hi NJ Boy,

I'm going to point out a few mistakes on this chart.

1. Vince DeNiro-Youngstown Racketeer, was not affiliated with a family. Cleveland and Pittsburgh did not divide Youngstown up until the 1970's. Youngstown was a wide open territory prior to that, hence the car bombings in the 1960's between all the top racketeers. Most of the "early" Youngstown guys were made in Italy (Calabria region) or in New York when they got to this country by boat.

2. Ernie Biondillo-Not made, was a longtime associate of Joey Naples.


3. Eugene Chiarelli- Never made. He was an armed robber affiliated with the Chuck Porter crew from Lawrenceville. He went on trial with Porter but was never made. He was an underling at best and a drug dealer.

4. Joe DeRose Sr- He was NEVER affiliated with organized crime. He was the victim of a mistake in identity during the Naples/Carabbia war in the late 70's early 80's. They were trying to kill his son Joe DeRose Jr., and got him by mistake.

5. Joe DeRose Jr- Close friend and associate of Charlie & Ronnie Carabbia, afilliated with the Cleveland LCN. He was killed by Naples faction in the early 80's. Never made.

6. Anthony "Tony" Grosso- He was an independent numbers bank operator who paid tribute to Pittsburgh. NEVER affiliated with the Pittsburgh family, but did pay them to operate. Read a book called Pittsburgh Characters, where it is well documented.

7. Bobby Ianelli- Never made, he is a numbers operator who took over the Grosso numbers bank with Salvatore and Adolfo Williams after Grosso died. He had the same deal with the Pittsburgh LCN that Grosso had.

8. Mauro Matone- You are way off on this one. He ran drugs and did time in New York for running drugs. He was not even a significant player.

9. Dante Strollo-Never made. He was the liason between politicians and corrupt police officers that helped his brother with the gambling operations. He was more into winemaking than the rackets.

10. Paul Romeo- Close friend and associate of Big Dom Mallamo from Youngstown. He was not affiliated with any family, but was a key player in the Youngstown rackets for many years, although it was said that Big Dom made him in a ceremony in upstate New York back in the 1940's.

If you spent som much time on this chart, you better consider your source as an idiot, because there are alot of mistakes and mis-information.

Regards,

JCB1977

What is with your multiple posts? Quit posting false info, and stay away from this thread.

Come on, guys. Enough already. You're only going to end up getting reprimanded for antagonizing each other, and this thread will only end up locked.

You're right PB. I'm not going to continue with this. I'm cool.

Here is an article on Mauro Matone and his narcotics arrest, as well as an informant describing Matone as a "high level" drug dealer.



http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1129&dat=19930522&id=tOAdAAAAIBAJ&sjid=VW4DAAAAIBAJ&pg=6817,3703508

Here is an article on Charles J. "Chucky" Porter, Genovese's right hand in the Pittsbugh LCN. Chucky was a very well respected, powerful underboss who held influence in Philadelphia, Buffalo, New York and Chicago.

http://www.post-gazette.com/regionstate/20001202porter2.asp

Another article on Chucky Porter and his release from prison.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1129&dat=20001026&id=Z-dRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=bW8DAAAAIBAJ&pg=5441,5026033

who cares about that cornball chucky porter what kind of italian name is that lmao

He was one of the few guys to be made while only being Italian on his mother's side.

Thank you DM, for the message about JCB, knew not all the stuff he said was right regarding Pitts.

About Porter, he was half from his mother I heard.

Ivan your wasting your time arguing with NJBOY, while he talks about how accurate Meery Ferrle is in this thread when I provided him links to information from Merry Ferryle on the KC chart about made members of the KC mob he wasn't willing to accept it. I guess its on good info on Mary Ferrle if he finds it. Check out the New York charts threads, follow the links I provided you will see what I mean. These charts are 100% accurate whether they are or not LOL.

Pittsburgh is soooooooooooooooooo Corny!!!!

Primani Brothers is dogsh_t!

You're probably better off trusting a poster who supposedly knows a guy from Youngstown over the FBI files right?

your a tool

I really don't care about Chucky Porter, however, I was just providing a few articles for the people who were interested in the Pittsburgh LCN. No need to insult anybody.

Regards,

JCB1977

Here is a copy of the 2nd section of the FBI report on Local 1058 in Pittsburgh that was said to be under the control of the Pittsburgh LCN. Further information provided by Special Agent Roger Greenbank states that Henry "Zebo" Zottola was an LCN associate, not a made member as it has been wrongly reported on this forum. See below:


In the Matter of Local 1058
Laborers’ International Union of North America
Independent Hearing Officer

Docket No. 00-08T
Decided March 9, 2001

Order and Memorandum






Pittsburgh LCN Associates



38. Mob “associates” work for “made” members facilitating mob activities. Associates either run day-to-day illegal operations for the mob or are in legitimate businesses under the influence and control of organized crime. See District Council, 97-30T; Fallacara, 96-65D.



39. Henry A. “Zebo” Zottola (Zottola) was closely associated with “Jo-Jo” Pecora and involved in loan-sharking, gambling, and financing narcotics transactions. See GEB Exs. 92 (Excerpts from: Organized Crime in Pennsylvania: A Decade of Change”, 1990 Report (Pennsylvania Crime Commission), 105 (PA Crime Commission March 1989 Pittsburgh LCN Family Chart); Tr. 53. After Jo-Jo Pecora’s death, Zotolla associated with Porter. See GEB Ex. 92 (1990 PA Crime Report).


Allegations of Local 1058 Members’ Ties to Organized Crime

(Complaint && 5-13)

I just wanted to site where this info came from, which is the Pennsylvania Crime Commission and the FBI.

thanks i appreciate your info. the people that are commenting in a negative way never have anything good to say on these boards.

As a Pittsburgh native,what is this interest in the Pgh. LCN since it's one of the smallest families in the country? As far as I remember, it's apogee was when it was strictly LaRocca/Pecora. Since then it's declined significantly.

I appreciate that phatmattress. FYI- I have done professional research for several authors and worked with FBI personnel from Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Youngstown. I'm not trying to be a know it all, I'm just incorporating some of my research and knowledge on this forum about Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh was at a time in the mid 80's to mid 90's the strongest LCN in the state of Pennsylvania as far as structure and reach are concerned according to the Pennsylvania Crime Commission. Philly was bigger, but always in disarray since the death of Angelo Bruno.

Regards,

JCB1977

I agree, it has always been a traditionally small family. However, by the mid 80's, Genovese seized control of all of Youngstown/Warren/Akron/Canton Ohio (which was always shared with Cleveland) as well as used their connections in Western New York around the Buffalo region to control quite a bit of the waste hauling and labor unions infiltration. LaRocca was a well respected boss, but so was Genovese. In 1986, Fortune magazine ran an article on the "Top 50 Mafia bosses" in the country and Mike Genovese was listed as #25. That is quite strong considering Pittsburgh has been traditionally a smaller, yet strong and cohesive family.

Regards,

JCB1977

Here is the link to the Fortune Magazine article from November 10th, 1986 with mike genovese listed at #25, in which the rankings were based on wealth, power and influence.

http://www.kepplerspeakers.com/literature/Franzese%20M-Article%20(Fortune%20-%2050%20Biggest%20Mafia%20Bosses).pdf

Copy and paste on google and the pdf file will come up

I have copy and pasted a report from the FBI in regards to Pasquale "Patsy" Ferruccio from Canton, OH. This report also details his ties to Lenny Strollo from Youngstoown and Henry Zottola (described as an associate of the Pittsburgh LCN)


Index Terms:
ORGANIZED CRIME
FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION
CANTON MAN IS GUILTY MAFIA 'SPECIALIST' ON VIDEO POKER
Author: MARK ROLLENHAGEN PLAIN DEALER REPORTER
Article Text:
A Canton man who has been described as the Mafia's "specialist" in video poker machines has pleaded guilty to a racketeering charge in U.S. District Court in Cleveland.
Pasquale M. (Pat) Ferruccio, 74, admitted leading a gambling operation that used the video poker machines in Akron, Kent and Ravenna and in Kentucky and DuBois, Pa., between 1978 and 1988.
Ferruccio entered into a plea agreement with prosecutors in U.S. District Court in Cleveland Monday. His trial on a four-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in 1989 was to begin yesterday.
The agreement says prosecutors and Ferruccio and his lawyer agreed to a 30-month prison sentence and that Ferruccio would be allowed to self-report to prison in January. Ferruccio also has agreed to forfeit $100,000 to the government. Prosecutors will drop three other charges against Ferruccio, including operating an illegal gambling business and interstate travel in aid of such a business.
John B. Gibbons, Ferruccio's lawyer, declined to comment on the plea until Ferruccio is sentenced by Judge John M. Manos after a report by the probation department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert J. Becker, of the Justice Department's Organized Crime Strike Force, declined to comment because of two pending cases stemming from the same indictment.
Ferruccio's son, Rocco, and George McCarty, 73, both of Canton, are charged with participating in an illegal gambling business and are awaiting trial before Manos.
Prosecutors have said in court documents that a former FBI agent would testify at trial that, while the agent was working undercover in Florida, Pasquale Ferruccio was introduced as a "made" member of the Mafia by members and associates of New York's Bonnano Family.
The former FBI agent, Edward Robb, would have testified Ferruccio was introduced "as the Family's specialist in video poker machines" and Ferruccio had Robb travel to Canton to observe Ferruccio's operation in an effort to start a gambling partnership in Florida, the prosecutors said.
"Further evidence demonstrates that Ferruccio admitted he had to seek permission from the Mafia to run the Pennsylvania operation charged in the indictment," the prosecutors said.
The prosecutors also said the Pennsylvania Crime Commission and Angelo A. Lonardo, an admitted member of the Cleveland Mafia, had identified Ferruccio as an inducted member of the LaRocca/Genovese Mafia Family in Pittsburgh.
Statements by the prosecutors, Becker and Stephen H. Jigger, then head of the strike force office in Cleveland, were made in response to a motion Ferruccio filed asking that the charges be dismissed.
"That's what the government has said about him for years," Gibbons said yesterday of Ferruccio's reputed organized crime ties. "They can say what they want to say, but no one has actually proven it. It's not relevant to the case."
The indictment of Pasquale Ferruccio was the result of a 3-year investigation by the Internal Revenue Service and FBI.
The racketeering charge against Pasquale Ferruccio alleged Rocco A. Ferruccio provided the gambling operation with facilities, supplies and personnel through Liberty Vending Co., a Canton company Rocco Ferruccio owned and operated.
Pasquale Ferruccio is the former owner and president of Liberty Vending and has continued to maintain a private office there, according to a statement released by U.S. Attorney Joyce J. George yesterday.
McCarty allegedly managed gambling operations in the Dover and New Philadelphia areas of Ohio and helped repair and transport poker machines.
The machines have been determined to be illegal gambling devices because players insert money and are able to place bets during poker-like video games. Payoffs are made by owners of establishments in which the machines are installed.
Two other defendants, Randal J. Cottrill and Carole A. (Terry) Eschliman pleaded guilty last year before Judge Frank J. Battisti.
Cottrill, 29, of Las Vegas, was sentenced to four months in prison and four months of home arrest after pleading guilty to operating an illegal gambling business and interstate travel in the operation of the gambling business.
Eschliman, 52, of Canton, pleaded guilty to participating in an illegal gambling business and was sentenced to three years of probation.
Copyright 1991, 2002 The Plain Dealer. All Rights Reserved. Used by NewsBank with Permission.
Record Number: 06289126
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Plain Dealer, The (Cleveland, OH)
February 26, 1992
Edition: FINAL / ALL
Section: METRO
Page: 4B

