780-113 et. Appendix B -Wincanton: The Politics of Corruption. The sections in the Criminal Law Division are: Appeals and Legal Services (which includes the Capital Litigation Unit) In 1964 the Mid-City Development Corporation needed $1.25 million to purchase an industrial building complex. In the early 1960's the U.S. Department of Justice became alerted to a growing number of bankruptcies involving firms linked to organized crime syndicates. Vigorous state, federal, and local enforcement activity has affected the flow of illegal narcotics in Pennsylvania. 402, November, 1965 Term of Grand Jury. 2. 14875. [83] In July of 1969, FBI agents arrested two major Pittsburgh numbers operators and, sports bookmakers, Donald "Ducky" Cole and Mel Cummings. of Chiefs of Police, 1966), pp. Jaskiewicz, sup. There is frequently a "pyramid effect," additional crimes being committed to protect the syndicate from the consequences of earlier ones. 143 U.S. vs. Cerulli, et al. He had a lengthy criminal record with fifteen arrests, three of them for murder. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania), Criminal No. Russell Bufalino, Underboss On June 11, 1968, New York City police officers raided a New York restaurant and apprehended Philadelphia Cosa Nostra Boss Angelo Bruno, Brooklyn Boss Joseph Colombo, and New York City Boss Carlo Gambino. SLS also routinely reviews and, where appropriate, takes suitable steps to litigate, the issuance of compulsory process seeking production of OAG criminal investigative and administrative records, including grand jury materials, and/or testimony of Criminal Law Division (CLD) personnel, in both civil and criminal cases. Often they are accustomed to operating in an atmosphere of high pressure and force, and racketeers feel that such methods are necessary to achieve their cooperation. An index is found in the original report on Pages 129 through 136. Immunity. [17] Commission members usually serve for a period of five years. 69-158; and New York Times, August 1, 1969, p. 167. 205 U.S. vs. Heller (Philadelphia: U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania), Criminal No. In 1963, agents of the FBI were alerted to an interstate extortion-loan shark racket centered in Philadelphia and New Jersey. Accounts of the testimony appear in the Pitisburgh Post-Gazette for the following days: June 6, 10, 12, and 15, 1965. Mafia societies sprang up in many communities where the immigrants settled, and a number of these were in Pennsylvania. 21559. He's with Don Angelo Bruno. In effect the pardon cleared LaRocca's record and left the government without a deportation case. Only a few selected persons need be influenced to negate the efforts of an entire agency or even of the entire criminal justice system. Finally Migliazza announced his inability to pay and his plan to burn down his restaurant and pay DeCavalcante with the insurance money he would recover. South Florida has always been "open territory" for the mob, with no crime family claiming exclusive rights or control, Mangan said. Office of the United States Attorney, Western District of Pennsylvania (Pittsburgh), Southern District of New York (Manhattan), Northern District of West Virginia (Wheeling). Mastrangelo was indicted in January of 1969, and in September of that year a motion to suppress evidence was denied. Criminal syndicates are composed of men, differentiated by the ranks they hold and the roles they fill, who contribute in some way to the management of a criminal enterprise. At this point a discussion took place between DeCavalcante and one of his lieutenants, Robert Occhipinti, who had just returned from a final attempt to collect the money: Occhipinti: Mr. Maglie wants to burn down his joint and I got the guy. Another individual mentioned by Bruno as being in the numbers racket was Phillip Testa, Bruno's chief caporegime, currently under federal indictment for lying on a Federal Savings and Loan application: "Phil has to make a living. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania), Criminal Nos. Each CDAG reports to the Criminal Division EDAG. Pardoned in 1948 by Governor Duff for the crimes of aggravated assault and battery and operating a lottery. 5. Not all loan-shark borrowers are as fortunate as the three promotors who were able to have Angelo Bruno intercede on their behalf. 46 U.S. vs. Ucciferri, et al., sup. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania), Criminal No. The embezzlement case was prosceuted by the. Most law enforcement authorities agree that while wholesale and retail distribution of illegal narcotics in Pennsylvania has become somewhat decentralized, major organized crime syndicates still retain control over manufacture and importation of illicit drugs. Sports betting pools and punchboards are also very popular. 3, pp. They discovered that he was laying off bets with Robert R. "Fifi" London, a major racketeer in the Baltimore area. 1. 2297.). Detroit. Physical description xii, 279 p. : ill. ; 28 cm. 215 Final Report, US. The Crime Commission will support and assist state and local law enforcers with its investigative and legal staff, accounting expertise, and intelligence sources. 177 U.S. vs. Stirone, et al. In 1958 and again in 1960 he was convicted of assault and battery on police officers and was fined $10 in each case by Philadelphia magistrates. "[74] Other significant examples exist. The revenue from illegal, usurious loans stands second to that from illegal gambling operations as a source of lucrative profits for organized crime. 