Anthony Staino

How did Ant get made - Has his name been mentioned in doing any "work". He's away for a while now. Wonder if he gets back involved when he gets out. Still a younger guy but Ligambi will be gone by the time he's out. I'm not sure he's all that close with Stevie and the current street guys

Actually he has been around the merino guys for a while. Back to the war with stanfa. Not sure about work he has done but he is a moneymaker and will be welcomed back by whoever is in charge.

He was a union guy back in the 90s. I think he was forced to resign because some indictment or something.

Thanks guys

U.s. Dealing To Oust Chiefs Of Casino Union

By George Anastasia, Inquirer Staff Writer
POSTED: April 02, 1991
Federal authorities are trying to negotiate the removal of the leaders of the largest and most powerful labor union in Atlantic
City without a lengthy hearing into allegations that the local is mob-controlled.

If settlements could be worked out, several law enforcement sources said yesterday, officials with Local 54 of the Hotel Employees Restaurant Employees International Union would give up their posts. That would avert testimony in a potentially damaging civil court hearing that had been set for today in U.S. District Court in Trenton.

A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Newark, N.J., declined to comment on the case yesterday. He said, however, that prosecutors would request that the hearing be delayed until Friday.

Officials with Local 54 could not be reached for comment. A rally in support of the union officials, planned for yesterday on the Boardwalk in Atlantic City, was canceled late last week, apparently as negotiations intensified.

In a civil racketeering suit filed in December, federal authorities asked for the ouster of every union officer, charging that Local 54 has been controlled by organized crime for 20 years.

Defendants included union president Roy Silbert, vice president Felix Bocchicchio Jr., secretary-treasurer Thelma Hilferty and union executive board members Daniel Daidone, Anthony Staino Jr. and Karlos LaSane. Several other former union officials, including former president Frank Gerace, and a number of mob figures, including imprisoned Philadelphia-South Jersey mob boss Nicodemo "Little Nicky" Scarfo and his son, Nicodemo S. Scarfo, are also defendants.

Local 54 represents about 22,000 hotel, bar and restaurant workers throughout South Jersey, including about 14,000 casino-hotel workers. The union collected more than $3 million in dues last year, and Local 54 employers paid about $20 million into the international union's health, welfare and benefit funds.

Federal authorities have charged that both Scarfo and his predecessor, the late Philadelphia mob boss Angelo Bruno, exercised hidden control of the union and siphoned hundreds of thousands of dollars from its treasury. Union officials have denied the charges.

Witnesses who were expected to testify about the mob's involvement in Local 54 included Philip Leonetti, the underboss of the Scarfo crime family, Lawrence "Yogi" Merlino, a former capo, or captain, of the Scarfo organization, and confessed mob hitmen Willard Moran Jr. and Charles Allen, all of whom are now cooperating with federal authorities.

Sources familiar with the case said yesterday that negotiations between attorneys for the union officials and the U.S. Attorney's Office have been going on for several weeks. Those sources, who asked not to be identified, said it would be premature to discuss details or potential settlements.

The government wants the court to force union officials named in the suit to give up their posts and agree to never again seek union office. Federal authorities were also seeking a court-appointed monitor to temporarily oversee the union's operations.

Two defendants in the case, former union officials Frank Lentino and Frank Materio, have signed consent decrees, according to federal authorities. Both have been identified as Scarfo associates.

Lentino, 80, recently was released from prison after serving seven years for trying to bribe former Atlantic City Mayor Michael J. Matthews in a mob- controlled political-corruption scheme.

Materio, 69, was a Local 54 business agent and a member of the union's executive board in the mid-1980s.

