Suspected/possible Chicago Hits

[PolackTony]

Posted this on the recent 21st Century LCN Murders thread. Thought I'd post it again here to keep track and in case anyone wants to discuss any of these in more depth.

Jarrett, Chiaramonte, and Zizzo (presumed) are the three hits in the last ~20 years of known Outfit members and associates. On the boards we've identified several other possible Outfit related murders in the last 12 years.

Anthony Catalano: Went missing under suspicious circumstances in March 2009 after leaving his Bryn Mawr Ave home on Chicago's Northwest side. Catalano has never been found and internet rumors have long linked him to notorious disgraced physician and alleged Elmwood Park associate Joseph Giacchino, who ran a pill mill in Melrose Park.

Michael DeFillipis: Said to have been a friend and drug dealing partner of Anthony Catalano. DeFillipis was found beaten and stabbed to death in his condo near Grand and Harlem in December of 2009. Police recovered a prescription for 300 pills of Norco 10 in his glove compartment. In 2008 De Fillipis was busted by police after rolling his car over and was facing narcotics possession charges at the time of his death.

Norberto "Tank" Vélez: Vélez was an alleged enforcer/collector for the Outfit. In November 2010 he was found shot to death in the hallway of his Wrigleyville apartment building. Notably, Vélez's neighbor across the hall was Grand Ave associate Jeff Hollingshead, who was later arrested in 2013 on home invasion and racketeering charges. Scott B has reported that Hollingshead subsequently provided info to LE on several Outfit-related murders.

Giacomo Ruggirello: Ruggirello was a Sicilian-born restaurateur who owned the popular Trattoria Ruggirello in the affluent North Shore suburb of Highwood. In September of 2010, Ruggirello was found dead in a house fire at his home in nearby Highland Park. Police discovered that earlier the same day Ruggirello's restaurant had been burglarized and its safe stolen. His death was ruled a homicide. Later in 2017, the Chicago Tribune reported that the FBI had overheard reputed Outfit associate and former CPD officer Steve Mandell discussing the fire the day that it occurred. Mandell is currently serving a life sentence in Florence ADMAX for a gruesome kidnapping/extortion/torture/murder plot of a Chicago businessman in 2012 (while awaiting trial in 2013 Mandell also tried to have a witness in his case killed). Another detail worth noting is that in 2013, the Tribune reported that shortly before his death Ruggirello had rewrote his will to disinherit his daughters and leave his estate to a friend, Vincenzo Governali of Corleone, Sicily (The Corleone mafia has of course had members by the last name Governali/Governale, including one time capo Antonio Governale).

James Gerage: Gerage was a resident of affluent Barrington Hills and co-owner with his brother Chuck of Omega Demolition Corp., based in suburban Elgin. The company has been described as "troubled" by the Chicago press, due to a worksite fatality and scrutiny over potential "sweetheart" contract deals with the mayor of Rosemont. In September of 2016, Gerage was found beaten to death and set ablaze in his car in a largely vacant industrial section in the Near Southwest Side along the South Branch of the Chicago River. The Gerages have been rumored to have links to the Grand Ave Crew, and Scott B reported that sources in Chicago LE suspect that the murder was a mob hit. In 2019 the Tribune reported that convicted murderer Losardo Lucas was a person of interest in Gerage's murder, but so far as I know no charges have ever been filed and the case remains unsolved

[Antiliar]

Great job putting this together in a single thread. This topic deserves more involvement.

[funkster]

Wasn't there some suspicion on Michael DiFoggio?

[PolackTony]

Wasn't there some suspicion on Michael DiFoggio?

Of course, a ton of suspicion after his death and then again after his business caught fire. I didn't put Bird DiFoggio on the list as I do think that it's quite likely he just committed suicide (tremendous psychological pressure of everyone in Bridgeport condemning you as a rat, who knows what kinds of threats may have been communicated to him and his family,.etc).

Any good arguments or evidence for him being hit?

[Mason_dixon]

The 2 younger guys one disappeared and one killed both relied to distributing OCs for a crooked dock. Wonder why Chicago decided they had to be walked? Even if there is no evidence they would ever rat maybe Chicago just doesn't even care and cuts the cord before even giving people the chance to damage the family. I believe Chicago is operating at a much higher level than perceived and that they are the closest family to achieving Michael corleones dream. So much of what they do now is legit or semi legit. But they'll still Wack their UB over a disagreement in 2006. These guys are very unique. Wish I know more on the story above and the Zizzo deal.