8 Third Interim Report, U.S. Senate Special Committee to Investigate Organized Crime in Interstate Commerce (Washington, D.C.: US. "[57], While pursuing numbers gambling enforcement in Pittsburgh, the Internal Revenue Service developed an income tax evasion case against Assistant Superintendent of Police Lawrence Maloney, who was charged with failure to report bribes from numbers bankers as a source of income. Plopi died of a heart attack in the summer of 1969. Treasury Balance Tickets, Betting Pools, and Punchboards. Bankers and Telephone Employees Company, a subsidiary firm, also became involved in financial difficulties. "[119] Both gambling and loan sharking are controlled by organized criminal syndicates in Pennsylvania, and both pose severe law-enforcement problems. Two of the principal defendants convicted in the case, Joseph D'Amato and Joseph Nanartowitz, had their probations revoked and were ordered to prison. 189 U.S. vs. McGreal, et al. These have been steady sources of independent income, and have provided routine meeting places for syndicate councils and places to mingle with community leaders. Prior to their testimony the Internal Revenue Service requested that all four witnesses voluntarily submit to polygraph tests. Ippolito "Lee" Gonzalez, left, and Charles "Shovel" Staples, right, as seen in a recent prison photo. 97 U.S. vs. D'Amato, et al. In order to provide a variety of betting arrangements, bankers allow bettors to wager money on each number as it comes out (lead bets) and the incidence of two numbers in any sequence (parlay bets). "Dial it. Organized Crime in Pennsylvania: A Decade of Change. 71 U.S. vs. Alessi (Pittsburgh: U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania), Criminal No. It is the miniscule 50 numbers and $2.00 horse bets that feed the coffers of organized crime, and without the constant support which citizens provide by such betting, the syndicates would have very little power to organize other criminal enterprises. Threats of violence, rather than violence itself, usually suffice to achieve the goals of monopoly and steady income. From the three resident Cosa Nostra families in Pennsylvania, the following individuals attended:[36], 1. Luigi Quaranta, member, Southeastern Cosa Nostra family. At the Maloney trial he testified to the following: (a) He handled a daily volume of between $40,000 and $60,000, with 3000-5000 numbers writers. In 1970 he was convieted of conspiring to transport a stolen $500,000 U.S. Treasury bill from Philadelphia to Indianapolis. 68 U.S. vs. Fedool (Philadelphia: U.S. District Court. After more beating with the blackjack, he was again taken to the basement of the restaurant, handcuffed to an overhead pipe in a walk-in refrigerator, and punched in the stomach by all four men, working in a relay. Cosa Nostra leaders Russell Bufalino, Angelo Sciandra, Giaocchino Parisi, and Joseph Scalleat of Pennsylvania and James Plumeri of New York have owned and continued to own dress companies that maintain a rigidly low wage scale.[159]. A 31-year-old man who was working for the production crew of the NBC show "Law & Order: Organized Crime" was shot and killed as he saved parking spots early Tuesday morning, New York City police said. 50 U.S. vs. Monzelli, et al. Such businesses are kept in order to create an image of the "friendly corner" candy or cigar store bookie, who handles nickels and dimes to make a little more money. An attempt was made to murder an informant working inside the organization who was cooperating with Michigan authorities. By exerting their influence less directly, they can cause the honest "raiding" police officer to be transferred to a distant detail. Asimov, Isaac. On July 23, 1969, a federal grand jury in New York returned an indictment against nine of the major Cosa Nostra leaders in the nation for conspiring to increase a kickback on a loan from the Central States Teamster Pension Fund. After it was approved, the borrower went to the large offices of a multi-million dollar legitimate business owned by a caporegime in the Angelo Bruno family and received a check for $10,000. As owners and stockholders in major local companies and as principal employers in many areas of the state, racketeers can more easily obtain the community respect and admiration which they seek. 717-787-3391. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania), Criminal No. The Grosso operation was found to handle an annual volume of $12 million. Many hierarchies of authority and responsibility are involved, from the street-level numbers runner and bookmaker, to the top-level or "edge off" man who gives these operators insurance against heavy losses. In 1957 the Attorney General of Pennsylvania published the results of an investigation which showed that $50,000 in extortion money was paid to Alex Fudeman, nephew of Reading rackets czar Abe Minker, by independent jukebox operators. DISCUSSION OF THE EXTENT OF ILLEGAL ACTIVITY BY ORGANIZED CRIME IN THE STATE, WITH RECOMMENDATIONS FOR LEGISLATION AND ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS TO COMBAT IT. [61], 2. 22254. At this point the second phase occurs. In the 1950's there were three organized crime murders in Southeastern Pennsylvania. Staggering profits await these exploiters of human misery. In 1945 Joseph Saia, the leader of a numbers bank in Upper Darby, was murdered. Government. There is a climate of inaction toward organized crime which impedes the development of professional law enforcement. He had been shot four times in the head and was found stuffed in the trunk of his Cadillac on January 25, 1968, The individual tried for the murder, John Galayda, was believed to be trying to monopolize organized crime in the Pennsylvania-West Virginia border area. Major Lehigh Valley racketeer John C. Parenti was convicted of income tax evasion in federal court in 1969. In 1960, agents of the Internal Revenue Service conducted a raid on one of Cohen's distributors in Scranton, Nicholas Wedra. In 1970 Ferrone was convicted and sentenced to a term of ninety days. His murder remains unsolved. The government was then forced to drop the deportation proceedings. to the Fiocca brothers, leaving both of them unconscious, a third muscle man picked up one of the brothers and pitched him through a taproom plate glass window. Officials learn from experience that agents who aggressively pursue organized crime cases will be disappointed time and again when the cases are thrown out or the offenders receive hand-slap sentences. 67 U.S. vs. Joseph (Philadelphia: US. 206 Task Force Report: Organized Crime, p. 6. [130] Despite the fact that this was his fourth narcotics conviction, a plea was made for a light sentence by Philadelphia City Councilman Raymond Pace Alexander. [187] In still another investigation, former 107 official Joseph McGrael was indicted for conspiring to hijack a shipment of air conditioners. 216-217. He was sentenced to a term of 7 1/2 to 15 years. [14] Two other ranking officials in Cosa Nostra families are significant; the "underboss" ("sottocapo") and the counselor ("consigliere"). Evidence for convicting top organized criminals is hard to gather. February 16, 2023. The third arrangement between independents and La Cosa Nostra may be termed "mutual investment." 99 Philadelphia Evening Bulletin, February 21, 1966, p. 4. Some has been assembled within the state. Interested in visiting the State Capitol? 1, pp. Two of the brothers (Louis and Joseph) survived and carried their complaint to the newly-formed Cosa Nostra Commission in New York. The Crime Commission believes that the prosecutor is the keystone of any campaign against organized crime. Actually, information confirming the existence of interstate gambling syndicates had been compiled in 1956 by IRS agents who located a gambling layoff center in New Kensington, Pennsylvania. In the coin-operated vending machine industry, other forms of coercion have been used. The hub of the enterprise was a small, ramshackle building adjoining Namey's Grill and Ice Cream Parlor in New Kensington. Prosecutorial leadership and legal skills are essential to piercing the insulation of the syndicate's hierarchy, Unfortunately, the State's district attorney system is unequipped for these duties, The Commission recommends that the district attorney in the more populous counties be a well paid, full-time official with well paid, qualified, full-time assistants and adequate resources. Governmental agencies concerned with areas as diverse as health, horse racing, taxes, zoning, securities, and government contracts should search out thc manipulative influence of organized crime and apply appropriate sanctions. When such organized crime infiltration of both labor and management. They are as follows: Prior to the release of the DeCavalcante transcripts little was publicly known about La Cosa Nostra in Pennsylvania. 85 U.S. vs. Whitaker (Philadelphia: U.S. Distriet Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania), Criminal No. [192] Pecora had a record of gambling and labor law violations, and had later business dealing with Cosa Nostra boss John LaRocca. Since these occurrences, the leadership of Local 107 has changed hands, and incidents of racketeering in the union have diminished. has a lengthy arrest record for numbers gambling, In 1965 he was arrested by Philadelphia Police officers who found 450,000 in numbers bets and 250 coded names of numbers writers and runners in his possession. 227 An account of former Councilman Alexander's testimony may be found in the Philadelphia Evening Bulletin, September 27, 1956, p. 1. Frank Amato, Sr., of Braddock was appointed as the referee, and the dispute was settled. Between 1911 and 1927 he resided in Philadelphia as an illegal alien and directed the local Mafia family. Through the Resident Agency concept, the resources of the Commission are more equitably distributed both demographically and functionally. A codefendent in the case, cashier George Daledia, agreed to cooperate with federal authorities. 172, 307. An aggressive approach to the investigation and presentation/prosecution of asset forfeiture and money laundering cases has led to significant forfeitures of monies, automobiles, personal property and real estates; as well as convictions for felony money laundering crimes. As they become respectable community leaders, their past and present involvement in more sinister criminal activities becomes hidden. 70-99; U.S. vs. Lanni, et al. Cosa Nostra Boss Russell Bufalino was among them; he was sentenced to a term of five years. It is not, however, worth public debate whether criminal syndicates in a community are local or Cosa Nostra controlled. In order to assure a profitable and stable income from the enterprise, the environment of law enforcement and illegal competition must be. 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