Both he and Gerace, the former president, were forced to step down by the New Jersey Casino Control Commission, which ruled that both men had close ties to Scarfo. Materio and Gerace later were permitted to work for the union in matters not related to casinos. Materio retired in the late 1980s. Gerace is now an administrative assistant to Edward Hanley, president of the Cincinnati- based Hotel Employees Restaurant Employees International Union. Hanley also has been named as a defendant in the civil suit

A.c. Union Official Will Quit Post

By George Anastasia, Inquirer Staff Writer
POSTED: April 03, 1991
TRENTON — One official with the Atlantic City bartenders' union has agreed to step down and several others are negotiating settlements that would remove them from office, federal authorities said yesterday as they continued to press a civil racketeering suit that charges the union is mob-controlled.

Anthony Staino Jr., a business agent and member of the executive board of Local 54 of the Hotel Employees Restaurant Employees International Union, has signed a consent decree in which he has agreed to give up his union posts, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Jerome L. Merin. Another board member, Karlos LaSane, has agreed to do so, Merin said.

Merin made the announcements in U.S. District Court after a hearing into charges against Local 54 was delayed until Friday. In seeking the delay, Merin told Judge Garrett E. Brown Jr. that lawyers for the local and the government were in the midst of "serious talks as to the resolution" of the case.

Neither Merin nor attorneys for the defendants would comment publicly on those talks. Privately, however, several said agreements with all Local 54's officers - which would avert a hearing - were likely.

U.S. Attorney Michael Chertoff would not discuss the particulars of the proposed agreements but said the government would continue to press for a court-appointed monitor to temporarily oversee the operations of the 22,000- member local. New union elections are scheduled for June.

Local 54 president Roy Silbert could not be reached for comment yesterday. Federal authorities have charged that he became president in 1984 only after he was approved by mob boss Nicodemo "Little Nicky" Scarfo.

Staino, authorities said, also had Scarfo's blessing. In the civil suit, authorities charged that Scarfo crime family soldier Ralph "Junior" Staino arranged his nephew's appointment.

Scarfo and Ralph Staino are in prison on racketeering convictions.

If Silbert agreed to step down, he would give up an annual salary of about $92,000. In 1989, he also collected expense reimbursements of more than $11,000. Staino's salary was about $47,000, according to the union's latest annual filing, and he received an additional $8,000 in expenses and allowances.

Under terms of the consent decrees being worked out, sources say, union officials will step down and will be enjoined from participating "in any way, directly or indirectly, in the management and/or control of the affairs of Local 54." They will not, however, have to admit to any of the charges in the 66-page civil complaint suit and will be permitted to remain members of the union.

That was back in 1991.. I seen a piece of fbi video in a philly documentary at a xmas party in 1995 and you see Ligambi and Staino having a conversation together.. The only other thing i can find on Staino from the 90's was this next article im about to post.

Jail Pal Eyed In Turchi Hit Roger Vella Had A Last Dinner With Victim

by Kitty Caparella, and Nicole Weisensee, Daily News Staff Writers
POSTED: November 23, 1999
Roger Vella Jr. - the mob associate who wanted to go back to prison to be with Joey Merlino - is the lead suspect in the Oct. 22 gangland slaying of onetime mob consigliere Ronald Turchi, say law enforcement sources.

The night before Turchi disappeared, Vella, 28, ate dinner with Turchi, 61, at the Saloon, a South Philadelphia restaurant, two witnesses said.

Turchi, demoted to soldier, and Vella were allegedly associated with a sports gambling business in South Philadelphia with reputed mob associate Anthony Staino, said street and law enforcement sources.


"Both were bothering people," a witness said. "I wouldn't be surprised if [Vella] set him up."

From late August through early October, Vella "smacked around" associates of the sports gambling business in an attempt to collect the mob's street tax, the same source said. "Those guys are scared to death of him."

Vella's street name is "Outta His Mind." Reputed acting mob boss Joseph "Skinny Joey" Merlino called Vella "outta his mind" in an FBI tape recording made public.

Vella and Turchi, a bookmaker, met nearly every day to discuss the illegal sports gambling business, the source continued. "They were pretty close. They went out to eat at Nifty Fifty's, the Saloon, and Turchi came to [Vella's] house and ate."

Investigators are looking into Turchi's relationship with Vella and others in an attempt to piece together his last days and find his killer or killers.