Index Terms:
GAMBLING
MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO GAMBLING CHARGE
Author: MARK ROLLENHAGEN PLAIN DEALER REPORTER
Dateline: CLEVELAND
Article Text:
A Canton vending company owner yesterday pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Cleveland to conducting an illegal gambling business.
Rocco A. Ferruccio, owner of Liberty Vending Co., was the last of five defendants to plead guilty in a video-poker gambling case brought by the Justice Department's Organized Crime Strike Force in 1989 after an investigation by the FBI and the Internal Revenue Service's Criminal Investigation Division. Liberty operates cigarette and video game machines in the Canton area.
Ferruccio's father, reputed organized crime figure Pasquale (Pat) Ferruccio, previously pleaded guilty to a racketeering charge in the case and was sentenced last week to 2 years in prison.
The indictment in the case says Pasquale Ferruccio, 74, organized, managed and financed the illegal gambling business and had an office at his son's company. Rocco Ferruccio supplied the gambling business with office space, supplies, equipment and personnel, according to the indictment.
Rocco Ferruccio, whose trial was to begin next week, pleaded guilty to a charge that said he was involved in the acquisition and distribution of illegal draw poker machines that were placed in bars in the Canton area.
The charge carries a maximum possible sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, but a plea agreement says that prosecutors and Ferruccio have agreed the fine will be $2,000.
The agreement also says prosecutors will not argue against Ferruccio's request to Judge John M. Manos for probation rather than a jail term.
Ferruccio declined to comment following his plea. He remains free on bond and will be sentenced following a review by the court's probation department.
"After three years, pleading guilty was a decision that was not easily made," Cleveland lawyer Roger Synenberg said after Ferruccio entered his plea. "However, this will allow Mr. Ferruccio to get back to devoting his full attention to his business and his family and to proceeding on with his life."
Copyright 1992, 2002 The Plain Dealer. All Rights Reserved. Used by NewsBank with Permission.
Record Number: 06557064

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Plain Dealer, The (Cleveland, OH)
April 11, 1992
Edition: FINAL / WEST
Section: METRO
Page: 2B
VENDING FIRM OWNER RECEIVES PROBATION
Dateline: CLEVELAND
Article Text:
A Canton vending company owner yesterday was sentenced to two years' probation and fined $2,000 for his involvement in the distribution of illegal draw poker machines.
Rocco A. Ferruccio, owner of Liberty Vending Co., had pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Cleveland in February to conducting an illegal gambling business. He was sentenced yesterday by Judge John M. Manos.
He was one of five defendants to plead guilty in a video-poker gambling case brought by the Justice Department's Organized Crime Strike Force in 1989 after an investigation by the FBI and the Internal Revenue Service's Criminal Investigation Division.
Ferruccio's father, reputed organized crime figure Pasquale (Pat) Ferruccio, previously pleaded guilty to a racketeering charge in the case and was sentenced to two years in prison. Pasquale Ferruccio, 74, was the leader of the video poker operation and had an office at his son's company, according to the indictment.
Copyright 1992, 2002 The Plain Dealer. All Rights Reserved. Used by NewsBank with Permission.
Record Number: 06602134

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Plain Dealer, The (Cleveland, OH)
March 1, 1995
Edition: FINAL / ALL
Section: NATIONAL
Page: 1A

Index Terms:
CASINO GAMBLING
REVENUE
CITY FINANCES
PROFILE
Series: RIVERBOAT CASINOS
INSTANT RICHES OR BROKEN DREAMS?
VIDEO POKER'S BAD HAND TREMENDOUS MACHINE PROFITS SPUR RASH OF ILLEGAL GAMBLING ACTIVITIES
Author: MARK ROLLENHAGEN and DOUGLAS MONTERO PLAIN DEALER REPORTERS
Article Text:
Mobsters and large, publicly owned gambling companies know the same thing about video poker: It's a gold mine.
Dockside casinos in Mississippi feature rows of video poker machines. At truckstops in Louisiana, rooms full of the machines are called casinos.
And in Ohio, where poker-for-profit is illegal whether it's played on a felt table or on a video screen, liquor agents seize and destroy hundreds of the machines each year.
The machines smuggled into Ohio have been repeatedly linked to organized crime figures.
Liquor control agents say that even in VFW halls, where access is limited to club members, a single video poker machine takes in as much as $1,000 a week. The take from video poker and slot machines accounts for 65 to 70 percent of a legal casino's revenues.
It's little wonder then that Ohio's vending companies would like to see the machines legalized if the state expands gambling beyond the lottery, horse racing and charitable bingo.
The Ohio Video Lottery Coalition, a political action committee formed by the vending companies, told a gambling study committee created by the legislature that video poker machines installed in taverns and private clubs would produce $603 million for Ohio vending companies and $251 million a year in state tax revenue.
The vending business describes video poker machines as "low stakes" gambling because bets can be as low as a quarter and payouts usually don't exceed $1,000.
But Ohio Liquor Control agents say the devices can cause big trouble for some gamblers.
At the Akron Liquor Control office, agent Ed Diuk held a laminated, magnetic key card needed to open the door of a southern Ohio veterans club. It came in the mail along with a brief note that said the club allowed illegal gambling.
"It's probably from a wife whose husband lost the paycheck there last week," Diuk said. "That's the way we get a lot of them."
The volume of cash generated by video poker machines has long made them attractive to organized crime figures. None of the 50 contributors to Ohio Video Lottery Coalition has been accused of being a mobster, but two have ties to illegal gambling activities.
Martin J. Sarcyk, 43, of North Royalton, who contributed $3,300 to the group in 1992 and 1993, is the target of an IRS and FBI investigation into a sports betting and numbers operation.
Documents recently unsealed in U.S. District Court say agents raided Sarcyk's Union Vending at 7753 Broadway in January 1994 and seized more than $100,000 in cash.
An affidavit by FBI Agent John B. Sommer and IRS Agent Mark J. Harris described Sarcyk as one of the biggest bookmakers in Cleveland.
One informant told the agents that Sarcyk handled $100,000 to $300,000 a week in sports and numbers bets. Another informant said Sarcyk ran his own "super lotto," offering a $30,000 weekly jackpot.
Another contributor to the Ohio Video Lottery Coalition, Michael Stevenson, of Euclid, was convicted of six misdemeanor counts of operating a gambling house and one felony count of possession of criminal tools. He was sentenced to two years of probation.
The charges were the result of a raid in 1986 at Stevenson's Plaza Party Center in Euclid. Police seized nine blackjack tables and other gambling equipment.
Stevenson had billed an evening of casino-style gambling as a fund-raiser for Rainbow Babies and Childrens Hospital, but hospital officials were unaware of it. Stevenson said he didn't mean to violate the law, but he didn't know the state's rules regarding charitable gambling. He said he eventually gave the money to charity.
Stevenson, who contributed $400 to the PAC in 1991, said the vending business was no more corrupt than any other business, and regulators could make sure video poker is operated cleanly.
"As long as you have checks and balances tied to a central computer to show the money going in and out, it is controllable," he said.
A third contributor to the PAC has had video poker machines seized by liquor control agents. In February 1991, agents who raided fraternal clubs in the Columbus area seized six machines owned by George Music, an Akron firm whose owners Philip George and Philip George Jr. contributed $1,000 to the Ohio Video Lottery PAC in 1992.
Philip George Jr. last week said his firm leased the machines to fraternal organizations as amusement devices, not for gambling.
"We can't be responsible for someone taking the machine and using it in a wrongful way," George said.
But both the Ohio Supreme Court and a federal judge have said traditional video poker machines, which accumulate credits used to calculate payoffs to winning gamblers, are illegal gambling devices and can be seized by state or federal agents.
If liquor agents find a video poker machine that works when they stick money in it, they seize it and file an administrative charge of permitting gambling in a liquor establishment. The charge can result in a fine or suspension or revocation of a liquor license.
If the agents can show that a club or bar is actually making payoffs from behind the bar - a difficult task because clubs are reluctant to make payoffs to strangers - they sometimes pursue criminal gambling charges.
Patty Haskins, a spokeswoman for the Ohio Department of Liquor Control, said agents don't seize the small countertop games often found in taverns because they do not offer payouts or free games.
"Typically, they don't award a prize," Haskins said.
Traditional video poker machines tally credits or free games that a player can continue to wager with or cash in with the bartender. The allowable countertop games offer only a specific number of hands for a quarter or dollar.
Kurt Gearhiser, a Columbus lawyer who represents fraternal organizations in gambling cases, said the Liquor Control Commission had warned clubs that if agents learn of payoffs on the countertop machines, they can seize the machines.
The Ohio Video Lottery PAC has raised $83,262 from vending companies and handed out $16,250 in contributions since 1990, including $6,000 to Gov. George V. Voinovich, $4,978 to former Attorney General Lee Fisher and $2,000 to the Ohio House Democratic Committee.
While none of the video poker PAC contributors has been accused of having organized crime ties, others in the vending business have.
Liquor agents raided American Legion Post 38 in Martins Ferry and hauled out two machines manufactured by New Jersey-based Greyhound Electronics in 1993.
The company and its former president, Carmen Ricci, were convicted of running an illegal gambling business in 1991. New Jersey prosecutors said Ricci, who had to sell off his interest in the company as part of a plea agreement, shared profits of his video poker business with members and associates of Philadelphia's Bruno/Scarfo mob family.
In the same year, Pasquale Ferruccio pleaded guilty to a racketeering charge for operating video poker routes out of his Canton vending company.
Federal prosecutors said Ferruccio was a member of the Pittsburgh Mafia family. When fellow mobsters introduced Ferruccio to an undercover FBI agent, they described him as the mob's "specialist in video poker," according to court documents.
And last summer, federal prosecutors in Louisiana charged members of the New York and New Orleans organized crime families with setting up a front company to secretly obtain the exclusive right to distribute Bally video poker machines in that state.
In Ohio, liquor control agents seized 633 video poker machines in the past two years.
The agency destroys the machines after liquor permit violations stemming from their use are resolved before the Liquor Control Commission.
Caption:
PHOTO BY: RAMON OWENS / PLAIN DEALER PHOTOGRAPHER Patty Haskins of the Ohio Department of Liquor Control stands in a warehouse full of confiscated video gambling machines.
Memo:
FOURTH OF FIVE ARTICLES
BOX BY: NO CREDIT
About the series
Sunday: Seeking the glamour of casino gambling, Ohioans take their money to other states. Can Ohio afford to see its tax money leave the state, or is the social cost of compulsive gambling so high that the state is better off without it?
Monday: In Illinois and Missouri, the riverboats and the cities they are in are hardly glamorous. But communities are using the tax money to make long-needed capital improvements.
Yesterday: Casinos have helped cities in Mississippi and Louisiana recover from hard times. Not many of the communities' businesses or neighborhoods have seen any money come their way from the riverboats.
Today: Illegal machine gambling in Ohio is a gold mine for mobsters. Officials worry that legal gambling would be an opportunity for organized crime to make a resurgence.
Tomorrow: Just down the Ohio River from Cincinnati, Lawrenceburg, Ind., is being tempted with hundreds of millions of dollars in redevelopment money from the gambling industry.
Copyright 1995, 2002 The Plain Dealer. All Rights Reserved. Used by NewsBank with Permission.
Record Number: 08060116
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Plain Dealer, The (Cleveland, OH)
August 8, 1996
Edition: FINAL / MEDINA / SUMMIT
Section: METRO
Page: 1B
DRUG-RUNNING SUSPECT LINKED TO MOB WADSWORTH PILOT HELD IN MARIJUANA SMUGGLING
Author: STEVE LUTTNER PLAIN DEALER REPORTER
Article Text:
Marijuana-smuggling suspect is linked to organized crime MEDINA - A Wadsworth man consorted with organized crime figures and smuggled marijuana through a Medina County airfield, according to allegations in an affidavit accompanying a federal search warrant.
Hugo Martinsons, who is now in Medina County Jail, faces more than 150 federal and county indictments on charges such as drug trafficking, burglary and receiving stolen property.
The indictments followed a May 10 raid on Martinsons' Wadsworth home by the Cleveland office of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, the Summit County Sheriff's Department and the Wadsworth Police Department.
The federal search warrant that was used to gain access to Martinsons' home, where he lived with his elderly parents, was recently made public. It shows that police had for years been building a case around his alleged marijuana dealing.
Police allegedly confiscated 84 pounds of marijuana during that raid, but also netted millions of dollars' worth of allegedly stolen goods such as jewelry, coins and musical instruments. The items were allegedly stockpiled in the modest home.
Citing unidentified sources, the affidavit by ATF Special Agent Charles E. Turner said Martinsons was a pilot who smuggled hundreds of pounds of marijuana from Texas to Medina County. The marijuana is believed to have largely been distributed in the Akron area.
The affidavit states that a source told federal agents that in November or December 1994, Martinsons smuggled 250 pounds of marijuana aboard an airplane he flew into the Medina municipal airport.
The source and Martinsons took the marijuana to Akron and "at the direction of Martinsons, broke the marijuana down and weighed it up into one-pound freezer bags."
The source said he accompanied Martinsons on 10 trips to Texas where they brought back 100 to 200 pounds of marijuana to northeast Ohio during each trip, the affidavit states.
The affidavit said police served subpoenas to telephone companies to get access to Martinsons' long-distance telephone records.
Other sources said Martinsons, 52, had contact with several alleged organized crime figures, including Pat Ferruccio of Canton.
One source told police that Martinsons oversaw a burglary ring "that was connected to Mafia (La Costra Nostra) figures in the Canton and Youngstown, Ohio, areas."
Another source told police that he had engaged in illegal gambling activities with Martinsons and had bought between 2 and 4 pounds of marijuana on six or seven different occasions from Martinsons at the intersection of Interstate 76 and Ohio 224 in southern Medina County.
On March 6, 1996, police concealed a body transmitter on a source who met Martinsons at the Speedway Gas Station on Lake Rd. in Westfield Township, the affidavit states. The source, using money supplied by police, then bought about 3 pounds of marijuana from Martinsons for $4,200.
The affidavit had originally been sealed, which means it was not a public record, because at least one of the sources cooperating with police feared "reprisal/intimidation" from "Martinsons and/or his organized crime (La Cosa Nostra) associates ..."
Martinsons' parents, brother and a female acquaintance have also been indicted in connection with the items confiscated during the May 10 raid and two subsequent raids of Summit County storage facilities that were linked to Martinsons. In all, police have confiscated an estimated $7 million worth of goods including 184 pounds of marijuana.
Copyright 1996, 2002 The Plain Dealer. All Rights Reserved. Used by NewsBank with Permission.
Record Number: 08721079
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Plain Dealer, The (Cleveland, OH)
May 10, 1997
Edition: FINAL / ALL
Section: NATIONAL
Page: 9A
TRAFICANT AIDE NAMED IN AFFIDAVIT MEETING WITH CRIME FIGURE DESCRIBED BY FBI
Author: MARK ROLLENHAGEN PLAIN DEALER REPORTER
Dateline: YOUNGSTOWN
Article Text:
A top aide to Rep. James A. Traficant Jr. met last fall with organized crime figures, including two men the FBI says conspired to kill a rival in a struggle for control of illegal gambling operations in the region, according to an FBI agent's affidavit.
Charles O'Nesti, the director of Traficant's district office, met with Lenine Strollo, Dominic Strollo, Lawrence P. Garono and Bernard Altshuler at the Captain's Table Restaurant in Liberty Township, near Youngstown, at lunchtime Nov. 6, 1996, the affidavit said.
Lenine Strollo controls organized crime activities in the Mahoning Valley and last June conspired with Altshuler to murder Ernie Biondillo, who was trying to take over part of Strollo's operation, according to the FBI.
The affidavit of FBI Agent John Stoll was filed in U.S. District Court on Thursday by federal prosecutors seeking to revoke Altshuler's probation and return him to prison for associating with felons, including Strollo.
The affidavit does not accuse O'Nesti of committing any crime and it does not say what was discussed at the restaurant meeting.
Neither O'Nesti nor Traficant could be reached for comment yesterday.
"I have no comment because I really don't know anything about it," said Paul Marcone, Traficant's press secretary.
Marcone said O'Nesti, who is paid $75,200 a year, has served as Traficant's district director since January 1985 when Traficant, a Youngstown Democrat, began serving in Congress.
The affidavit isn't the first time O'Nesti has been associated with organized crime figures.
When Traficant was on trial for bribery and tax evasion in 1983, O'Nesti testified that he had received two envelopes of cash from Youngstown racketeering underboss James V. Prato, now deceased, for Traficant's sheriff campaign.
O'Nesti testified that he believed that the money was from the sale of tickets for Traficant campaign events. Traficant said he returned the money to Prato.
Traficant was accused of receiving $163,000 in donations from Prato and other organized crime figures in exchange for not interfering with their illegal gambling operations, but he was cleared of the charges by a federal court jury.
Federal authorities have been investigating organized crime activities in the Youngstown area for at least the last year.
Agents searched Lenine Strollo's home in Canfield in January. Dominic Strollo, Lenine's brother, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh last month along with Canton organized crime figure Pasquale Ferruccio on charges that they conspired to secretly gain control of a casino on the Rincon Indian reservation in California.
"We're looking into the whole group and their criminal activity," said Van Harp, head of the FBI in northern Ohio. "And anyone who has been observed associating with them, we've identified them."
Lenine Strollo was convicted of racketeering in 1990 for running an illegal gambling business and paying bribes to a Mahoning County sheriff's deputy and a local police chief. He has not been charged with any new crimes since the search of his home.
The affidavit filed Thursday says an informant told the FBI in January 1995 that Strollo was upset with Biondillo because Biondillo had set up video poker machines in Pennsylvania without Strollo's permission.
The informant also said Bion- dillo had begun "to pay off politicians in the Youngstown area and was not telling Strollo, nor was he sharing these advantages with Strollo," the affidavit said.
Strollo's lawyer, Orville Stifel of Cleveland, declined to comment on the allegations made in the affidavit.
Copyright 1997, 2002 The Plain Dealer. All Rights Reserved. Used by NewsBank with Permission.
Record Number: 09130094

