The Hole In The Wall Gang ( The Chicago Outfit ) ?

Whatever happened to rest of the members ? We know Frank Cullota became a rat, but what about the rest of members ?

Larry Neumann was a member of that gang. I believe he passed away several years ago. There are some articles about Neumann and his crimes on the Internet. Check out the McHenry Co. articles.

They all pretty much got pinched and faded away in the July 4th home robbery. Only Cullotta, Fat Herbie and the Spilotro's didn't get picked up on that. And by then Cullotta turned states when he heard there was a green light on him by Chicago as the Spilotro brothers were on their way out. The last serious member, Fat Herbie Blitzstein got whacked in Vegas in 97 by some Buffalo and LA guys trying to muscle him out of his shy and bookmaking action. They got indicted and charged for the murder and that was the last of the Hole in the Wall Gang in Vegas. I think Flipper Milano from LA had relocated to Vegas and was trying to take over. That was pretty much the end of the Milano Family in LA or Vegas too.

http://gangstersinc.ning.com/profiles/blogs/tony-spilotro-and-his-hole-in



By David Amoruso
First published in the August/September 2007 issue of Mob Candy Magazine.
Copyright © www.gangstersinc.nl

Anthony Spilotro arrived in Las Vegas in 1971. He was sent by the Chicago La Cosa Nostra Family, which most people call The Outfit, to oversee the mob's skimming operations. Several mob families were skimming money from the casino counting rooms. Huge sums were made through this scam. The mob bosses wanted the skim to proceed without problems. So they sent Tony Spilotro. Spilotro had made a name for himself in Chicago as a vicious murderer who didn't mind torturing his victims. His reputation instilled fear in hardened criminals which made him the perfect man to protect the mob's interests in Las Vegas.

In Las Vegas Spilotro quickly took control of the city's underworld. All criminals (drug dealers, pimps, loan-sharks) were ordered to pay Spilotro a street tax. If they wanted to continue doing business they paid, if they didn't pay, they died. Still hungry for more money Spilotro got together a gang of burglars. This gang would break into hotel rooms of rich gamblers, homes, and jewelry stores all over Nevada, California, Utah, and Arizona. The gang was called the Hole in the Wall Gang because of their modus operandi. They would gain entrance to buildings and stores by making a hole in the wall or roof.

Things went well for a while, but not for long. In 1979 Spilotro was added to the Las Vegas Black Book, an exclusion list which meant he could not set foot in any Las Vegas casino. It didn't deter him from running his illegal operations though. When an associate of Spilotro and his gang was shot by two cops when they pulled him over news of a contract on the lives of the two cops reached the Chicago FBI. The Chicago feds told Las Vegas police who sent a few men to Chicago to talk to the Chicago mob bosses. The cops visited the homes of Antonino Accardo, Joseph Aiuppa, and Joseph Lombardo. All three men weren't home so they talked to mob controlled businessman Allen Dorfman and told him about their problem. The cops then got a phone call from a lawyer who said the Chicago bosses would discuss the issue. The lawyer was asked to relay the following message: "If you kill my cops I'll bring forty men back here and kill everything that walks, moves, or crawls around all the houses I visited today. And that is not a threat, but a promise." The Chicago bosses wouldn't allow cops to be murdered, so the contract was lifted (meaning those responsible for the plans would be told to abort.) The bosses didn't like this kind of aggrevation.

THE LAST HEIST

On the Fourth of July, 1981 the Hole in the Wall Gang was going out to break into Bertha's Gifts & Home Furnishings, at 896 East Sahara. The store also included a jewelry shop. The gang was counting on a party afterwards since the expected loot would be $1 million in cash and jewelry. Operating that night were Frank Cullota, Lawrence Neumann, Wayne Matecki, Leo Guardino, Ernie Davino, Sal Romano, and corrupt cop turned full time criminal Joseph Blasko. The gang used five cars for the heist, one for transporting the guys who would do the actual break in and four to conduct counter-surveillance. These four cars were equippped with two-way radios and police scanners.

Around 19:00 Cullotta, Neumann, and Romano drove their cars around the neighborhood, looking for anything suspicious. Blasko parked his van across the street from Bertha's Gift & Home Furnishings. At 21:00 Matecki, Guardino and Davino arrived, they stepped out of the vehicle and unloaded tools and equipment, including a ladder. The men gained access to the roof of the store. Once there they plugged in their tools. They were using power and hand tools to penetrate the roof. At 22:40 Guardino had penetrated the roof and dropped through the opening into the store, bringing along his burglary tools which he needed to break into the safe. With Guardino inside the store cops started coming in from all angles. The burglars were surrounded. Outside, Cullotta, Neumann, and Blasko were arrested. Sal Romano was also picked up by police, but for different reasons: he had flipped a few months earlier and told police everything about the planned heist. The remaining six men were charged with burglary, conspiracy to commit burglary, attempted grand larcency, and possession of burglary tools.

