Nicolo “Cola” Schiro was a boss of what’s now known as the Bonanno family. Shortly before the Castellammarese War, he was deposed and was forced to pay his adversaries.
There are two accounts of this:
Joe Bonanno:
“Now it was time for Joe the Boss to assert himself in regards to the Castellammarese in Brooklyn. Masseria demanded and received a
$10,000 tribute from Schiro. [...] After paying the money (buying his life), Schiro went into hiding. His disappearance disheartened the rank and file of our family. He left us without word, without explanation.”
A Man of Honor: The Autobiography of Joseph Bonanno - P.102
The book implies that this event took place early-to-mid
July 1930. Maranzano predicts that Masseria would go after Vito Bonventre next and he’s killed two days after this warning. [Bonventre was killed on Jul 15 1930]
———————————
Unknown Newark Informant
According to the informant, SCHIRO learned that the Mafia planned to kidnap [Frank] LANZA and hold him for high ransom. SCHIRO allegedly informed LANZA of the kidnap plot. According to informant others in the Mafia found out that SCHIRO had “informed” and in
early 1929 held a meeting at Andover, New Jersey, to decide the fate of SCHIRO. The informant related that SCHIRO had been held in high regard by the Mafia and in consideration of this his life was spared. However, he had to pay
$300,000.00 to the mafia and relinquish all control of the rackets in and around Brooklyn.
———————————
There a minor discrepancies between the two accounts; I’d lean towards Bonanno’s version as it’s more realistic in terms of money amounts and timeline. Either ways, both of them are recalling an event that happened decades prior.
After this incident Schiro isn’t mentioned anywhere as a major figure. I’m assuming he was semi-retired as he was ~60 and was wealthy.
I find the 2nd account really interesting. The informant knew specific details - Andover, NJ was a town of ~480 at the time - yet the story seems incredible. I’ve never heard of a mob boss being kidnapped and held for ransom. Schiro would have had contacts with bosses in several cities, he wouldn’t have been a pushover either to be deposed and extorted.
Bonanno may not have known about this affair. He makes it clear that the rest of the family didn’t know. This was obviously a high level meeting.
What happened to Cola Schiro ?
Nicolo “Cola” Schiro was a boss of what’s now known as the Bonanno family. Shortly before the Castellammarese War, he was deposed and was forced to pay his adversaries.
There are two accounts of this:
[b][u]Joe Bonanno[/u][/b]:
“Now it was time for Joe the Boss to assert himself in regards to the Castellammarese in Brooklyn. Masseria demanded and received a [b]$10,000 tribute[/b] from Schiro. [...] After paying the money (buying his life), Schiro went into hiding. His disappearance disheartened the rank and file of our family. He left us without word, without explanation.”
A Man of Honor: The Autobiography of Joseph Bonanno - P.102
The book implies that this event took place early-to-mid [b]July 1930[/b]. Maranzano predicts that Masseria would go after Vito Bonventre next and he’s killed two days after this warning. [Bonventre was killed on Jul 15 1930]
———————————
[b][u]Unknown Newark Informant [/u][/b]
[img]http://theblackhand.club/forum/ext/dmzx/imageupload/files/199e81c2624109cd3144d9f9ce9bc8d8.png[/img]
According to the informant, SCHIRO learned that the Mafia planned to kidnap [Frank] LANZA and hold him for high ransom. SCHIRO allegedly informed LANZA of the kidnap plot. According to informant others in the Mafia found out that SCHIRO had “informed” and in [b]early 1929 [/b]held a meeting at Andover, New Jersey, to decide the fate of SCHIRO. The informant related that SCHIRO had been held in high regard by the Mafia and in consideration of this his life was spared. However, he had to pay [b]$300,000.00[/b] to the mafia and relinquish all control of the rackets in and around Brooklyn.
———————————
There a minor discrepancies between the two accounts; I’d lean towards Bonanno’s version as it’s more realistic in terms of money amounts and timeline. Either ways, both of them are recalling an event that happened decades prior.
After this incident Schiro isn’t mentioned anywhere as a major figure. I’m assuming he was semi-retired as he was ~60 and was wealthy.
I find the 2nd account really interesting. The informant knew specific details - Andover, NJ was a town of ~480 at the time - yet the story seems incredible. I’ve never heard of a mob boss being kidnapped and held for ransom. Schiro would have had contacts with bosses in several cities, he wouldn’t have been a pushover either to be deposed and extorted.
Bonanno may not have known about this affair. He makes it clear that the rest of the family didn’t know. This was obviously a high level meeting.
What happened to Cola Schiro ?