[funkster]

Wasn't there some suspicion on Michael DiFoggio?

Of course, a ton of suspicion after his death and then again after his business caught fire. I didn't put Bird DiFoggio on the list as I do think that it's quite likely he just committed suicide (tremendous psychological pressure of everyone in Bridgeport condemning you as a rat, who knows what kinds of threats may have been communicated to him and his family,.etc).

Any good arguments or evidence for him being hit?

Nah, just the usual speculation.

I wondered about the Garage killing and the Lucas story. I believe they took dna, guessing it wasn't a match.

[Patrickgold]

The 2 younger guys one disappeared and one killed both relied to distributing OCs for a crooked dock. Wonder why Chicago decided they had to be walked? Even if there is no evidence they would ever rat maybe Chicago just doesn't even care and cuts the cord before even giving people the chance to damage the family. I believe Chicago is operating at a much higher level than perceived and that they are the closest family to achieving Michael corleones dream. So much of what they do now is legit or semi legit. But they'll still Wack their UB over a disagreement in 2006. These guys are very unique. Wish I know more on the story above and the Zizzo deal.

Michael Corleones? Try the real life Tony Accardo. The real godfather. That was one of his last orders before he died. The Outfit needs to go underground so everyone thinks it’s dead.

[Tonyd621]

The thing about Gerage is they can't find Lucas. I thought it was mob related too especially since his Omega demo company was involved with Fratto and others in that construction beef yrs back. But, however, Its my personal belief that it probably isn't a mob hit until they can exclude Lucas.
The zizzo is the most interesting because we dnf have a fucking clue. At least with Jarrett and Chiarmonte we have names circled around it. But zizzo its just...

[PolackTony]

The thing about Gerage is they can't find Lucas. I thought it was mob related too especially since his Omega demo company was involved with Fratto and others in that construction beef yrs back. But, however, Its my personal belief that it probably isn't a mob hit until they can exclude Lucas.
The zizzo is the most interesting because we dnf have a fucking clue. At least with Jarrett and Chiarmonte we have names circled around it. But zizzo its just...

Even if Lucas actually committed the murder, doesn't mean it wasn't connected. Why did Lucas kill him? If it was a simple robbery or personal revenge motive that would've come out.

[Tonyd621]

The thing about Gerage is they can't find Lucas. I thought it was mob related too especially since his Omega demo company was involved with Fratto and others in that construction beef yrs back. But, however, Its my personal belief that it probably isn't a mob hit until they can exclude Lucas.
The zizzo is the most interesting because we dnf have a fucking clue. At least with Jarrett and Chiarmonte we have names circled around it. But zizzo its just...

Even if Lucas actually committed the murder, doesn't mean it wasn't connected. Why did Lucas kill him? If it was a simple robbery or personal revenge motive that would've come out.

Possible. But its a reach imo. I mean wtf do I know? I live in Connecticut. Just my two cents. I think it would come out that he would have some sort of connection to a street gang or something. I was reading his back story a little and he murdered someone in late 80s, but in 2014 or something (paroled in 2012) he robbed someone of a laptop and cash when he went to go buy the laptop(craigslist or some sort) and was caught smoking the cig near the scene. So I mean he's not some shifty criminal. He's a fly by night type of criminal imo.

[PolackTony]

The thing about Gerage is they can't find Lucas. I thought it was mob related too especially since his Omega demo company was involved with Fratto and others in that construction beef yrs back. But, however, Its my personal belief that it probably isn't a mob hit until they can exclude Lucas.
The zizzo is the most interesting because we dnf have a fucking clue. At least with Jarrett and Chiarmonte we have names circled around it. But zizzo its just...

Even if Lucas actually committed the murder, doesn't mean it wasn't connected. Why did Lucas kill him? If it was a simple robbery or personal revenge motive that would've come out.

Possible. But its a reach imo. I mean wtf do I know? I live in Connecticut. Just my two cents. I think it would come out that he would have some sort of connection to a street gang or something. I was reading his back story a little and he murdered someone in late 80s, but in 2014 or something (paroled in 2012) he robbed someone of a laptop and cash when he went to go buy the laptop(craigslist or some sort) and was caught smoking the cig near the scene. So I mean he's not some shifty criminal. He's a fly by night type of criminal imo.

IMO Vélez and Ruggirello of the highest suspicion level among these cases. I'm personally not sure about Gerage (just that it's suspicious and stinks), my only point in the response is that even if Lucas killed him that alone doesn't necessarily preclude some larger context.

Also Lucas has some gang affiliation, it was brought up during his 1986 murder conviction (don't know which organization). I mean, the guy's from Chicago, gang membership for a guy like him is practically assumed anyway. He also did a lot of time in the IL prison system, one can make plenty of connections that way.

The guy's obviously a scumbag so either way I hope he's caught. Then we'll see if he's actually charged.

[Tonyd621]

The thing about Gerage is they can't find Lucas. I thought it was mob related too especially since his Omega demo company was involved with Fratto and others in that construction beef yrs back. But, however, Its my personal belief that it probably isn't a mob hit until they can exclude Lucas.
The zizzo is the most interesting because we dnf have a fucking clue. At least with Jarrett and Chiarmonte we have names circled around it. But zizzo its just...

Even if Lucas actually committed the murder, doesn't mean it wasn't connected. Why did Lucas kill him? If it was a simple robbery or personal revenge motive that would've come out.

Possible. But its a reach imo. I mean wtf do I know? I live in Connecticut. Just my two cents. I think it would come out that he would have some sort of connection to a street gang or something. I was reading his back story a little and he murdered someone in late 80s, but in 2014 or something (paroled in 2012) he robbed someone of a laptop and cash when he went to go buy the laptop(craigslist or some sort) and was caught smoking the cig near the scene. So I mean he's not some shifty criminal. He's a fly by night type of criminal imo.

IMO Vélez and Ruggirello of the highest suspicion level among these cases. I'm personally not sure about Gerage (just that it's suspicious and stinks), my only point in the response is that even if Lucas killed him that alone doesn't necessarily preclude some larger context.

Also Lucas has some gang affiliation, it was brought up during his 1986 murder conviction (don't know which organization). I mean, the guy's from Chicago, gang membership for a guy like him is practically assumed anyway. He also did a lot of time in the IL prison system, one can make plenty of connections that way.

The guy's obviously a scumbag so either way I hope he's caught. Then we'll see if he's actually charged.

Ohh yea for sure Velez, 99% imo. I mean he lived next door to Hollingshead, it would be some coincidence if it wasn't considering where he was murdered.
Ruggirello, how much was it of Mandell going off the reservation and how much was it the outfit committing or oking it?
Mandell is in supermax right now. I feel like if he had something to give up on the current guys he would.

[PolackTony]

The thing about Gerage is they can't find Lucas. I thought it was mob related too especially since his Omega demo company was involved with Fratto and others in that construction beef yrs back. But, however, Its my personal belief that it probably isn't a mob hit until they can exclude Lucas.
The zizzo is the most interesting because we dnf have a fucking clue. At least with Jarrett and Chiarmonte we have names circled around it. But zizzo its just...

Even if Lucas actually committed the murder, doesn't mean it wasn't connected. Why did Lucas kill him? If it was a simple robbery or personal revenge motive that would've come out.

Possible. But its a reach imo. I mean wtf do I know? I live in Connecticut. Just my two cents. I think it would come out that he would have some sort of connection to a street gang or something. I was reading his back story a little and he murdered someone in late 80s, but in 2014 or something (paroled in 2012) he robbed someone of a laptop and cash when he went to go buy the laptop(craigslist or some sort) and was caught smoking the cig near the scene. So I mean he's not some shifty criminal. He's a fly by night type of criminal imo.

IMO Vélez and Ruggirello of the highest suspicion level among these cases. I'm personally not sure about Gerage (just that it's suspicious and stinks), my only point in the response is that even if Lucas killed him that alone doesn't necessarily preclude some larger context.

Also Lucas has some gang affiliation, it was brought up during his 1986 murder conviction (don't know which organization). I mean, the guy's from Chicago, gang membership for a guy like him is practically assumed anyway. He also did a lot of time in the IL prison system, one can make plenty of connections that way.

The guy's obviously a scumbag so either way I hope he's caught. Then we'll see if he's actually charged.

Ohh yea for sure Velez, 99% imo. I mean he lived next door to Hollingshead, it would be some coincidence if it wasn't considering where he was murdered.
Ruggirello, how much was it of Mandell going off the reservation and how much was it the outfit committing or oking it?
Mandell is in supermax right now. I feel like if he had something to give up on the current guys he would.