Authorities have theorized that Turchi was targeted so he couldn't cooperate with the government and testify against other members of the crime family.

On Oct. 22, the day of his disappearance, Turchi had a luncheon date with an undisclosed person to discuss getting into the imported olive oil business, said a law enforcement source.

Investigators have narrowed the window in which they believe Turchi was killed to a 10-hour period between 11 a.m. and 9 p.m. on Oct. 22, the source added.

The last time anyone is known to have seen Turchi alive was 11 a.m. when Deborah Vitagliano told police he left her South Philadelphia home for a lunch appointment.

At 9 p.m. that night, police, unaware Turchi was missing, ticketed his wife's car, a 1992 black Toyota on Passyunk Avenue near Christian, law enforcement sources said.

Three days later, Turchi's wife reported him and the car missing. Police "found" the car the next day on Oct. 26, at the same location where it had been ticketed, the sources said.

Police discovered Turchi's naked body, shot twice in the head, with his hands and feet tied with white rope and a white plastic bag over his head, in the trunk.

Investigators want to know if Turchi's nakedness was a mob message, or just a sign of disrespect.

Turchi and Vella became friends when they were in federal prison at Allenwood, Pa., and later at The Kintoch Group, a halfway house for federal prisoners on Broad Street near Wood.

Last Thursday, Vella was returned to a restrictive "sanctions center" at Kintoch, where he was ordered to serve four months for parole violations for associating with Merlino and convicted felons.

Vella is permitted to work in a restaurant during the day, but must report back to Kintoch.

The Turchi slaying is the second murder in which Vella is a suspect. He was earlier named as a target in the 1995 unsolved murder of drug dealer Ralph Mazzucca, who was shot, hogtied and set afire.

Mazzucca's killing and five other murders and attempted murders are under investigation by a federal grand jury, expected to indict Merlino mob associates.

Vella's attorney, Joseph Santaguida, dismissed the latest allegations.

"I don't really believe any of it. The Mazzucca murder, Turchi and he shot Gorilla" referring to the Aug. 28 shooting of Pagan Motorcycle Club president Steven Mondevergine. "He's a one-man crime wave," said Santaguida sarcastically.

"Yeah," added his secretary, "He's the Center City rapist too."

So in 1999 law enforcement were calling him an associate still. Ligambi must of seen Staino was a smart guy and kept him close.

Thanks HS - I must have overlooked those articles in the past. I knew who his uncle was but wasn't sure when he got engaged. Looks like he's been a wiseguy for some time it looks. I was at the trial the day the undercover agent testified about staino and his loansharking .. Buried him. It's probably why he ended up taking the plea.
It's intesresting last week the agent on the stand and on tape mentioned Stevie .. I'm assuming there wasn't enough to name Stevie in the case unless they are building something bigger with him.

Well Stevie was in jail for more then 6 years outta all the years they were building the investigation and then he was very low key while on parole.. now his restrictions are up.. and its been said that Gary Battaglini was running Mazzones sport book for him while he was away. so maybe thats how steves name was brought up? They probably have a few guys watchin Mazzone and them especially since its football season.

And them articles i actually found them by putting stainos name in and searching between the years 1990 and 2000. I was surprised. Also on one of the Philly mob Documentaries you see Staino talking with Ligambi at a Christmas party in 1995..

Anybody know when Staino was made?

2012

Staino was def made before 2012.. they got indicted in 2011 and he was made well before then. Im not sure off top of my head but ill find out when exactly.

Kidding

I read some old articles on turchi seemed like he was the real deal they said he was a free lance hitman in the 1970tys went to jail in 79 got out in the early 90tys was made under stanfa like 92. the article said he was around south philly all his life and people liked him maybe he was a threat to become boss?

did he get hit after people found out ralph natale flipped. the guy did 13 yrs in the can before I wouldn't think he would be a rat weird hit, like the long john one. hitiing old guys.

