Springfield Family 1963

[B.]

For CC's charts.

FBI files into the mid-1970s indicate they were never able to identify much of anyone except the admin. Local informants just knew who associated with one another, nothing about the org. Maybe Cavita can fill in gaps.

--

Springfield:

Boss - Francesco Zito - San Giuseppe Jato, Palermo
Underboss - Domenico "Nick" Campo - Montevago, Agrigento

Suspected Members / Close Associates of Zito:
Calogero Campo - Montevago, Agrigento
Ernest "Buster" Dinora - ??? (Born in Scranton, PA)
Vito Impastato - Cinisi, Palermo (very likely made)
Joseph Madonia - Monreale, Palermo
Peter Rano - San Cipirello, Palermo
Vincent Salvo - Castelvetrano, Trapani
Antonino "Tony" Zito - San Giuseppe Jato, Palermo (very likely made)
Filippo Zito - San Giuseppe Jato, Palermo (he was active with the SGJ Family in Sicily before US)
Salvatore Zito - San Giuseppe Jato, Palermo

Top non-Italian associate:
Frank Diaz - Spain

--

Notes:

- Suspected members are based on who was actually suspected by the FBI as well as guys with longstanding association with Frank Zito going back decades. Many were co-defendants in a big IRS case against Zito in 1931 and still alive.

- A Sam DiSpenza b. 1899 in Elmwood Park, Chicago, said by the FBI to be connected to Springfield in some way on a 1974 report by the Springfield FBI office. He was seen driving with Frank Zito.

- Frank's brother Tony Zito married the daughter of underboss Campo.

- FBI wiretaps showed them to use the word "decina"and "borgata". Context unknown, may have been them talking about another Family. They also talked a lot about people being "paesano" / "paesani" and Zito used the word "picciotto". Bugs very unproductive for org intel.

- Zito's address was found in the ledger of LA underboss Momo Adamo when he killed himself.

- Frank and Salvatore Zito lived in a San Giuseppe Jato colony in Alabama before Illinois.

- Ex-Chicago member Cesare Manzella lived here after his paesani were killed in the Chicago area in the late 1940s before he returned to Sicily. Evidently transferred back to Cinisi where he became boss and was killed in 1963.

- Francesco Longo of San Giuseppe Jato was very likely a member before he moved to Newark and was killed, as he is consistently mentioned by later informants as having been part of the core group with Zito. Tony Riela and Vincenzo Troia spent time in Springfield but hard to say if they joined this Family, but Longo definitely looks to have been a member here.

- Filippo Zito + another older Zito brother + uncle Antonino Salamone were ID'd as affiliati of the San Giuseppe Jato Family in the 1920s/30s alongside the Troia clan and the Zito-Salamones were related to a San Cipirello leader. Another brother was Rockford consigliere Joe Zito.

- One report thought Frank Zito was no longer boss as of 1965. Don't know if that's true or what. Don't know if this Family disbanded or just dwindled. No indication they made younger guys.

[B.]

Also I don't think it's a bad idea to include select non-Italians on these charts when they have a crucial role as long as it makes it clear they weren't a made member. Don't want to open the floodgates to these already-daunting charts having a ton of associates but I think it's relevant in a very few select cases.

Frank Diaz was one of the most important guys working for Zito and is referenced in reports more than the suspected members. Could apply this to Chicago (Humphreys, Alex), Cleveland (Rockman), Genovese (Lansky), and Joe Diaz (Tampa).

I'm also into the idea of keeping it strictly to the formal membership but it should be consistent. If Lansky and the Chicago guys belong on a chart, so should Frank Diaz even though he was a more scaled down version. I think Scott D would say the same is true for Tampa's Joe Diaz since he was allowed to consult with their consiglio on an operational level like Gus Alex did in Chicago even though he represented a far more limited scope of influence than Alex (just as the Family itself was smaller and more limited).

[cavita]

Nice. Springfield is an LCN history I want to explore further once I'm done with Rockford. LOL! I did notice that in their early history Gaspare Calo was involved with them before he became underboss in Rockford. He was arrested there and did time in Leavenworth under the name "Jasper Blanda" and at least one newspaper reference in the Illinois Daily Journal stated Calo was a lieutenant to Frank Zito. They were also brothers-in-law as Calo had married Zito's sister Providenza. Yes, Filippo Zito was most likely made a member of the San Giuseppe Iato family before coming to the U.S. and there was also a brother Pietro born in 1898 that I don't think immigrated here.
-In later years it appears that Zito's nephew Mike Midiri was involved and indications were that after Frank Zito died in 1974 control of the family turned over to Dinora, Impastato and Midiri.
-There may have been some involvement of the Giganti family members
-We touched on this topic as well, one I'm believing more and more is that when Zito was indicted for bootlegging and sentenced to Leavenworth around 1931 or so, Vincenzo Troia may have been boss there for a brief time with the help of Tony Riela. Both had fled Rockford in August 1930 after the murder of Joe Giovingo and it is known for sure that Riela stayed in Springfield for a time at the home of Leo Ciaccio.

[B.]

Great info.