The thing that really jumped out to me about Ruggirello was his will.

[Tonyd621]

The thing about Gerage is they can't find Lucas. I thought it was mob related too especially since his Omega demo company was involved with Fratto and others in that construction beef yrs back. But, however, Its my personal belief that it probably isn't a mob hit until they can exclude Lucas.
The zizzo is the most interesting because we dnf have a fucking clue. At least with Jarrett and Chiarmonte we have names circled around it. But zizzo its just...

Even if Lucas actually committed the murder, doesn't mean it wasn't connected. Why did Lucas kill him? If it was a simple robbery or personal revenge motive that would've come out.

Possible. But its a reach imo. I mean wtf do I know? I live in Connecticut. Just my two cents. I think it would come out that he would have some sort of connection to a street gang or something. I was reading his back story a little and he murdered someone in late 80s, but in 2014 or something (paroled in 2012) he robbed someone of a laptop and cash when he went to go buy the laptop(craigslist or some sort) and was caught smoking the cig near the scene. So I mean he's not some shifty criminal. He's a fly by night type of criminal imo.

IMO Vélez and Ruggirello of the highest suspicion level among these cases. I'm personally not sure about Gerage (just that it's suspicious and stinks), my only point in the response is that even if Lucas killed him that alone doesn't necessarily preclude some larger context.

Also Lucas has some gang affiliation, it was brought up during his 1986 murder conviction (don't know which organization). I mean, the guy's from Chicago, gang membership for a guy like him is practically assumed anyway. He also did a lot of time in the IL prison system, one can make plenty of connections that way.

The guy's obviously a scumbag so either way I hope he's caught. Then we'll see if he's actually charged.

Ohh yea for sure Velez, 99% imo. I mean he lived next door to Hollingshead, it would be some coincidence if it wasn't considering where he was murdered.
Ruggirello, how much was it of Mandell going off the reservation and how much was it the outfit committing or oking it?
Mandell is in supermax right now. I feel like if he had something to give up on the current guys he would.

The thing that really jumped out to me about Ruggirello was his will.

And Mandell did originally get kicked off the police for insurance fraud-albeit auto, probably.

[PolackTony]

The thing about Gerage is they can't find Lucas. I thought it was mob related too especially since his Omega demo company was involved with Fratto and others in that construction beef yrs back. But, however, Its my personal belief that it probably isn't a mob hit until they can exclude Lucas.
The zizzo is the most interesting because we dnf have a fucking clue. At least with Jarrett and Chiarmonte we have names circled around it. But zizzo its just...

Even if Lucas actually committed the murder, doesn't mean it wasn't connected. Why did Lucas kill him? If it was a simple robbery or personal revenge motive that would've come out.

Possible. But its a reach imo. I mean wtf do I know? I live in Connecticut. Just my two cents. I think it would come out that he would have some sort of connection to a street gang or something. I was reading his back story a little and he murdered someone in late 80s, but in 2014 or something (paroled in 2012) he robbed someone of a laptop and cash when he went to go buy the laptop(craigslist or some sort) and was caught smoking the cig near the scene. So I mean he's not some shifty criminal. He's a fly by night type of criminal imo.

IMO Vélez and Ruggirello of the highest suspicion level among these cases. I'm personally not sure about Gerage (just that it's suspicious and stinks), my only point in the response is that even if Lucas killed him that alone doesn't necessarily preclude some larger context.

Also Lucas has some gang affiliation, it was brought up during his 1986 murder conviction (don't know which organization). I mean, the guy's from Chicago, gang membership for a guy like him is practically assumed anyway. He also did a lot of time in the IL prison system, one can make plenty of connections that way.

The guy's obviously a scumbag so either way I hope he's caught. Then we'll see if he's actually charged.

Ohh yea for sure Velez, 99% imo. I mean he lived next door to Hollingshead, it would be some coincidence if it wasn't considering where he was murdered.
Ruggirello, how much was it of Mandell going off the reservation and how much was it the outfit committing or oking it?
Mandell is in supermax right now. I feel like if he had something to give up on the current guys he would.

The thing that really jumped out to me about Ruggirello was his will.

And Mandell did originally get kicked off the police for insurance fraud-albeit auto, probably.

My question would be what might possibly link Mandell to Ruggirello suddenly signing his will over to a guy that may very well have connections to the Corleone mafia?