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Plain Dealer, The (Cleveland, OH)
October 26, 1997
Edition: FINAL / ALL
Section: NATIONAL
Page: 1A
AGENTS INVESTIGATE MOB IN MAHONING VALLEY AREA
Author: MARK ROLLENHAGEN PLAIN DEALER REPORTER
Dateline: YOUNGSTOWN
Article Text:
Ernie Bion- dillo drove along Murdock St. on his usual route to work last summer when he came upon a car with its hood raised.
The block-long, one-way street with overgrown vacant lots and old houses just east of downtown is so narrow that Biondillo could not maneuver his Cadillac around the other car. Before he could back up, another car boxed him in from behind.
Two men wearing ski masks and carrying shotguns rushed toward Biondillo, spraying his car with nine or 10 rounds of deer slugs and pellets. One of the attackers reached into the car and pulled a ring - with the initials "EB" spelled out in small diamonds - from Biondillo's finger.
The ambush lasted only seconds, but the fallout is far from over. The June 3, 1996, murder of Biondillo, the owner of a vending machine company, is one of the primary areas of focus of the most intensive investigation of organized crime activities in the Youngstown area in at least 15 years.
The investigation is wide-ranging, but one of the primary targets is clear: Lenine "Lenny" Strollo, a Canfield man who authorities say is a member of the Pittsburgh La Cosa Nostra family and the boss of organized crime in the Mahoning Valley.
The last nine months have seen a flurry of public activity surrounding the organized crime in this city with a lengthy mob history.
Internal Revenue Service and FBI agents searched Strollo's home in January, seizing financial and gambling records, floppy disks, a stun gun and a slot machine, according to search warrant records filed in U.S. District Court in Akron.
Agents also searched the office of Youngstown lawyer Stephen Garea and seized 30,000 to 40,000 pages of documents believed to be connected with Strollo's business affairs.
In May, an FBI agent implicated Strollo in Biondillo's murder, alleging in an affidavit that Strollo conspired to have Biondillo killed because of a dispute over video poker machines and bribes paid to politicians.
`Bearing down on him'
"It appears that the federal authorities are bearing down on him," said Youngstown Police Chief Randall Wellington. The chief said Strollo is believed to have controlled organized crime in the region since the 1991 murder of mob figure Joseph "Joey" Naples Jr.
The FBI last year dispatched several agents from its Cleveland office to Youngstown to assist in the organized-crime investigation and has asked its headquarters in Washington for more agents, according to Van Harp, the agent in charge of the FBI in northern Ohio.
"There's a substantial opportunity to have a definite impact on the organized crime problem in Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley," Harp said.
Prosecutors have said a mob-led racketeering enterprise in Youngstown has been involved in a gamut of illegal activities that include murder for hire, gambling, extortion, bribery of public officials, drug trafficking, robbery and burglary.
At the same time, the FBI is investigating other unrelated fraud and public-corruption matters, including a review of the financial dealings of the Mahoning Valley Sanitary District, which supplies water to Youngstown and Niles, according to a state audit.
But Harp said the bulk of the FBI's attention in the Youngstown area is devoted to the organized-crime investigation.
Strollo, 66, and his Cleveland lawyer, Orville Stifel, declined to comment on the investigation. Strollo suggested in an interview with the Youngstown Vindicator in January that he is the victim of a vendetta by an overzealous FBI agent.
Businesses, casino in probe
According to court records and statements prosecutors have made in court, authorities are looking at these areas in addition to the Biondillo murder:
Strollo's alleged ownership of a hotel and gambling casino in Puerto Rico with Pasquale "Pat" Ferruccio, a retired Canton vending company owner who the FBI also says is a member of the Pittsburgh La Cosa Nostra family and was once the mob's expert on video poker operations.
Mob influence at the Rincon Indian Reservation Casino near San Diego. Ferruccio and Strollo's brother, Dominic, were indicted this year by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on charges of concealing their ownership interest in a company that bribed a tribal council member to land a contract to finance and manage a casino on the reservation. Ferruccio pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiring to obstruct the National Indian Gaming Commission and was sentenced to a year in prison. That sentence will be served at the same time as a two-year sentence imposed for associating with Strollo while on probation. Dominic Strollo is awaiting trial.
Ace Fireworks, a Conneaut firm that prosecutors say is linked to Dominic Strollo. Some of the money paid to the Rincon tribe under terms of the casino management contract passed through Ace's corporate bank account.
Internet gambling on the island of St. Kitts and a numbers lottery on the island of St. Maarten.
Miray Fund Raising Foundation, a company that provided bingo and Monte Carlo night supplies to nonprofit groups. One of the incorporators of Miray was Raymond Hertz, the son of Lenny Strollo's longtime girlfriend and who prosecutors have said is part of Strollo's racketeering enterprise.
Ex-lawyer implicated
Assistant U.S. Attorney Craig S. Morford also said during a recent court hearing that George Alexander, a disbarred Youngstown attorney and former adviser to Rep. James A. Traficant Jr., Democrat of Youngstown, has been involved in the racketeering enterprise.
Alexander served as an adviser to Traficant during the congressman's 1986 trial in U.S. Tax Court. Traficant was found liable for taxes on bribes accepted from mob figures even though he had been cleared of criminal charges.
Previously, the FBI reported observing Strollo and other reputed organized crime figures meeting with Charles O'Nesti, director of Traficant's district office, at the Captain's Table Restaurant in Boardman in November 1996.
Traficant spokesman Paul Marcone said O'Nesti was not meeting with any of the people the FBI saw him with, but had run into them at the restaurant by chance. He said O'Nesti had gone to high school with one of the men and thanked the man for recommending homeopathic medicine for his wife, who was suffering from cancer at the time and has since died.
Marcone said Alexander and Traficant have not spoken to each other in many years.
Wellington said Strollo has been considered the leader of organized crime activity in the Mahoning Valley since 1991, when Naples was killed by a sniper while visiting the construction site of a home he was building in Beaver Township, near Youngstown, Wellington said.
Strollo and Naples had jointly controlled illegal video poker machines, numbers lotteries and casinos in the Youngstown area since the retirement of reputed mob boss James V. Prato, who died of a heart attack in 1988, in the mid-1980s, informants have told the FBI.
But Strollo and Naples maintained their own factions controlled different areas of Mahoning County, an FBI agent said in an affidavit filed in U.S. District Court in May.
Racketeering conviction
In 1990, Strollo was convicted of a racketeering charge for running an illegal gambling operation, including a large casino known as the All-American Club in Campbell and bribing a Mahoning County sheriff's deputy and a local police chief.
As Strollo was preparing to begin serving a 14-month prison sentence, he met regularly with Naples, but feared Naples would take over his gambling operations once he went to prison, an informant told the FBI in October 1990.
The FBI says Strollo currently controls area gambling in association with Henry "Zebo" Zottola of Pittsburgh, described by the FBI as a high-ranking associate of the Pittsburgh La Cosa Nostra family and the liaison between the Pittsburgh crime family and its members and associates in Youngstown.
In Mahoning County, Strollo's close associates have included Bernard Altshuler and Lawrence Garono, who pleaded guilty to operating an illegal gambling business in the same 1990 case in which Strollo was convicted, according to the FBI.
Altshuler was sentenced to 18 months in prison earlier this year for violating his probation in a North Carolina bank burglary case. Prosecutors said Altshuler violated his probation by associating with felons, including Strollo, and by conspiring with Strollo and others to kill Biondillo.
Altshuler issued a murder contract on Biondillo, offering the killers $35,000, according to the affidavit of FBI agent John E. Stoll.
Agents first learned Biondillo might be in danger in January 1995, when an informant told them that Biondillo was trying to take over parts of Lenny Strollo's organized crime operation, Stoll said in the affidavit.
That rivalry probably led to the vending company owner's death, said the informant quoted in the affidavit. This is what happened, according to affidavit:
Biondillo, who had been close to Naples, began to pay off politicians without telling Strollo or "sharing the advantages." Biondillo also put video poker machines in private clubs in Hillville, Pa., which was considered Strollo's area, without telling Strollo.
When Strollo found out, he demanded that Biondillo either remove the machines or share the profits.
Biondillo "refused to fall in line," and the informant believed Strollo would have Biondillo killed.
Warning from agents
Agents warned Biondillo that someone might try to kill him, and he began to wear a bulletproof vest.
Biondillo's killers stalked him for more than a year before he was killed, according to another affidavit filed last month by FBI Agent Robert G. Kroner Jr.
Kroner's affidavit said another informant told agents that Biondillo was to be killed because he was doing something illegal in Canada with "mustaches," a slang word for older organized crime figures, and cutting other people out.
So far, two Youngstown men have been charged in Biondillo's murder. George Wilkins, 24, pleaded guilty to a federal charge of committing murder to further a racketeering enterprise. No sentencing date has been set.
Cleveland Blair, 25, was arrested on a warrant charging him with the same crime last month and is in the custody of federal marshals awaiting indictment.
Wilkins and Blair were the two men who did the shooting while two other men drove the cars, according to Kroner's affidavit.
Kroner wrote that the diamond ring with the initials "EB" taken from Biondillo's finger moments after he was shot was pawned by Wilkins earlier this year at a jewelry store in Pittsburgh.
Caption:
PHOTOS BY: NO CREDIT PHOTO 1: FERRUCCIO PHOTO 2: ALTSHULER PHOTO 3: STROLL PHOTO 4: NAPLES PHOTO 5: BIONDILLO BOX: INVESTIGATING THE MAFIA LENINE "LENNY" STROLLO STROLLO, OF CANFIELD, OHIO, IS IN CHARGE OF ORGANIZED CRIME ACTIVITY IN THE MAHONING VALLEY AND IS A MEMBER OF THE PITTSBURGH LA COSA NOSTRA FAMILY, ACCORDING TO THE FBI. STROLLO WAS INDUCTED INTO THE FAMILY ALONG WITH JOSEPH "JOEY" NAPLESIN 1987 BY MICHAEL GENOVESE, WHOM THE PENNSYLVANIA CRIME COMMISSION IDENTIFIED AS THE BOSS OF THE PITTSBURGH CRIME FAMILY. STROLLO WAS CONVICTED OF RACKETEER- ING IN 1990 FOR A GAMBLING OPERATION HE CONTROLLED IN CAMPBELL. ERNIE BIONDILLO BIONDILLO, 53, WAS MURDERED JUNE 3, 1996, WHILE DRIVING TO WORK AT UNITED MUSIC INC., A YOUNGSTOWN VENDING-MACHINE BUSINESS PREVIOUSLY OPERATED BY JOEY NAPLES. BIONDILLO, OF CAMPBELL, WAS INVOLVED IN ILLEGAL GAMBLING IN THE YOUNGSTOWN AREA, THE PENNSYLVANIA CRIME COMMISSION SAID IN A 1992 REPORT. THE FBI HAS SAID BIONDILLO WAS CLOSE TO NAPLES AND WAS PART OF THE NAPLES FACTION OF ORGANIZED CRIME FIGURES IN THE MID- TO LATE 1980S. BERNARD ALTSHULER ALTSHULER, 64, IS A TOP AIDE TO LENNY STROLLO, ACCORDING TO THE FBI AND YOUNGSTOWN POLICE. ALTSHULER, OF YOUNGSTOWN, WAS CONVICTED IN 1990 OF RUNNING AN ILLEGAL GAMBLING BUSINESS WITH STROLLO. IN 1993, ALTSHULER WAS CONVICTED OF BANK ROBBERY IN CHARLOTTE, N.C., AND SERVED 18 MONTHS IN PRISON. HE WAS SENT BACK TO PRISON FOR ANOTHER 18 MONTHS FOR VIOLATING PROBATION FOR ASSOCIATING WITH FELONS, INCLUDING STROLLO. AN INFORMANT TOLD THE FBI THAT ALTSHULER PUT OUT THE MURDER CONTRACT ON BIONDILLO'S LIFE, ACCORDING TO AFFIDAVITS FILED IN U.S. DISTRICT COURT. JOSEPH "JOEY" NAPLES JR. ON AUG. 19, 1991, NAPLES WAS SHOT TO DEATH WHILE VISITING THE SITE OF A HOME HE WAS BUILDING IN SOUTHERN MAHONING COUNTY. THE MURDER HAS NOT BEEN SOLVED. NAPLES, 58, AND LENNY STROLLO CONTROLLED ORGANIZED CRIME ACTIVITY IN VARIOUS AREAS OF THE MAHONING VALLEY AFTER REPUTED MOB BOSS JAMES V. PRATO RETIRED IN THE MID-1980S, ACCORDING TO FBI AFFIDAVITS. PASQUALE "PAT" FERRUCCIO FERRUCCIO, 80, OF CANTON, WAS SENTENCED TO TWO YEARS IN PRISON THIS YEAR FOR VIOLATING HIS PROBATION BY ASSOCIATING WITH LENNY STROLLO AND HENRY ZOTTOLA, WHOTHE FBI HAS SAID IS A HIGH-RANKING ASSOCIATE OF THE PITTSBURGH LA COSA NOSTRA FAMILY. FBI AGENTS SAID THEY SAW STROLLO AND ZOTTOLA MEETING WITH FERRUCCIO IN FERRUCCIO'S OFFICE ACROSS THE STREET FROM THE FBI OFFICE IN CANTON. FERRUCCIO, AMEMBER OF THE PITTSBURGH FAMILY, IS LIAISON BETWEEN THE CLEVELAND AND PITTSBURGHCRIME FAMILIES, ACCORDING TO COURT RECORDS.