I think in one of the Mob Talks or Mob Scene video's George A. said Turchi looked like he was tortured. Like they were trying to get info out of him. Anyone else remember that? Pretty sure i'm remembering that right.

Long John was old but he was a danger to Ligambi. Most likely thought he should of been the boss. Smart move imo taking him out when they did.

U would think at his age , long john would have enjoyed his retirement not trying to muscle in on gambling operations controlled by ligambi , not really a wise move trying to get bak in the game like that

Turchi was hit because he was close with Natale, right after Ralph flipped.

Heres that Mob Scene on Turchi. GA said they found him in the trunk of his car...he was stripped naked with a bag over his head..beaten..probably tortured..and then shot. Sounds like they did a real number on the guy.

I doubt Ralph gave a shit what they did to Turchi but it was supposed to be a message to him....who knows.

http://www.philly.com/philly/video/BC72279987001.html

According to a list of philly making ceremonies on the RD forum that Pogo made when he was posting there Anthony Staino was made in 2005.

so who demoted turchi? I read he was made under stanfa in the city paper. he was on parole for a long time to. he was close to natale so was all those guys wasn't ralph joeys step dad or some shit. also read mousie was made by stanfa in 92. so if not for stanfa making joey and these guys there wouldn't be a lot of people. that's why I don't believe privite all these guys had ceromys he didn't. and did veasey say he got made or was it another lie the g men told him to tell the jury. I don't think veavey horsehead or privite got really made they all lied I think. the kid vella told some many lies, he got crushed on the stand he lied about getting made, and is out now.

If you watch that Mob Scene on Turchi it sounded to me like it was Natale who demoted Turchi. It said after he was demoted he remained an associate of Ralphs. At least thats what it sounded like to me that Anastasia was saying...but check it out for yourself.

I thought i heard he was demoted by natale too. and then killed to teach natale a lesson.

2004. It was Staino, Nicodemo, Marty Crutch and Damion Canalicchio.

Didn't Turchi make Natale? Wasn't he Acting when Natale was released? Or was it Joey who made him?

everything ive seen says it was Merlino who made Natale(who was just a soldier at the time), then Natale was made boss the very same day he was made.

Yeah that was a joke , Merlino who didn't have the authority made natale and them natale proclaimed himself boss , wot a mess the Philly mob became

its kind of funny how joey played him.. natale was walking around all high n mighty like " im the boss " haha. he was never the boss at all joey just used natale to take the heat!

One of the things with Long John was you know how you hear the term ''had money on the streets''.He suppostley if I remember had a lot of money he left on the streets when he went away and felt entitled to get involved again.I think he was going to make a power play move with John Berkery from the K and A gang in the Northeast to take over Ligambi's throne,but Ligambi acted first.

^^^ you sure about that 22? I know Long John and Berkery were big in the meth trade together back in 80s, but i thought by the time Martorano was outta jail and causing problems Berkery was long off the streets?

You guys all seem pretty knowledgeable about Philly. I just read Leonetti's book again, for the 2nd time.

What do you think about Joey Merlino, in terms of his credibility with LCN? He appears to care less about LCN rules and more about his friends in South Philly. And alot of them are sons/brothers/nephews of old school guys. So, it's easy to understand how he and the chang's and a few others would stake a claim. It was their family members who made the rackets in the Philly area what they were; not NYC people. So, why should they have input on who controls them? The only reason would be respect of tradition, and the former relationships of previous bosses.

But, Leonetti makes a point of saying a few times that NYC commission picks Philly's boss. And, Stanfa was put there by Gambinos. I think he was the last commission-chosen boss in Philly?

I have read on here that Ligambi was having meetings with other families to iron out territorial issues, meet and greets, etc. And I have also read that the NYC families were under a ton of heat for their own shit when Stanfa was warring with Merlino.

But, NYC gave Stanfa ZERO support. And, Scarfo still had friends on the street and was gathering powerful friends (Amuso) in jail such that NYC knew what was going on in Philly and had to be interested in the outcome. And to say that they would let the war play out and pick up the pieces is 1 answer, but it's a weak answer. You know Scarfo wanted Joey Merlino dead, especially after his son was shot. And he had the connections to get it done.