With Spilotro's gang heavily hit by the bust and news of a rat amongst them, things started heating up. On Friday April 30, 1982 Frank Cullotta got some bad news: the Chicago Outfit had approved a contract on his life. The following Monday Cullotta officially became a cooperating witness. Cullotta would testify at several mob trials and even had an appearance as mob hit man in Martin Scorsese's mob epic Casino. Combining the Hole in the Wall gang fiasco, Spilotro's other criminal deeds for which he was indicted, and Spilotro's affair with the wife of casino boss Frank "Lefty" Rosenthal, the Chicago bosses made up their mind. They had sent Spilotro to Vegas to keep things quiet, and running smoothly. Instead of doing that Spilotro had made a mess. They decided enough was enough: he had to go. The badly beaten bodies of Tony Spilotro and his brother Michael were found on June 23, 1986 in an Indiana cornfield. Tony the Ant had met his demise.

Great some stuff Furio.

10 years later in 96' Flipper Milano also admitted to attempting some sort of fraudulent diamond scheme with Blitzstein along with an attempt at phony food stamps (fuckin ridiculous). They weren't indicted until 98' but were later sentenced in 2001 I think with few other people from southern Nevada. ALLDAY27 didn't he admit to the FBI that he was the current underboss with his brother above him? Still amazed he came away unscathed from that.

Everyone in this photo look like a bad ass MF, except 1!

Any guesses?

@terrence yeah, thats why I said it was pretty much the end of anything goin on in LA, the Milano's completely sunk any type of empire the DeSimone Family built, dad was okay but all the brothers were morons

Am i right in saying Cullota was not a made man?

Your right he was not made.
I just got done reading the enforcer and I now want to get frank cullotas books. Anyone read them?

Lefty Rosenthal's house is up for sale, including a bullet hole still visible.

http://www.reviewjournal.com/real-estate...let-hole-photos

Why after the the hole in the wall disaster in 1981, the outfit hasn't sent Spilotro with a kick in his ass at home, or why hasn't whacked him after the cops from las vegas, have come to threaten them in chicago?

Wayne Matecki

When he died the Sun Times called Culotta for comment and Cullotta said: "As long as they don't remove the stake from his heart, we'll be OK."

If you all have Netflix the second episode of Locked Up Abroad is all about the Hole in the Wall Gang and Culotta. Very well done.

The lucrative and violent years of Las Vegas mobster Tony Spilotro’s infamous Hole in the Wall gang http://gangstersinc.ning.com/profil...-years-of-las-vegas-mobster-tony-spilotr

The demise of Chicago mobster Tony Spilotro’s Hole in the Wall gang http://gangstersinc.ning.com/profil...ster-tony-spilotro-s-hole-in-the-wall-ga

Whenever I see a doc or video of Frank Cullotta , I do believe he is genuine w/ his accounts w/ Tony the ant...he fu--ing tells it like it was..&he is 1 of the last men standing in those shadowed days of Vegas.

https://www.thechicagosyndicate.com/2009/07/dead-mob-hit-man-larry-neumann-declared.html




https://realityhitsweb.wordpress.com/2016/06/14/tony-spilotro-and-the-hole-in-the-wall-gang/

The Hole in the Wall Gang included Las Vegas former detective Joe Blasko, and mob members Frank Cullotta, Leo Guardino, Ernest Davino, Sal Romano, Lawrence Neumann, Wayne Matecki, Samuel Cusumano, and Joseph Cusumano.

https://mafia.wikia.org/wiki/Anthony_J._Spilotro

Spilotro, in 1976, formed a burglary ring with his brother Michael and Blitzstein, utilizing about eight associates as burglars. The crew became known as the Hole in the Wall Gang because of its penchant for gaining entry by drilling through the exterior walls and ceilings of the buildings they burglarized. The Hole in the Wall Gang operated out of The Gold Rush, Ltd. Other gang members included Peter Basile (from Wilmette, Illinois), Frank Cullotta (43, from Las Vegas), Joseph Cusumano, Samuel Cusumano, Joseph D'Argento, Ernesto "Ernie" Davino (34, from Las Vegas), Leonardo "Leo" Guardino (47, from Las Vegas), Frank DeLegge, Michael LaJoy, Ernest Lehnigg (from Addison, Illinois), Wayne Matecki, "Crazy Larry" Neumann, Butch Pancsko, Peanuts Pancsko, Pops Pancsko, Salvatore "Sonny" Romano, Gerald Tomasczek, Carl Urbanotti (from Chicago, Illinois), and former Las Vegas detective, Joseph Blasko (45, from Las Vegas), who acted as a lookout and who later worked as a bartender at the Crazy Horse Too, a gentleman's club owned by Rick Rizzolo;

Anthony Spilotro whacked on June 14, 1986 by the Outfit
Salvatore "Sonny" Romano and Frank Cullotta flipped for save their lifes
Joe Blasko took a plea and made few years in prison and later turned to an onest work died in november 2002
Peter Basile ???
Joseph Vincent Cusumano put in Nevada Black Book on 06/21/1990 still alive
Lawrence Neumann died in prison in 2007 at 79. He spent the last 23 years of his life locked up for killing a jeweler.

This is today,now I'll find more info with the time.