Post Gazette article on Lenine Strollo from youngstown, OH.

http://www.post-gazette.com/regionstate/19990221strollo7.asp

Hey Phatmatress,

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion on here. Just because I said your hometown is corny, I'm a tool? Who the hell are you to judge me, get a sandwich with a bunch of coleslow and frenh fries stuffed in, or whatever the hell that crap is they think is so famous out there lol

You two guys wanna spend Christmas in the sandbox??? Play nice with each other.

no im not trying to argue. it just seems that a few select members are just spreading alot of negativity for no reason on this board as of late. attacking what members post, intelligent interesting as this one have turned into blatten disrespect for the posters in this thread. i just don't understand why you would wanna just disrespect this thread (wich some find very interesting with lots of facts and info and research). i have never been banned or kicked or even warned for that matter. i consider myself a respectful poster and person. if i have an opinion that really has no use on this board i keep it myself.(AND TRUST ME I HAVE MANY!!!)infact i just got a msg from a certain member stating that the name of this game is arguing on this board. obv it's not and it's not to come on and rag on posters/threads. i just wanted to explain my feelings.

I have friends who live out that way and some family out there they know how to take a joke as they would make fun of Philadelphia as well.

That area is very spread out unlike this side where everyone is in your business. I could of contributed stuff about the video poker business, or certain last name(s) on one of the charts that hit close to home but then again we have people claiming to have worked with law enforcement.

It's the holidays I'm not trying to argue with anyone either.

ok perhaps i have just been to sensitive lately with this board. no hard feelings. i was auctually just out towards philly on the 18th. i was in Reading for the CKY show. are you familar with them?

Just ignore the guy, Philly Boy. DNM, If people like you know who, spended their time minded their own, instead of what others are doing, and not being the net police like the person I'm talking about is, this world would be a better place. Also, about the name of the game, it was a joke. The guy needs to stop being so sensitive and enjoy this awesome forum.

You know what, just got a note from Phat, and It's all good. Merry Christmas to all and to my Jewish friends Happy H. Let's all just have a drink and chill. Ciao!

