THE BLACK HAND FORUM

what do people make of this quote from Vincent Teresa's My life in the Mafia book about Wimpy Bennett and Henry Tameleo on p.150 “Whimpy and I had been pretty good friends over the years. We'd done a lot of business together. He’d given me a lot of action, pushing hijack deals and other stuff my way. I was seen with him quite often. Then one day in early 1966 I got a call from Tameleo. ‘Meet me,’ he said. So I drove the car to Providence, and we met in my car in a parking lot.

Stay away from Whimpy,’ Tameleo said. ‘He’s a stool pigeon.’

“I couldn’t believe it. I stared at Tameleo and couldn’t believe it. ‘How do you know this?’ I asked. ‘I’ve known this guy for years. I don’t believe it. We’ve done a lot of things together over the years, and nothing ever went wrong.

“Henry just looked at me. I guess he was a little pissed off that I should question his word. ‘Listen to me,’ he snapped. “This is Uncle Henry talking to you now. We’re talking in this car. Nobody knows this. Whimpy’s gonna get whacked out. He’s a stoolie. We got the information straight from our man on the Boston Police Department

I just shook my head. I couldn’t believe it. Tameleo said Whimpy had been a stoolie for years, that a lot of guys had hit the can because of him, but I’d never seen him do a thing wrong when we were operating together. ‘How the hell did he operate, do all the things he did, then?’ I asked.

“Henry’s face was frozen. “That’s how he got away with all the things he’s done. The cops gave him a license to steal to find out what was going on, who else was involved. He’s hurt a lot of people, and the cop that told us proved it.'

[quote=B. post_id=235315 time=1660011918 user_id=127]
- People from Aragona were in Boston by the turn the of century. Alfonso Veneziano is the first one I see, marrying there in 1902. There were plenty of immigrants from Sciacca, Porto Empedocle, and other familiar Agrigento towns in Boston shortly after the turn of the century and through the next couple of decades. A Lorenzo Marino from Siculiana lived in Boston circa 1917-1918, which brings to mind the Gaetano Marino I found from Siculiana. There were many other Marinos in Boston from Sciacca.
[/quote]

As I'm doing some research on New Orleans for a personal project, I'm looking into the Siculiana connections and was wondering if the Lorenzo Marino you mention could be this one?
[img]https://theblackhand.club/forum/ext/dmzx/imageupload/files/a184b7f1beda2f59637b59d26432adca.png[/img]

No mentions of Boston on this but New Orleans is mentioned in this thread (page 1) and as this Lorenzo Marino was from Siculiana ...

Also, several Marinos from Siculiana are mentioned in this thread: https://theblackhand.club/forum/viewtopic.php?t=3632

As antimafia reminds us in it, the information should be taken with a pinch of salt, but as quite a few Siculianese were active in New Orleans ...

Whoa, not what I expected but would fit with the mafiosi in Boston from Pietraperzia.

Might be further indication Antonino Amoroso was a mafioso as I can't see why the Baucinese Cecalas would set up a marriage with the Amorosos in Boston.

[quote=B. post_id=235367 time=1660086709 user_id=127]
Another interesting tie:

- Early NYC mafia member Antonio Cecala's daughter married Giuseppe Amoroso of Boston, son of Antonino Amoroso and Angela Giamuzzo. Giuseppe was born in "Italy" while Vincenza Cecala was born in NYC.

- The marriage took place in 1913 in Boston and the couple resided in East Boston through 1920. Something may have happened, as by 1930 their teenaged daughter is living in NYC with her grandmother, Antonio Cecala's widow (he was killed 1928), without her parents. There is a widowed Joseph Amoroso listed in the 1930 Boston census, not sure if it's the same one.

- The 1913 marriage of his daughter in Boston took place when Cecala was already in prison on counterfeiting charges. Cecala was said to be one of the men that secured buyers in other cities -- one of the cities they distributed counterfeit bills to was Boston. This marriage looks to be arranged so it's possible Antonino Amoroso was a mafia contact of Cecala's in Boston.

- The Cecalas were from Baucina, Palermo. I couldn't find where Antonino Amoroso or his wife came from.

- Antonio Cecala was a ranking member of either the Morello or Lupo Family. He told Comito that three years prior he became "head" of a "band of incendiaries" who helped him earn money. Given his important role in the counterfeiting op and his close relationship with Lupo and Morello I suspect he was a capodecina in one of their Families. He's consistently linked to top members of both groups, then after his release again is close to Lucchese, Genovese, and Gambino figures (all three Families had members with heritage in Baucina and nearby villages). He went to Sicily in 1925 with Vincenzo Mangano and Giuseppe Traina, plus his Empire Yeast company was taken over by Traina after Cecala's murder which could point to him being with that Family.

Never seen the Amorosos surface later in connection with the New England mafia but the Cecala marriage is an indication they were involved.
[/quote]
Nice info. Antonino Amoroso and Maria Angela Giammusso (which I believe is the original spelling of that surname) were both from Barrafranca, Enna, per a 1914 passenger manifest for their arrival in Boston (both surnames are definitely present in Barrafranca, so this makes perfect sense). We’ve obviously seen people from modern Enna province connected to the mafia in NJ and Chicago, along with some other places, so it’s interesting to see some of them in Boston connected to NYC relatively early on.

^^^ Donato Miranda actually appaears to have split time between NY and Boston. He owned a Boston-based business.

Another Genovese connection is Donato Miranda, brother of Genovese leader Michael Miranda. He lived in Boston and was identified as active with the local mafia though I don't know if membership was ever confirmed. Hard to know his exact affiliation given we see a couple of members from other Families living in Boston.

Another Miranda brother, Antonio, lived in Springfield MA where he died in 1930. His son married a Scibelli, a name that needs no intro with the Genovese Springfield decina. Seems likely Antonio was an early Springfield-based member of the Genovese Family.

some where in the ray patriarca files it has jerry anguilo and limone geting made together in56 57. i think limone said on a wire tap he was like 22 24 the age matched up to him being made in 56 57/ the same year ray made 6 guys in worcester and tansferd them to the genovese family because the capo in worcester iacone was in jail for taxes. i beleive ray inducted his son or sons and had them stay with the new england family giving him the biggest piece of worcester

Another interesting tie:

- