THE BLACK HAND FORUM

B. wrote: ↑Wed Jan 29, 2020 4:10 pm Same to you, my friend.

On the subject of Joe Bonanno and mafia politics, he might be too exceptional to be used as an example for how things are "supposed" to work when someone is shelved. Having seen the way he is discussed on tape recordings in the early-mid 1960s by bosses in Buffalo, Philadelphia, New England, San Francisco, New Jersey, etc., I don't know if I've ever seen someone create more fear and uncertainty on a national scale. If other mafia leaders were aware of his ongoing interests in Saputo after being shelved, allowing him to keep those interests may have been seen as a reasonable trade-off to keep the peace with him.

B. wrote: ↑Mon Jan 27, 2020 6:35 pm Very cool to hear your firsthand account of these funerals -- thank you for sharing.

Laurentian wrote: ↑Mon Jan 27, 2020 5:05 am

B. wrote: ↑Sun Jan 26, 2020 3:43 pm

Laurentian wrote: ↑Sun Jan 26, 2020 3:50 am Bonanno was shelved for Cosa Nostra's politics. He had, as we all know, challenged the Commission at several occasions.

His relationship with Saputo's was purely a business one which lasted until in the 1980's, if I am not mistaken.

I attended Rocco Violi's funeral in october 1980. I do not remember having seing funeral wreaths from Saputo Cheese. I will check it.

In my opinion you can't separate Cosa Nostra politics from Joe Bonanno's business interests in Saputo, as the company seems to have fallen under the umbrella of the Bonanno mafia organization crew given its initial relationship with DiBella and Bonanno, followed by its ongoing relationship with the Cotroni and Rizzuto regimes.

An example of a similar situation is when Frank Costello was deposed and temporarily shelved -- high-level sources explained how the Genovese organization took away even his legitimate business interests because they fell under the umbrella of the mafia organization. A couple of years later, Costello was reinstated as a soldier and given his business interests back. Because Joe Bonanno wasn't reinstated as a soldier, his interests in Saputo should have been taken away but it seems they may have been kept secret or ignored by the Cotroni-Violi leadership. The new Bonanno NYC leadership wouldn't have been able to control Bonanno's businesses in California and Arizona, but because they maintained control of Montreal they should have stripped him of his interests in Montreal companies under the umbrella of the organization. Of course this is never an exact science, but it is how the organization is set up.

Very interesting about your attendance at the funeral. An article I read said that Joe Bonanno himself sent flowers. I didn't see anything about the Saputos.

B. you may be correct about Bonanno and Cosa Nostra's politics, as Bonanno was démoted around 1964 or so. Nevertheless, Bonanno, Borsellino and Saputo have still managed to pursue their business relationships years after Bonanno's expulsion.

About Rocco's funeral, I did not of course attend the wake at the funeral parlor neither inside the church. I was only observing from the sidewalk. And during the mass, I took time to have a look the few hearses parked alongside of the church (Madona della difesa) Needless to insist that Rocco's funeral were very modest and pale in contrast to Paolo's which I attended in January 1978. I have said it often and I still repeat it : Paolo's funeral were probably the most important and spectacular I ever saw. All the big names of the Canadian mafia (Ontario, B.C. and Montréal) were there.

B. wrote: ↑Sun Jan 26, 2020 3:43 pm

Laurentian wrote: ↑Sun Jan 26, 2020 3:50 am Bonanno was shelved for Cosa Nostra's politics. He had, as we all know, challenged the Commission at several occasions.

His relationship with Saputo's was purely a business one which lasted until in the 1980's, if I am not mistaken.

I attended Rocco Violi's funeral in october 1980. I do not remember having seing funeral wreaths from Saputo Cheese. I will check it.

In my opinion you can't separate Cosa Nostra politics from Joe Bonanno's business interests in Saputo, as the company seems to have fallen under the umbrella of the Bonanno mafia organization crew given its initial relationship with DiBella and Bonanno, followed by its ongoing relationship with the Cotroni and Rizzuto regimes.

An example of a similar situation is when Frank Costello was deposed and temporarily shelved -- high-level sources explained how the Genovese organization took away even his legitimate business interests because they fell under the umbrella of the mafia organization. A couple of years later, Costello was reinstated as a soldier and given his business interests back. Because Joe Bonanno wasn't reinstated as a soldier, his interests in Saputo should have been taken away but it seems they may have been kept secret or ignored by the Cotroni-Violi leadership. The new Bonanno NYC leadership wouldn't have been able to control Bonanno's businesses in California and Arizona, but because they maintained control of Montreal they should have stripped him of his interests in Montreal companies under the umbrella of the organization. Of course this is never an exact science, but it is how the organization is set up.

Very interesting about your attendance at the funeral. An article I read said that Joe Bonanno himself sent flowers. I didn't see anything about the Saputos.

Laurentian wrote: ↑Sun Jan 26, 2020 3:50 am Bonanno was shelved for Cosa Nostra's politics. He had, as we all know, challenged the Commission at several occasions.

His relationship with Saputo's was purely a business one which lasted until in the 1980's, if I am not mistaken.

I attended Rocco Violi's funeral in october 1980. I do not remember having seing funeral wreaths from Saputo Cheese. I will check it.

maxiestern11 wrote: ↑Sun Jan 26, 2020 5:20 am So Saputo was at the least an “associate” of the Bonanno’s and others if he’s attending multiple wakes of wiseguy’s although he’s a businessman per se. Besides the “relationship” with Joe Bonanno himself (in whatever capacity), he knows LoPresti, possibly Violi, etc.

He’s connected on a bit deeper level than just a cheese company owner who happened to bump into joe Bonanno casually, or innocently doing biz with him