Happy Holidays to all. NJBoy55 was going to send you a PM, but wanted to know if you ever made it to the Pet Shop today lol..

Like Bam Margera CKY? Didnt know they still preformed.

yeah bam's brother is the drummer. they are still around. im a die hard cky fan lol. not to much a fan of bam nowadays hes kinda gay but the band has done a good amount to distance themselves from like the jackass mtv stuff. they are a really good band.

The FBI one bother all the VFW'S and take there poker machines in towns alot smaller then dubois back in the 60's n 70's they harassed anyone they could

I've ran into BAM at his bar/club "The Note in West Chester PA. I saw him out a few times, always bugging people for yeyo if he didnt have his own or to get him some. I remember at the IGGY POP Concert a few years back 08 I believe Electric Factory Philadelphia..These girls he was taking back in the greenroom no way they were 18 pedafile,,cokehead..loser.

yeah im not a fan of bam anymore. i used like him when he was a skateboarder as opposed to some women's clothes wearing idiot. his stuff isn't even funny anymore. i think thats a big reason the band CKY distants themselves from that nonsense.

Happy holidays to all.

Yeah I always thought he was a douchebag.

How old are you Phat? A CKY fan can't be older than 30, I'm 22

im 28...i have been a fan since 99 lol im an original fan

It's nice to see other youngsters on the board

Here is a link from 1983 that shows West Virginia, Youngstown, Stebenville and Pittsburgh organized crime.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1144&dat=19830227&id=7tkcAAAAIBAJ&sjid=GGEEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2459,4738016

That's quite a find. I remember being incredulous when my father told me there was a Cosa Nostra presence in Steubenville when he was younger. In fact, I just dismissed it as him repeating some silly rumor he had heard. Then I later investigated it extensively and found out it was true. And it also existed in Wheeling and other places in the panhandle.

Yes, that's right.... the West Virginia Mafia.

I've never seen a picture of Orlando Carabbia before... wonder what he's up to these days. Interesting how the graphic highlights the unmade Carabbia but doesn't show Jimmy Prato.

BTW you don't happen to have a timeline of the hits etc. from the Naples-Carabbia war, do you?

Hi Ivan,

Through my extensive research, here are a few clues for you to investigate further. If you are looking for a great photo of Jimmy Prato from Youngstown, check out Rick Porello's book called "To kill the Irishman." There is a large surveillance photo of Prato. Also included are photos of Ronnie Carabbia, Joey Naple and Lenny Strollo.

As far as Steubenville, three names to check out are Silvio Pinciaro, James Vincent Tripodi and Jack DeSauro (still alive and running a very extensive numbers and sports bookmaking operation).

The timeline for the Naples-Carabbia war would be from 1978. Charles Grisham was the first casualty, James Cononico in 1979. The Carabbia's first cousin, Dominic "Junior" Senzarino from Poland, OH was shotgunned to death in his own garage in 1980 and the list goes on. Here is a link for the indictment:

http://www.vindy.com/news/2002/feb/22/youngstown-ky-inmate-indicted-in-21-year-old/?print

http://www.vindy.com/news/2002/jun/08/man-pleads-innocent-in-21-year-old-murder-case/?print

http://www.vindy.com/news/2003/jul/14/youngstown-mob-hit-man-talks-to-crime-task-force/

http://www.vindy.com/news/2003/jun/26/youngstown-hit-man-suspect-appears-in-court/?print

http://www.nevadaobserver.com/Reading%20...20Affidavit.htm (This is a complete list of all the victims from the Cleveland-Pittsburgh-Youngstown war.)

http://members.fortunecity.com/sosdie/mob/family/pittsburgh/youngstown.htm (Photos of Prato, Naples and Strollo)

http://www.clevescene.com/cleveland/end-of-the-line/Content?oid=1472059 (Great article on Youngstown, OH mafia activity)

Here is an article on Carmen Policy, originally from Youngstown/Poland, OH. Carmen and his law partner Ed Flask had a very strong law firm where their concentration was on organized crime figures such as the Carabbia's, Naples brothers etc. Carmen became the President of the San Francisco 49ers because of his close friendship with billionaire shopping mall mogul Eddie DeBartolo Jr. Here is a great article:

http://www.clanram.com/forums/f58/amazing-transformation-carmen-policy-defender-mobsters-5212/

http://www.sfweekly.com/1999-10-13/news/charmed/full/ (Photos of Ronnie Carabbia nd Joey Naples are included)

Here is a court document on Jack DeSarro, who controls gambling in East Liverpool, OH (which is about 30 miles north of Steubenville). Jack DeSarro and Michael "Cyrak" Serrecchio from Youngstown, OH were longtime friends and partners in both the Youngstown/East Liverpool operation of numbers known as "the bug."

http://ftp.resource.org/courts.gov/c/F3/16/16.F3d.1222.92-3872.html

Here is an article on the DeSarro family from East Liverpool, OH from a small publication known as "Ohio River Life."



Friday, December 19, 2008
The DeSarros respond

by M. Stewart
In light of the stir caused by a Tuesday Morning Journal article in which East Liverpool Councilman Ryan Stovall is quoted as saying that threats were made over renewal of a local club’s liquor license, I visited with Gina DeSarro Tatgenhorst on Thursday to get her family’s side of the story.

Let me say at the outset that I take no sides in this controversy, but when Gina told me that the local newspapers have been reluctant to present her family’s point of view, I thought it would be interesting to offer ORL readers a chance to see it. Please note that although I have had some fun with this issue in the past, I’m playing it straight in this piece.

First of all, let’s address the alleged name of the Pennsylvania Avenue club in question—Liquor Dick’s. The working assumption is that the DeSarro family gave the club a suggestively lewd name to retaliate against the city for shutting down the University Club, which Gina DeSarro operated for 10 years before it was closed in 2006 as a “nuisance” bar.

Liquor Dick’s has been interpreted as a way of saying “lick our dicks” to city hall. A compelling idea to be sure, but Gina claims the name has nothing to do with that. In fact, Liquor Dick’s is not the name of the club. It appears on no sign and is not recorded as the name of the club on the liquor license, invoices, or any other documents. It is, she admits, what people called the Italian American War Veterans (ITAM) Post 25, and that her son, Dick Bissell, who operated the club, is largely responsible for it.

“It was a name he thought was cool, like Whiskey Dick’s,” Gina said. “His name is Dick and we sold liquor there, so it became known as Liquor Dick’s. What can I say? He’s a 22-year-old, and it probably was a mistake to call it that, but what 22-year-old hasn’t made a mistake? . . . [So] the name really is not what it seems. We are sorry. We didn’t mean anything by it. It’s just something it was tagged.”

As for the alleged threats, Gina said that her father, Jack DeSarro, did call Councilman Brian Kerr, but made no threats to him. According to Gina, Jack complained to Brian about the Liquor Dick’s issue being dragged through the newspapers yet again, even though the club has been closed since October. She said her father did, however, express disdain for the city’s constant opposition to his family’s business interests, at one point saying, “As far as I’m concerned, the town can stick every business I own up its ass.”

Although Gina did not characterize the discussion as cordial, she vehemently disputed that any threats were made to Kerr or any member of city council. According to the Morning Journal, Councilman Stovall issued a “warning” in response to the alleged intimidation, saying, "This won't be tolerated. We will take back our town."

In response to Stovall, Gina said, “I don’t understand where that’s coming from. He’s going to take the town back. I didn’t know we were running the town.”

Gina said that when the ITAM club received a letter dated Oct. 17, 2008 from Italian American War Veterans national commander, George Le Porte, demanding that the club cease operations, the decision was made to shut it down with no intention to re-open. According to Gina, it was Councilman Kerr who made the inquiry to Le Porte that elicited the cease-and-desist letter.

Much of the controversy, she believes, came from the club’s unofficial name of Liquor Dick’s, but Gina insists that it was a legitimate ITAM club. “Everybody signed the member book; everybody paid dues; and everybody had a card,” she said. “I didn’t understand it, but when I got the letter I shut it down. It has been closed since before Halloween.”

She said the liquor license itself remains in good standing. “We’ve paid the fee every year. We haven’t received any letter from the liquor control board. They have no issue with the license. [Le Porte] told us that Councilman Kerr said that ITAM 25 was being run as a night club. When we asked for proof of trouble, [the commander] didn’t have any. We were charged with serving a non-member in ’07. [Police Chief Mike] McVay stated it was underage drinking, but there was never any charge for underage drinking.”

Gina said the liquor license was issued in 1980 and was fully sanctioned by ITAM, who sent documents to the liquor control board indicating who was to receive the license. There was no forgery involved, she said. According to Tuesday’s Morning Journal story, the city intends to challenge the renewal of the license with the state commerce department.

Gina admitted that there has been some problems at the ITAM club—particularly a July 4 shooting involving a local resident and a Columbus man. She also recognized that there had been unwanted trouble at the downtown University Club. The night of the infamous “riot,” she said the club was filled to capacity, and most of the patrons were out-of-towners from Pittsburgh and Youngstown.

As much as she attempted to control the U-Club, she admits that in the end “it got away from [her],” largely because of its popularity with big-city patrons. Gina also said that some of those people no doubt were involved with drugs, but that happens in bars everywhere. “We never said we were running a church,” she said. “No matter how hard you try, bar owners can’t always control that.”

As for her family’s strained relationship with city police, Gina said, “We don’t have a problem with the police department. We understand what they have to do here. I regret that every cop thinks I have a problem with them. The truth is I respect them.”

Gina has decided to retire rather than continue to do battle with the city. “We don’t want to fight anymore,” she said. “We’re tired. I am enjoying my grandkids.” Still, she is not happy about how her family has been portrayed, especially in the media.

“I’m not here to try to sway anyone’s opinion,” she said, “but we are a good family. I don’t care what they say, my father is a good father and husband. He’s been a great provider for his family, and there is nothing that would make me not proud of him.”

Here is a copy of part 5 & 6 of the 1985 Pennsylvania Crime Commission's report on organized crime in Philly/Pittsbugh. There is a great surveillance photo of John LaRocca just months before he died as well as a photo of new boss Michael Genovese leaving the Holiday House in Monroeville. A 1985 Pittsburgh Family Chart as well as photos of the Altoona, PA faction and some of its key players:

http://clevelandmob.com/files/Penn1985Rptpart5and6005.pd

Here is an article from the Pittsburgh Press from February of 1992. The article mentions Charles Imburgia, a Pittsburgh LCN member from Warren, OH. His son in law is Frank Nannicola, owner of Nannicola Wholesale Co., which sells bingo supplies nationwide.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1144&dat=19920201&id=YrUcAAAAIBAJ&sjid=CGQEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1129,15357

Here is the link to Pittsburgh Family Chart from 1984 Pennsylvania Crime Commission. This chart was found in the book by Rick Porello called "To Kill the Irishman."

http://books.google.com/books?id=K2NkBhJ...hio&f=false

So there is still a remnant of Italian-American organized crime presence in Steubenville? I figured it was COMPLETELY gone.

Pinciaro and Tripodi are dead, as they handled alot of gambling in Steubenville. However, Jack DeaSarro is still alive, probably around 80-85 years old and has always been the key guy in East Liverpool, OH.