Wouldn't be surprised if Troia was the boss before or during 1931 which would explain why he was seen as a rappresentante who could sit on the peace commission and was elected to serve as "capo" over the first Commission before Maranzano nixed the idea.

Troia and his cousins' stature was so immense in San Giuseppe Jato he could have come to the US and been elected boss in the Midwest soon after arrival. The Troia-Pulejo-Termini clan produced at least four SGJ bosses between mid-1910s and mid-1940s. They were very important even in the mafia politics of Palermo citta.

[cavita]

Additionally, if you search the LCN and Benld, Illinois you'll find a lot of Black Hand activity there in the years preceding 1935. Tony Riela had a lot to do in that area.
I also failed to mention the last name of Sgro as ones who may have been members. I believe they were also connected to the Zito name either as blood relations or marriage.

[B.]

Frank Zito lived in Benld as a miner too and I think Frank Abbate from Cinisi was living there at the time he was killed. It shows up a lot -- there was a small but strong Sicilian colony there at one point and mafiosi lived/passed through. Johnson City is another one like that but way further south. Peoria had stuff going on too.

This is relevant:



- Obviously Gary and Rockford were their own groups, but the perception was the Springfield Family may have had people in other areas, including Peoria. Tony and I talked about Peoria since a 1960s Chicago informant said they had a mafia presence.

[cavita]

Photo of Calogero Campo. Interesting when he died in 1969 he had two brothers, Giuseppe and Giovanni, living in Caracas, Venezuela.

[PolackTony]

Something must’ve been in the air today, or we were both in the mood for corn. Referenced Domenico Campo in an earlier post today, as he could’ve been connected to Giancana’s BIL from Castelvetrano. Salvo being from Castelvetrano could further point to a connection. Calogero Campo was either the brother or BIL of Domenico Campo, as there were two Domenicos in Springfield of nearly the same age. Not sure which one was actually the UB.

viewtopic.php?p=239246#p239246

[cavita]

Frank Zito lived in Benld as a miner too and I think Frank Abbate from Cinisi was living there at the time he was killed. It shows up a lot -- there was a small but strong Sicilian colony there at one point and mafiosi lived/passed through. Johnson City is another one like that but way further south. Peoria had stuff going on too.

This is relevant:



- Obviously Gary and Rockford were their own groups, but the perception was the Springfield Family may have had people in other areas, including Peoria. Tony and I talked about Peoria since a 1960s Chicago informant said they had a mafia presence.

The following passage is an entry from Joe Zito’s FBI file from December 12, 1969 which reads: “During the 1930’s, JOE and FRANK ZITO bossed a gang of individuals who operated out of Gary, Indiana and Springfield, Rockford and Peoria, Illinois. The group was made up primarily of Chicago and Rockford hoodlums and they engaged in extortion and kidnaping.” It was this group that was most likely involved in the Spring Valley, Illinois kidnapping and extortion of Fred DeFilippi.

[cavita]

Frank Zito lived in Benld as a miner too and I think Frank Abbate from Cinisi was living there at the time he was killed. It shows up a lot -- there was a small but strong Sicilian colony there at one point and mafiosi lived/passed through. Johnson City is another one like that but way further south. Peoria had stuff going on too.

This is relevant:



- Obviously Gary and Rockford were their own groups, but the perception was the Springfield Family may have had people in other areas, including Peoria. Tony and I talked about Peoria since a 1960s Chicago informant said they had a mafia presence.

The following passage is an entry from Joe Zito’s FBI file from December 12, 1969 which reads: “During the 1930’s, JOE and FRANK ZITO bossed a gang of individuals who operated out of Gary, Indiana and Springfield, Rockford and Peoria, Illinois. The group was made up primarily of Chicago and Rockford hoodlums and they engaged in extortion and kidnaping.” It was this group that was most likely involved in the Spring Valley, Illinois kidnapping and extortion of Fred DeFilippi.

Attached is an excerpt from Phil Priola's FBI file regarding the kidnap ring and the Zito brothers. Some other interesting names in there which include Joe Balsamo aka Dominic Padro and Francesco Coppola. I have included what I have interpreted the redacted portions to be through research in newspapers and other FBI files. If anyone has any corrections, please let me know.

On March 28, 1933, [FRANCESCO COPPOLA (aka ANGELO VOTA), MIKE TALARICO, JOE VARSALONA, VICTOR CIESIELSKI, WESLEY E. PRITCHETT, JOHN SICILIANO, FRANK SMITH, DAN ZOOK, JULE VEYS, JOE MARANDO, EDWARD MOORE,] TONY BONACINA, PHIL PALMERO (aka PHIL PRIOLA), [VINCE BURMAN, CARL DELBONO and FRANK DELBONO (aka JOHN CASTAGNA)] were indicted at Peoria, Illinois.