Finally, to my point/question (make a long story longer lol), is it possible that NYC were interested in Merlino as boss? If NYC appointed Stanfa, all of the guys he made would/should have been investigated by the NYC families BEFORE they got their button. Did Stanfa get commission approval of guys he was going to make? If so, they had Joey Merlino on their radar. And it's very likely that everyone in NYC knew Scarfo and Chuckie and Yogi were haveing problems because Scarfo took them both down.

Leonetti's book and Blood and Honor book make it pretty clear that at the end of the reign, Scarfo wanted to kill Chuckie, Yogi, and Joey Merlino. Then, all of sudden Stanfa inducts him? Sure, it could have been a slap in the face, but Stanfa just went on and on and on about tradition and the right ways in LCN. And then he gives buttons to guys who may/may not have put in work, or worse yet, may not even spent any time as an associate.

Who was Merlino's captain? Who was his sponsor to get him in? Leonetti nor any other book mentions when that Joey was an associate but he is mentioned in Leonetti's book and I think in Blood and Honor. How exactly did he come into so much power in Philly? And did NYC encourage it? It just seems to contradict so much of what was going on in Philly LCN at the time; it is truly mind boggling.

The time but I am speaking of is around 1989-1994; Merlino's rise. NYC took Scarfo down, and put up Stanfa. So, they must have had knowledge of who Stanfa was around. Or, by this time was it just so bad in Philly in terms of structure?

Is the PHiladelphia mob is considered LCN, if it doesn't report to NYC, like it did since it's existence?? Or, is too much credit given to NYC in terms of their hold on Philly? Is there too much placed on the credibility of Philly being true LCN measured by relationships in NYC?

It seems that currently, there is really not much of a relationship between any of the families in NYC and Philly, compared to the past.


thanks.

Mafia prince was a great read but probably not 100% factual, lol

I truly don't believe that NYC controls any other family anymore. They have their own problems, especially the Bonanno's and the Colombo's. I still think families like Philly have contacts in NYC and that there are a certain amount of territories that have been divided, especially in South Jersey/North Jersey, but I don't think that NY chooses bosses any longer. Those were the days of old when guys like Castellano, Salerno, Corallo etc had national influence. Plus, today, the South Philly Mob isn't what it was in its heyday. They certainly have a viable family, but I am 100% certain that their main sources of income have been drastically reduced. In regards to labor racketeering, bid rigging, sweetheart contracts etc are a shadow of what they once were. Video poker and illegal gambling seem to be the main focus of most families outside of NY.

And if you believe half of what Phil Leonetti said in his book, then you are overreaching. Phil Leonetti is and was a lying, scheming, lowlife thug.

Lol JCB1977 you call it as you see it. No love for Leonetti, who do you dislike more him or your buddy Borgesi lol.

during the current trial coverage someone have said something about the Gambinos deciding who's gonna lead Philly

Hey Scalish,

Leonetti came into Pittsburgh in the 1990 trial of Chucky Porter and Louis Raucci to testify about a meeting he had with the top brass of Pittsburgh along with Nicky Scarfo in regards to the extortion of Scarfo's brother in law Joe Nistico, a Clairton, PA resident for years and small time bookmaker in the Pittsburgh area. Leonetti also testified about a few other Pittsburgh OC figures, one of them being my late uncle. He also gave up a few guys from my hometown of Youngstown regarding a waste hauling scheme they had with Billy D'Elia in Scranton.

I truly enjoyed Mafia Prince, it was a good, fast read but Leonetti has a tendency to exaggerate his power. Yes, he was Underboss in Philly but if you expect me to believe that the top brass in NY truly accepted him and respected him and didn't think that Scarfo was a maniac making his 28 year old nephew Underboss to a major crime family, then I have some snow to sell you.

And for the record, I hate Freckles Borgesi more than Leonetti...He's a half pint tough guy...needs to get his salad tossed in prison if he hasn't already!