Here is a recent article regarding Paul "No Legs" Hankish, former gambling boss in Wheeling, WV.

http://news-register.net/page/content.detail/id/542134.html

Here is an article on Adolfo and Salvatore Williams, who took over Tony Grosso's numbers writing business.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/s_147857.html

Great detail on Youngstown players from the Post Gazette in Pittsburgh:

http://www.post-gazette.com/headlines/20010527ytngraphictextnat9.asp

Here is an article on Youngstown, OH mafia activity called "Crimetown USA."

http://www.tnr.com/article/politics/crimetown-usa?page=0,6

Here is an article on Robert Dorler Sr., a convicted mob hitman from Youngstown, OH. This article is from 2003. It says that he is cooperating with the FBI and providing details on unsolved homocides.

http://www.vindy.com/news/2003/jul/14/youngstown-mob-hit-man-talks-to-crime-task-force/

Here is a 1987 article from the Pittsburgh Press regarding the raid on the "All American Club" in Campbell, OH, which was said to be the largest illegal casino in the country.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1144&dat=19870406&id=C7UqAAAAIBAJ&sjid=NWMEAAAAIBAJ&pg=3986,4378429

Here is a link to a new movie being made called "Youngstown Boys" and it is centered around Amil Dinsio and his crew of bank robbers that took down the bank in Laguna Beach, CA and made out with over $12 million.


http://www.darkhorizons.com/news/20855/ericson-core-to-direct-youngstown-boys/

Here is a new book by Allen May, an organized crime author and historian from that has written a few books and engineered alot of research on organized crime in Youngstown, OH. His new book "Welcome to the Jungle Inn" has been released and tells the story of one of the largest illegal gambling dens in history. The Jungle Inn featured many talented singers such as Dean Martin (Dino Crocetti), Sammy Davis Jr etc. Here is the link to the book:

http://www.bookmasters.com/marktplc/04045.htm

'Penn Hills Family' members sentenced
By Bobby Kerlik, PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Three Penn Hills men pleaded guilty Tuesday to a string of burglaries in which police said they tried to mimic organized crime and called themselves the "Penn Hills Family."

Louis Amendola, 24, Philip Vecchio, 22, and Shane Kesneck, 23, pleaded guilty to planning and participating in the burglaries and were sentenced as part of a plea deal, prosecutors said.

Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Jill E. Rangos sentenced Amendola and Vecchio each to 16 to 42 months in prison followed by 10 years of probation. Kesneck was sentenced to 13 to 26 months in prison followed by 10 years of probation. Rangos ordered all three to pay restitution.

Vecchio's attorney, Phil DiLucente, said prosecutors withdrew robbery and some theft charges. Attorneys for the other two men could not be reached for comment.

"My client stated that he just wanted to pay his debt to society," DiLucente said. "He was looking at 26 misdemeanor and felony charges, so he was pleased with the outcome."

State police said the men were part of a criminal organization -- patterned after the Italian Mafia -- that carried out burglaries and other crimes in Pittsburgh and its eastern suburbs between June 3, 2008 and Feb. 22, 2009.

Amendola served as the organization's "self-appointed boss," and often called the group "la Cosa Nostra," or "Our Thing" -- the name used to refer to the traditional Italian Mafia, police said.

Rangos previously threw out a corrupt organizations charge against the three and DiLucente downplayed the Mafia comparison.

"These were just a couple of young men who pled guilty to certain acts," DiLucente said.

Three other men still have pending cases involving the group.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/s_774888.html?_s_icmp=NetworkHeadlines

This Happened a little while back, just some idiot young guys with Italian names.

This reminds me of all the rappers who call themselves "Gotti" and "Scarfo" and whatnot.

Idiots. They were what, only burglarizing for 6 months before they got caught?

i remember seeing these guys on ch 4 news. just a bunch of kids. they didn't even pull of big heists. sometimes they netted as lil a 50$. one of them had some kind of mafia tattoo on his back. bunch of jerk offs.

Does anybody know if Chucky Porter is still living in Penn Hills?

Here is a photo of Michael Genovese's house in West Deer, PA.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsbur...0&width=720

The last story written on Michael Genovese:

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09109/963736-109.stm

Here is an old article in the Pittsburgh Press. It shows the underboss from Philadelphia, Philip Leonetti, describing his meeting with Chucky Porter back in 1986 over a dispute. The meeting took place right before Porter was made and elevated to underboss in Pittsburgh.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1144&dat=19901010&id=Zx4hAAAAIBAJ&sjid=b2QEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5385,5352218

http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Zx4hAAAAIBAJ&sjid=b2QEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2293,5945808&hl=en

Here is an article from April 13, 1991 (Photo of Chuck Porter). This article quoted Fred Martens, executive director of the Pennsylvania Crime Commission and stated that the Pittsburgh La Cosa Nostra family at that time "was the strongest" in the state of Pennsylvania.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1144&dat=19910413&id=ASweAAAAIBAJ&sjid=7JYEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5483,5474922

one of the kids on that penn hills family is related to louis raucci i think its his grandson

dont think it was a bunch of kids theres more too it, one kid is related to louis raucci right hand man of micheal genovese

Welcome tooda fam-lee, katrina!

I am one of Nick DeLucia's daughters. My dad's birth year was 1931, not 1921. He died in 2006 of natural causes, due to complications from a stroke. Thank you.

Current family chart

Made members

Boss – Thomas "Sonny" Ciancutti – took over Kelly Mannarino's New Kensington gambling rackets. In 2002, Ciancutti was given probation for controlling gambling operations in Allegheny and Fayette counties.
Underboss – Robert "Bobby I" Iannelli – controls a sports bookmaking operation; he also took over Tony Grosso's old numbers and illegal gambling operation.
Soldier – Geno "Eugene" Chiarelli – was released from prison in 2008
Soldier – John V. Leone
Soldier – Mauro P. Matone
Associates

John Francis "Duffy" Conley Jr. – controlled an illegal video poker machine ring in Pittsburgh. In 2006, Conley was arrested for running illegal gambling operations.
Ralph "Big Head" Maselli – controls gambling operations in Pittsburgh
John V. "Johnny A" Adams – controls gambling operations in Pittsburgh
Christopher Paul Hankish
Salvatore A. "Sonny" Williams

Their fucked for a fact

yeah. they've been fucked for a while. they have been banned from making new members for a while now, right? works out good for sonny though cause im sure he's still earning and the cops look at the scraps left over there as a joke so more than likely he doesnt have to worry about prison, but it makes little difference as he's probably gonna drop dead soon anyways.

He's dead. So's his dad Paul.

I thought Chiarelli died in 2010.

The beginning of the end for this "family" was when Jo Jo went to Lexington for his extened vacation. His pending incarsaration created John LaRocca's need to name both he and Michael under-boss. Then Kelly died a year latter and left only Michael. Most believed that John preferred Jo Jo as he was more in John's style, that being a "boss of the people".

They should have started making new members over there years ago.

Considering the last ones made: Maybe they were better off not to?

Supposedly, New York put a freeze on them making new guys years ago. And, even if they could, it probably wouldn't make much difference. Not as far as staving off the attrition.

are there any active guys left besides sonny, or is it like a carbon copy of the last days of the buffalino family with only big billy?

I don't think there are any guys left in the Bufalino family. Considering D'Elia flipped. And I think that "Lips" guy (don't recall his full name) died a while back. Pittsburgh still have a handful of guys. But who knows if any are active.

yeah the buffalino family is gone but from what i gathered is that D'Elia was thought to be the last active member of his family,right? my impression was that the same thing is going on in pittsburg now with sonny continuing to earn until he dies, kinda like social security

Maybe Charlie Murgie's nephew, Anthony?

no where like prison to meet some real criminals. Its college for criminals

Hi Philip_Lombardo:

Corrections: Sonny Ciancutti is the only made guy left in Pittsburgh, in which the Pittsburgh LCN NO longer exists. There is nothing left to run. Bobby I was NEVER made, as he and the Williams brothers took over Tony Grosso's numbers operation and paid tribute to Genovese, just like Grosso. Chiarelli was nothing more than a high profile thief and drug dealer and Mauro Matone was a convicted drug dealer (conviction was in NY). Although Wikipedia lists these idiots as soldiers, I have researched Pittsburgh extensively as I work with several authors. There will be a book coming out with a tentative release date of 2016 on Pittsburgh LCN. The information I have just provided you with is from Roger Greenbank, who was head of the Organized Crime squad for the FBI in Pittsburgh and is now retired.

I wish some of the posts on this site were accurate, but they just aren't. Real Deal forum has quite a bit of professional researchers and authoprs and is much more accurate.

Thanks for the clarifications.

Here's some other names I came across in relation to the Bufalinos. Any updated info on them?

1. Michael "Hoppy" Carsia
2. Charles "Charlie Lips" Fratello (IP/L)
3. Michael Insalaco
4. Albert Scalleat

Nobody has new info on them that they can cite honestly. But Charlie Lips died after he got paroled. Albert Scalleat and Carsia were running scams and such but it was under D'elia (and his corrupt judges) political protection and that's run out since they were all indicted. No new info but Insalaco was a junketeer just like all the Pittsburgh guys and in the 90's paid some politicians for their reelection campaigns, which was smart. I know that if you look in to business records owned by these guys you'll find something, occasionally I do since they all owned businesses in the PA area.

Do you know if they all confirmed made members at one time?

I've never found any FBI reports on the Bufalinos that would spell that out for you. The Bufalino file itself on Citizensvoice isn't that helpful. The bets source is the PA Crime Commission reports, scroll down here.

Albert Scalleat was made. Here's a quote from this article which refers to Albert and his brother Joseph (who worked with Hoppy Carsia).



Here's a report on the Dave Green undercover case in Florida that refers to Charlie Lips as a capo. I believe he was just a soldier though. And a second article at the Sun Sentinel.

Can't find anything on Hoppy Carsia being made or not.

And this article cites the PCC reports and identifies Michael Insalaco as made. Apparently he was big in video poker and vending, never knew the Bufalino family was involved in that at all.

If this is the same guy, somebody is way out of date...

From the 1984 Pennsylvania Crime Commission Report -

"On May 10, 1983, Michael "Hoppy" Carsia, Hazelton, died due to a heart condition. Carsia, owner of the former Can-Do Coal Sales Company in Hazleton, was convicted of filing false tax returns in 1975. He was an associate of deceased Murder Inc. triggerman, Jack Parisi."

Obituary: Geno Chiarelli / Powerful figure in Pittsburgh Mafia

http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/loca...h-mafia-641223/

the los angeles crime family has 14 members left are they fucked?

Thanks Ivy League a I knew Chiarelli had died.

Pittsburgh has been limping along since the 1990 trial that sent Porter and Raucci in prison and made Porter cooperate, however, he never testified against anybody because he perjured himself in his 1990 trial when he testified on the stand, he was considered not credible. According to Bob Garrity and Roger Greenbank, former Special Agents who dogged LCN for years, Porter was a true gentleman and very respectful, old school. Genovese never made anybody "on Federal records" however, there have been innuendo of Genovese making Henry "Zebo" Zottola in the 90's to control Lenny Strollo and his Youngstown crew. Even if Zottola was made, that would only bring the number to a total of 5 new members in his 21 year reign. Porter & Ciancutti were made in 1986, Joey Naples & Lenny Strollo from Youngstown in 1987 and Zottola in the 90's (if in fact it can be corroborated). It makes sense, but I believe Strollo would have testified that Zebo was in fact a made guy and I can't recall if he testified to that info.

