not that we don't see cases lately in nyc which we do but there hasn't been a significant mafia bust in the buffalo area for close to 20 years.
every 6 months there is a case connected to 1 of the other active families on east coast (5 families,decav,philly,new england) not to mention MTL mafia groups and 'ndrangheta in toronto.
not trying to start an argument i have very little knowledge of the buffalo family to begin with. but with most OC groups every now and then they take a bust.
During the time period 2006-present have identified 28 different incidents where those involved in criminal complaints, indictments, and arrests appear to have connections to people who are/were in or have had associations with the Buffalo crime family. This doesn’t mean their activity is mob related. It could certainly just be remnants of a dead family. But with these numbers I wouldn’t rule out the possibility of an active family in Buffalo. Here is the issue: When people think a family is dead, they may overlook activity indicating the family is alive and active. Of course people who think the family is active may find activity where there is not.
But if there are only few men active that is not a family its a glorified crew.
My questions: 1. Does your statement assume Buffalo has not made any men? 2. If so, is that assumption based on the assumption that the crime family is dead? 3. How do you handle the information regarding an alleged making ceremony in 2015 when Dominic was made? 4. If number 3 is true, maybe the ongoing assumption has been wrong and there have been other making ceremonies--I recognize this is an assumption on my part. 5. If my assumption is right, how many making ceremonies did they have in the supposed "dead years?" 7. How do we handle the LE statement that Masecchia may be a made member of the Buffalo LCN? 8. Do we assume this is false because we've assumed the family is dead? 9. If it is true that Masecchia is a made man, does point to the validity of the 2015 making ceremony or another ceremony we are unaware of? Again, number 9 would be be an assumption on my part. 10. Some will point to the FBI statement that only remnants remain form March 2017 and say this proves the family is dead, but this is an assumption that the FBI still believes the family is dead. Is that assumption true? Or has it changed with the new information that has been revealed from Nov. 2017 forward.
I could keep going but my point is this: We all make assumptions base on the presuppositions we cary with us.
The question is can one identify his or her presuppositions and be prepared to change them when new data is available?
I try to do this, but currently, with the information available to me, I still lean to an active Buffalo family. I think the prevailing presuppositions have been wrong. But again, I may be wrong--I recognize the presuppositions I bring to my understanding of this situation.