[TALARICO, FRANK DELBONO] and [JOE VARSALONA] were convicted and sentenced to 42 years in Federal Penitentiary; [VICTOR CIESIELSKI] and [CARL DELBONO] were convicted of conspiracy and sentenced to serve two years in Federal Penitentiary; [REDACTED] and [REDACTED] were acquitted on a directed verdict; the indictment against [BURMAN] and [ZOOK] was dismissed since they testified for the government. The indictment against PHIL PRIOLA, who was a fugitive at the time of the trial of the other defendants, was also dismissed inasmuch as DE FILLIPI subsequently was killed in an automobile accident and the evidence against PRIOLA was insufficient to go to trial. TONY BONACINA was killed during a hold-up of a bank, shortly thereafter.

Investigation conducted by the Bureau in 1937, reflected that the [ZITO] group and the group involved in the DE FILLIPI kidnapping were all connected and headed by [REDACTED]. It would appear that following an alcohol tax indictment in June, 1935, in which [ZITO,] along with [PHILLIP VELLA, TONY DIGIOVANNI, JOE BALSAMO (AKA DOMINIC PADRO) and FRANK LICARI] were co-defendants, there was a split in the gang, part going with GEORGE SALADINO and the ZITO brothers and the balance remaining loyal to [VOTA?].

Inspector [REDACTED] considered all of the above group as possible subjects in the kidnapping of [REDACTED] in St. Louis, Missouri.

[B.]

The Domenico Pardo in the case was the boss of San Cipirello before he came to the US. Makes sense that like Troia (who he associated with in Sicily) he used an alias. This stuff ain't nothing... it's really f'n something.

Thanks for continuing to school us on the smaller Illinois Families.

[cavita]

The Domenico Pardo in the case was the boss of San Cipirello before he came to the US. Makes sense that like Troia (who he associated with in Sicily) he used an alias. This stuff ain't nothing... it's really f'n something.

Thanks for continuing to school us on the smaller Illinois Families.

After the 1935 case with Zito, Vella, et al, Padro/Pardo was deported according to the Rockford newspapers. Did he ever sneak back into the U.S. to your knowledge?

[B.]

No clue but he'd have a lot of incentive not to stay in San Cipirello as long as Mori was in power.

[B.]

Buster Dinora's father was Carl Dinora born 1874 but I can't trace him. Might have originally been DeNora and looks like a mainland name.

[PolackTony]

Buster Dinora's father was Carl Dinora born 1874 but I can't trace him. Might have originally been DeNora and looks like a mainland name.

FWIW, the Rosario Davi from Monreale/Palermo who was killed in suburban Chicago in 1950, his wife back in Palermo was a "Dinaro".

***

Couple of things to note here. The DelBonos were from Chicago. And, they were Sam Giancana's brothers-in-law. Frank and Carl Del Bono (Del Buono) were the brothers of Joe DelBono, aka Mike Blando, and Salvatore Faragia, who married Mooney's sister Mary Giancana. The papers at the time of the kidnapping trial in '33 stated that the DelBonos were the ringleaders of this kidnapping "gang".

The murder of "Michael Blando" occurred in August of 1926, immediately following the murder of Spano. "Blando" was noted as a cafe owner in the Taylor St area who was gunned down at Taylor and Ogden. Police subsequently discovered that "Michael Blando" was an alias used by Giuseppe DelBuono, who had arrived in Chicago from Missouri in 1924 following a murder involving him and his brothers near Kansas City. Their father Giuseppe Del Buono Sr was a sulfur miner from Calascibetta who arrived in Kansas in 1906, but their mother Arcangela Faragia (who died in Chicago in 1961) seems to have been from Palermo, where her kids were most likely born. While there was a John Blando in the KC family, there were also a bunch of Blandos from Ricigliano, Salerno, in the Taylor St area (later connected to the Catenas of the Genovese family, who were, like Genovese himself, also Riciglianesi), which may be a clue as to why DelBuono adopted that moniker. Police were unsure whether DelBuono's murder was connected to his earlier incident in MO, but they also strongly suspected that his killing was tied to the Spano murder.

Joe DelBuono's younger brother Salvatore "Sam" DelBuono (who in adulthood went his mother's surname as Sam Faragia) was born in 1900 in Palermo. In 1935, he married Mary Annette Giancana, younger sister of Sam Giancana, in Chicago. Their daughter Carol, born in 1936, married Nick Celozzi, Sr, who Chicagoans will need no introduction to ("The Number 1 Chevy Dealer in America!"). It was reported in 2019 that son Nick Celozzi, Jr was shopping a film about Tony Spilotro, who he describes as his mentor (https://www.thechicagosyndicate.com/201 ... e.html?m=0). After Mike Magnafichi began appearing on ANP in 2011, Joe Fosco reported that he began to receive threatening text messages from Nick Jr's brother Joe Celozzi, which apparently urged Fosco to remove the Magnafichi articles from the ANP website.

Michele Talarico was based in Davenport, IA, it seems. He was Calabrese (Cosentino), unsurprising given that surname and that there was a Calabrese colony in Iowa; many seem to have had connections to their paesani in Chicago. Keep in mind that Luigi Fratto, who was Calabrese, was based in Des Moines.

Giuseppe "Joe" Varsalona was also from Chicago and was born in Calascibetta. The DelBonos were born in Barrafranca, though it seems that their mother was originally from Palermo City.