Geno Chiarelli was NOT made, Torsten Ove who wrote the obituary called Chiarelli a member, but he was a mere associate of Porter. He was a wheel man, drug dealer and did the dirty work for Porter. Ciancutti is the only one left and YES, LCN in Pittsburgh is finished. There are still old associates who make book, but no mafia hierarchy any longer.

there is no lcn presence in pittsburgh anymore. i have heard that citizens of the new kensington area ( white folks) would love to have the mob back in full forece due to all the black gangs and drug use gone rampant there.

Los Angeles doesn't even have that many at this point.

I take it your from Philly, great city, great cheesesteaks but absolutely has the most mentally challenged citizens in South Philly. The Philadelphia Crime family has been one of the most disorganized group of rats in all of LCN. Whacking Bruno was the worst thing they did and they never recovered. How many guys flipped? How many bosses got life? Joey Merlino was on a public softball team (Gino's Cafe). The mafia is supposed to be a secret, and Merlino's group made themselves visible for all of law enforcement to see. Wasn't Joey's wife banging another guy while he was away? From Scarfo, Stanfa, Merlino and Natale they had a combined IQ of 10. Now Merlino is living in Boca in a nice residential neighborhood for all of law enforcement to see. You may think Pittsburgh is "corny" but at least their family has had stability since the bootlegging days. Two bosses since 1956 and neither one of them went to jail. As Paulie Walnuts once said "In my book, you get points for staying out of the can." But what do you expect from a couple of South Philly retards!!!

Louis Amendola was related to Raucci, now though, he served 2months in jail before turning several fellow drug dealers into the police through his lawyer, in return he got to go to "boot camp" and now lives in a halfway house in braddock

Does anyone have any information on organized crime in Altoona? In the past I think there was some activity but with the passing of F. Corbo not sure if anyone left. Thoughts?

The guy that oversaw Altoona was Joseph "Little Joe" Regino who operated Keystone Sales Company (Vending) out of Johnstown, PA. He was a close confidant of John LaRocca and the Altoona faction answered to him. The Altoona faction was run by made member John Verilla who had a crew of Al Corbo and a few other associates. Mostly gambling, but also extorting drug dealers and other criminals.

Just a little side note on former poker machine king John "Duffy" Conley. He got popped with "No Legs" Hankish's kid and Sal "Junior" Williams's kid for operating a sports betting ring.Little Hankish died in 2009, Duffy did a little time and when he got out started an online penny auction business called Bid66.com. There are blue bumper stickers on just about every light pole in the city advertising it. So far,there is no indication that it is anything but legit. It kind of reminds me of Al Capone realizing that there was more money in the legal dairy business than in the booze racket.

I was aware of that. Hankish died in Scott Twp, PA. I heard it was drugs, but never was confirmed.

JCB and others, for those interested in early Pittsburgh hope you have read the article by Tom Hunt and Mike Tona: http://www.scribd.com/doc/47750996/A-Tes...sue-of-Informer

In the chart that NJBoy put up that started this thread he had Salvatore Calderone as a capo (caporegime), but he was a boss. I have a lot of info on early Pittsburgh and I have my own theory about Calderone, but that article is a very good place to start.

Here is Pittsburgh's LaRocca Crime Family Chart (1980-1990) that I posted on real deal for anyone interested:

LaRocca Crime Family

Hierarchy

Boss- John Sebastian LaRocca (took over in 1956 from Frank Amato Sr and died December 1984)
Boss- Michael James Genovese (took over in 1985 and died 10-31- 2006)
Underboss- Gabriel "Kelly" Mannarino (LaRocca's Underboss from 1956, died July 1980)
Underboss- Joseph "Jo Jo" Pecora (imprisoned from 1985 and died March 3, 1987)
Underboss- Charles "Chucky" Porter- 1986-1999 (cooperated secretly from 1992-1999) Released from prison in December 2000, living back in Penn Hills, PA.
Consigliere- Charles "Charlie Murgie" Imburgia (died in 2002) Consigliere since the early 1960's.

Capo Regimes

Capo- Antonio Ripepi- Clairton, PA (father in law to John Bazzano Jr.) died in 2000
Capo- Joseph Sica (grandfather to infamous drug dealing rat Joey Rosa and father in law to former Capo Frank Rosa) died 1991
Capo- Frank Rosa- (son in law to Joe Sica, father of drug dealer/rat Joey Rosa) died on January 28, 1982
Capo- Joseph "Little Joe" Regino- (Controlled illegal gambling in Altoona/Johnstown, PA) died June 18, 1985
Capo- Thomas "Sonny" Ciancutti- Protege of Gabriel Mannarino, Controlled all Illegal gambling in New Kensington, PA. Last made man left, 82 years old
Capo- Pasquale "Patsy" Ferruccio- (Video Poker kingpin, considered the mafia's leading expert) Canton, OH. died March 31, 2006
Capo- Domenico "Big Dom" Mallamo-Ran Youngstown, OH rackets since the 1940's (semi retired by 1982). Died in April 1987. (Was made in NYC and over in Reggio, Calabria Italy)
Capo- Vincenzo "Brier Hill Jimmy" Prato- Ran Youngstown, OH rackets since 1980-81. Died in 1988.
Capo- John Bazzano Jr.- Son of legendary mob boss John Bazzano Sr and son in law to Antonio Ripepi. Died in 2008.
Capo- Frank "Sonny" Amato Jr.- Son of legendary mob boss Frank Amato Sr (who stepped down in 1956 and was longtime Capo for LaRocca and died in 1973) Jr. died in 2003.



Soldiers (Made Men)

John Fontana- Ran illegal gambling in Monroeville, PA. Died on April 1, 1984.
Michael Traficante- Ran illegal gambling around Indiana, PA. Died in 1986.
Samuel "Sammy Fashion" Fashionatta- Ran illegal gambling in Altoona/Johnstown, PA. Died March 11, 1985
Louis Volpe- Infamous brother of the "Volpe Brothers" who ran gambling in East McKeesport/Turtle Creek, PA. Died June 3, 1987
Anthony "Wango" Capizzi- Ran gambling junkets for Pittsburgh family and worked closely with Bufalino Crime Family and Buffalo LCN. Died March 21, 2007
John "Jack" Verilla- Ran illegal gambling with Sammy Fashion in Altoona/Johnstown, PA. Died in prison September 10, 1988
Joseph "Little Joey" Naples- Ran illegal gambling in Youngstown, OH with Lenny Strollo. Naples was Jimmy Prato's protege. Murdered August 19, 1991.
Lenine "Lenny" Strollo- Ran illegal gambling with Joey Naples in Youngstown, OH. Convicted in 1999 and cooperated. Out of prison and living back in the Youngstown area.
Henry "Zebo" Zottola- Acted as liason between Youngstown faction and Pittsburgh. Oversaw Youngstown operations and reported to Genovese/Porter. Died in 1998.
Louis Raucci Sr.- Ran gambling, narcotics and fencing stolen property in Verona, PA. Answered directly to Porter/Genovese. Was said to have sit on the "left" side of Mike Genovese


Pittsburgh Associates:

John V Adams- He ran the Green Door Club, an after hours illegal gambling spot. Reported to John Bazzano Jr and Chucky Porter.
James "Jimmy" Ameris- Sports and numbers bookmaker in New Kensington, PA. Reported to Sonny Ciancutti.
Ronald "Farmer" Brown- Owned the BBS Coal Company. Extortion, illegal gambling and enforcer. Reported to Chucky Porter.
Eugene "Geno" Chiarelli- Narcotics, extortion and robbery. Reported to Chucky Porter (was convicted in 1990 as part of the Porter trial)
Anthony Durish- Narcotics, extortion and robbery. Reported to Chucky Porter and Louis Raucci. (was convicted in 1990 as part of the Porter trial)
August "Augie" Ferrone- Major bookmaker, interstate illegal gambling, partners with Primo Mollica. Reported to Chucky Porter and Sonny Ciancutti.
Primo Mollica-Major bookmaker, interstate illegal gambling, partners with Augie Ferrone. Reported to Chucky Porter and Sonny Amato.
Anthony Gesuale- Narcotics, loansharking, extortion, illegal gambling. Reported to Chucky Porter and Sonny Ciancutti.
Eugene "Nick the Blade" Gesuale- Major Narcotics distributor, loansharking and extortion. Reported to Chucky Porter and Louis Raucci.
Daniel "Speedo" Hanna- Illegal gambling, collections of tribute money to Pitt LCN. Reported to Sonny Ciancutti and Michael Genovese.
Steven Hatzimbes- Illegal gambling, worked with Jimmy Ameris and Daniel Hanna. Reported to Sonny Ciancutti.
Anthony "Tony" Grosso- Largest numbers operator in the country. $30 million/year, employed over 5000 numbers writers. Imprisoned in 1986. Reported to Genovese.
Robert "Bobby I" Ianelli- Major numbers/sports bookmaker. Took over part of Tony Grosso's numbers operation with the Williams brothers. Reported to Genovese
Salvatore Williams- Major numbers/sports bookmaker. Took over part of Tony Grosso's numbers operation with Bobby Ianelli. Reported to Genovese
Adolfo "Junior" Williams- Major numbers/sports bookmaker. Took over part of Tony Grosso's numbers operation with his brother and Bobby Ianelli. Reported to Genovese
Anthony "Ninny" Lagatutta- Ran back door, high stakes card games as well as sports bookmaking. Reported to John Bazzano Jr.
Samuel "Sammy" Lanzino- Sports bookmaking and fencing stolen property. Reported to Sonny Ciancutti.
John "Johnny Boy" Leone- Narcotics trafficking, illegal gambling, loansharking, extortion. Reported to Chucky Porter.
Michael "Mikey" Martorella- Sports and numbers bookmaking. Reported to Chucky Porter and Sonny Amato.
Louis "Louie" Masco- Illegal gambling and principal operator of the Cecil Italian Club. Reported to Sonny Ciancutti and Sonny Amato.
Mauro Matone- Narcotics trafficking and fencing stolen property. Reported to Chucky Porter.
Peter Mercurio Sr.- Sports and numbers bookmaking. Associated with Steve Hatzimbes gambling network. Reported to Sonny Ciancutti.
Anthony "Murgie" Imburgia- Nephew of Consigliere Charlie Imburgia. Owner of Verona Auto Sales. Reports to Chucky Porter and Mike Genovese.
Felix "Phil" Pitzerell- Owner of Pitzerell's Restaurant, illegal gambling and fencing stolen property. Reported to Chucky Porter and Louis Raucci.
Ronald Plisco- Plisco was Sonny Amato's key representative in illegal gambling. Reported to Sonny Amato and Chucky Porter.
William "Billy" Porter- Brother of Chucky Porter. Extortion, narcotics trafficking & robbery. Reported to Chucky Porter.
Michael Rosenfeld- Narcotics distribution. Reported to Chucky Porter and Louis Raucci.
Gerald Sabatini- Sports/numbers bookmaking and narcotics trafficking. Reported to Sonny Ciancutti.
John Sabatini- Sports/numbers bookmaking and narcotics trafficking. Reported to Sonny Ciancutti.
Robert Sabatini- Sports/numbers bookmaking and narcotics trafficking. Reported to Sonny Ciancutti.
Joseph Scolieri- Sports.numbers bookmaking. Reported to Chucky Porter and Louis Raucci.
Paul Scolieri- Sports/numbers bookmaking. Reported to Chucky Porter and Louis Raucci. (Part of Bobby Ianelli gambling network).
Meyer Sigal- Owner of Daily Juice Company, employed Joe Sica and Louis Raucci as ghost employees.
Frank Unis Jr- Ran the largest sports bookmaking/numbers operation in Beaver County. Reported to Joey Naples/Paul Hankish/Genovese/Gambino Family.
Rocco Viola Jr.- Chucky Porter's first cousin and real estate developer. Employed Porter as a consultant/ghost employee.
Manuel Xenakis- Sports/numbers bookmaking, part of the Sabatini brothers gambling enterprise. Reported to Sonny Ciancutti.