Don't buy it. If the new boss is from the old guard, then the Gambino Family input may have played a role...but I truly believe that NY is worried about NY. It's a different mafia, different times...

Vegas Mikey I'm pretty sure,i will check to be certain,Man I'm almost positive that when Long John got out he had the backing of the Irish Gang from Kensington,but I'm big on if I make a mistake I will correct it.

Let me start over I meant to say Dellacroce in my last post not Vegas Mikey.Anyway,I was partially right,Martarano claims he left 200 Grand on the streets and while he was away he said all the previous bosses [Scarfo,Natale,Merlino,Stanfa] used the money to back gambling business's.So he figures he would get it back on his own and he recruited shooters from the Northeast's Irish Mob for an upcoming war,but Ligambi struck first.it's in a city paper article.my bad with the Berkery thing.

Point taken guys. Yeah, Leonetti's book does have it's moments where I wondered if he was reaching for the stars a bit. But, in all of the Philly books, incluidin leonettis, goodfella tapes, the last gangster, and Nicky Crow's (blood and honor), nowhere does it say how exactly Joey Merlino got his start and ended up being king of the philly LCN. He went from being a "punk" who did nothing for the mob but cause headaches, according to Nicky Crow and Leonetti in 1987-88 to being the Boss in 1992/94. How does that happen?

Joey had a loyal big crew growing up and had the lineage and maybe had a couple of passes bc of who his dad was. Also when Stanfa came in as boss I don't think he got too much respect from the street south philly guys - they threw their allegiance behind Joey which started the trouble. Stevie Georgie Lance Chang and their entire crews

makes sense. His dad was the most powerful in South philly for quite some time. And all those kids probably loved Chuckie; boozing and stories. As opposed to psychopathic Nicky whom probably was completely paranoid, narcissitic and unapproachable. Then, Little nicky takes down the Merlinos and does his thing killing everyone and he loses even more creditbility. There must have been so much fear on the streets and in that organization because of Scarfo.

Then, when they all go away, including the capos, everyone looks to the most charismatic. thanks.

ya thanks for clearing that up 22, good info man.

Nicky, I thought everyone knew what was going on at this time.You have it right as far as i have herd or know.
N.Y. was trying, but at this time they were going through a real bad time.The Feds were hammering them.High ranking members were flipping ,Indictments were everywhere.I am not sure but even some bosses were on the lamb or flipping.
The five family's seamed to do what they could,but the structure was gone.
I think they just gave up...

This got so bad that you had guys walking around saying that they were made,and did not fear the reprisals(how bad is that) got to be an all time low for the Mob.

This Ron Previte was walking in book joints with a picture of him and Stanfa,and telling guys that if they do not come in and pay up for the last few years he would kill them (or pay him 10,000.00 each)...
Most guys at these places had someone they kicking to ,but they were so messed up that they(Philly) did not know.Some were paying some heavy guys.So they had no problem.

There were a couple that ran scared and payed him the 10,000.00 that he asked for.
But that how bad it was a PICTURE of Previte and Stanfa and him telling people he is made....

Very interesting Serpiente. Previte is a huge question mark. People still debate his bona fides.

I think he wasn't really a made guy but was a guy Stanfa had "around"him for his size and earning capabilities. If you read "The Last Gangster" by George Anastasia, GA subtly implies the legitimacy of Previte's making "ceremony" was questionable.

He was a guy who brought big envelopes to guys like Stanfa, Natale and Merlino. I think they saw him as a mark. Unfortunately for Stanfa, Natale and Merlino, Previte played them worse then they played him.

But made? I don't think so. Capo? Hell no.

Tell you what, the guy was and is disgusting ,but got to give it to him ,some of these guys obviously paid him.

Also i do not know if they did not put anyone with him ,but he was always traveling alone.He would not of lasted long doing that .This guy was pushing some buttons.

And i think you and many Philly guys,and Philly posters do not think he had his button..