Youngstown, OH Faction:



Ernest "Ernie B" Biondillo- Chief Lieutenant to Joey Naples. Ran gambling in Campbell, OH. Murdered June 3, 1996. Reported to Joey Naples.
Frank "Ball Bat Frankie" Lentine- Ernie Biondillo's right hand man, ran dice/card games/robbery and sports bookmaking in Campbell, OH. Reported to Joey Naples.
Bernard "Bernie The Jew" Altshuler- Major money maker for Pittsburgh. Ran the All American Club illegal casino in Campbell, OH. Reported to Henry Zottola/Lenny Strollo.
Lawrence "Jeep" Garono- Lenny Strollo's chief lieutenant, collected gambling proceeds from local bookmakers. Reported to Lenny Strollo/Henry Zottola.
Dante "Danny" Strollo- Bagman for brother Lenny, liason between payoffs to corrupt public officials. Ran gambling at All American Club in Campbell, OH.
Michael "Cyrak" Serrecchio- Largest numbers/sports bookmaker/fencing stolen property in Youngstown. Operated Mr. A's Eatery. Reported to Naples/Strollo.
Joseph "Joey Cyrak" Serrecchio- Son of Mike "Cyrak" Serrecchio. Ran numbers for his dad/fencing of stolen property.
Joseph Perfette- Ran illegal gambling in Trumbull County/Warren, OH. 25% kicked up to Cleveland until 1983, then reported directly to Charlie Imburgia (Consigliere).
Jack DeSarro- Largest numbers/sports bookmaker in East Liverpool, OH (about 30 miles south of Youngstown). Reported to Naples/Strollo/Henry Zottola.
Robert "Bobby" Poghen- Debt collector/enforcer/hitman/illegal gambling. Reported to Naples/Strollo.
Paul "Pinto" Holavatick- Joey Naples' driver/enforcer/hitman/debt collector.
Raymond Hertz- Lenny Strollo's stepson. Owner of Stagecoach Inn Bar. Illegal gambling/numbers. Reported to Lenny Strollo.
Samuel "Sam" Vona Sr./Jr.- Both father and son ran extensive numbers/sports bookmaking in Struthers, OH. Reported to Naples/Strollo.
Thomas "Tommy" Peters- Owned Patsy's Lounge, numbers/sports bookmaking. Reported to Naples/Strollo.
Gary Goodrick- Enforcer/numbers/sports bookmaking/barbut dealer. Reported to Naples/Strollo.
Jack Malys- Ran illegal gambling/barbut/craps/numbers at the Greek Coffee House in Campbell, OH. Reported to Naples/Strollo.
Peter Cascarelli- Worked for Naples at Youngstown United Music (Vending Company), robbery/fencing stolen property. Reported to Naples.
Amil Dinsio- One of the biggest bank robbers in American History (1972 Laguna Niguel, CA heist). Robbery/burglary. Reported to Naples/Strollo.
James Dinsio- One of the biggest bank robbers in American History (1972 Laguna Niguel, CA heist). Robbery/burglary. Reported to Naples/Strollo.



Altoona, PA Faction:

Alfred Corbo- Sports/numbers bookmaking. Reported to John Verilla/Joe Regino
Joseph Ruggierio- Sports/numbers bookmaking. Reported to John Verilla/Joe Regino
Victor Schiappa- Sports/numbers bookmaking. Reported to John Verilla/Joe Regino
Carl Venturato- Sports/numbers bookmaking- Reported to John Verilla/Joe Regino
John Caramadre- John Verilla's chief lieutenant. Sports/numbers bookmaking/murder for hire. Reported to John Verilla/Joe Regino.
Vincent Caraciollo- Enforcer for John "Jack" Verilla. Testified against Verilla and Caramadre for murder of John Clark, narcotics trafficker. Reported to John Verilla.
Dennis "Denny" Colello- Enforcer/debt collector for John Verilla.


West Virginia Faction

Paul "No Legs" Hankish- Wheeling, WV "Godfather." Paul was Lebanese and was closely associated with Jo Jo Pecora/Chucky Porter. Controlled all illegal gambling/narcotics trafficking in the West Virginia area. Got his legs blown off in the 1960's after a bloody war with Bill Elias, former West Virginia "boss." Closely associated with Joey Naples and Demus Covello of the Gambino Crime Family. Naples was godfather to his son Chris Hankish and Demus Covello was godfather to his daughter. One of the biggest moneymakers for LaRocca/Genovese. Convicted in 1990 and sentenced to life imprisonment. Reported to LaRocca/Genovese/Porter/Pecora
Chris Hankish-Ran gambling/video poker/narcotics for his father in Scott Twp., PA.
James "Jimmy" Griffin- Paul Hankish's "right hand" man and partner in gambling/narcotics organization.
Charles "Buddy" Jacovetty-Paul Hankish's "left hand" man and partner in gambling/narcotics organization.
Charles "Chucky" Joseph- Owned and operated the Lightning Rod Club in Wheeling, WV, an after hours illegal gambling style casino.
Theodore "Teddy" Tsoras- Ran illegal gambling/narcotics distribution

Nice chart

didnt know there was action in west virginia?? how credible is that? not one of them has an italian last name.

almost of the action that took place was in and around wheeling in the northern panhandle, the small strip of the state that runs in-between ohio and pennslyvania. its a much different culture there as opposed to the southern coalfields or the mountainous eastern parts of the state.

The actual panhandle area of West Virgina was the Chester W.Va.area. It was the most lucrative in it's day because of it's actual casino style clubs. Starting with the largest, Club 30 then most exclusive, Jockey Club and finally The Red Dog. All were with-in a couple of mile of each on other on Rt.30 between Chester and PA. The first two were run by Jo Jo and Chuck Teemer. The Red Dog by Jo Jo and Zebo, both lived in West Va. thus no concerns regarding crossing the state line. All of the clubs operated under a Federal Gaming Tax Stamp that belonged to Dom (Moosie) Caputo. It originated from The Jungle Inn, Hubbard, Ohio.

Paul Hankish was "The Godfather" of Wheeling, West Va. PERIOD!!!

It took me 2 years of research and clarifications with the FBI in Pittsburgh to get an "accurate" chart from 1980-1990.

To reiterate what "Friend of Henry" said, Paul Hankish was the most powerful Lebanese mafia associate in the country. He ran gambling in 6 states and used Demus Covello of the Gambino Crime Family to lay off a lot of his action. He was very close to Joey Naples, former Youngstown Crime Boss (from 1988-1991). Paul was also very close to a guy from Aliquippa, PA named Frank Unis Jr. Frank just recently made headlines for shooting a guy who owed him money. He has been operating his illegal gambling empire from his dad's old business, Aliquippa Wholesale Tire Company. Check out these articles:

1. http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/loca...s-joint-617917/

2. http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2004&dat=19920409&id=HroiAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Q7UFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1180,1726924

(This article talks about Frank Unis Jr and his father's gambling operation in Beaver County).

Here is the most accurate chart on Cleveland in 1980:

Boss James Licavoli
Underboss Angelo Lonardo
Consigliere John Tronolone
Consigliere Milton "Maishe" Rockman (John Scalish's brother in law, Jewish-not made but highly respected)

East side Captains
Joe Gallo
Tony Liberatore (union liason)

East side Lieutenants
Tommy Sinito
John Calandra

Soldiers
Collinwood Crew
Joe Iaccobacci
Allie Calabrese
Tony Delguyd
Joe Bonnarigo
Tony Occhinero
John Delzoppo
Joe Ilacqua

Other Soldiers
John Oliverio (associate)
John Montana (informant)
Russell Papalardo
Dominic Lonardo (Ange's brother)


East side associates
Phil Bonnadona
Michael Dubalo
Eugene Ciasullo
Butchie Cisternino
Anthony Delmonti
Angelo Lonardo (nephew of Big Ange)
Martin DeFabio (informant)
Peter Sanzo
Sam Vecchio aka El Porko
Jimmy Pallendino (waste management)
Danny Dzina
Sam Lucarelli
William "Billy D" Dileno (associate)
William Denova (associate)
Anthony Hughes (Pressers right hand man,informant)
Glen Pauley

Union and City Hall Liasons
Tony Liberatore
Chester Liberatore
Nicholas Nardi (made, Brother of John)
Frank Scalish (son of John)
John Felice Jr
Carmine Parise

Inactive Made Members
Tony Milano
Frank Embescia

Numbers Racket Liasons
Michael Panzarella (made)
Ronnie Bey
Virgil Olgetree
Monk Tolliver

Inner City "Powers"
Bill Seawright
Geechy Bell
Donald "The Fixer" Peppers

The West Side
Captain Carmen Basile

Soldier
Joe "Joey Spags" Spaganlo (gambling kingpin)

Youngstown/Warren, OH Faction
Ronald "Ronnie the Crab" Carabbia
Charles "Charlie the Crab" Carabbia
Orlando "Orlie the Crab" Carabbia
Joseph Perfette (Trumbull County-Kicked to Peanuts Tronolone until 1983 and then answered directly to Pittsburgh's Charlie Imburgia, Consigliere who resided in Warren)
Dominic "Junior" Senzarino (Carabbia cousin gunned down at his house in 1980)
Joe DeRose Jr (went missing during the Pittsburgh/Cleveland war and is presumed dead)


Narcotics movers
Hans and Fritz Graewe
Jimmy Coppola
Keith Ritson (killed Nov 1978)
Brian O'Donnell
Kevin McTaggert
Carmen "Mr. Z" Zagaria

The A team....Lawyers
Gerald Gold
James Willis

Here are some articles about Paul "No Legs" Hankish and Wheeling, WV illegal gambling organization under the LaRocca Crime Family in Pittsburgh:

1. http://www.mikeminder.com/1/post/2013/01...an-17-1964.html

2. http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1129&dat=19900718&id=6M9RAAAAIBAJ&sjid=oG4DAAAAIBAJ&pg=6575,4205703

3.http://www.geocities.ws/organizedcrimesyndicates/westvirginia.pittsburgh.html

4. http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1129&dat=19900623&id=0fFRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=yG4DAAAAIBAJ&pg=6858,6443986

Only #1 can be viewed. Any way to correct that issue? As you know, I knew Paul. Thanx ;-)

Copy and paste the others into your browser above.

Or are the families of Pittsburg, Trafficante and cleveland are dead have still influential in their cities?
What size and their members in each family.

You will get conflicting answers to that here...depending on who answers....but all are good posters with excellent information...and welcome.

There are no longer viable families in any of those cities. Some members still alive but no functional hierarchies.

Was Silvio "Birdie" Pinciaro a "made" guy?

Not anyone that I was familiar with. If anyone would have know my guess is that would have been JCB. He's not here anymore :-(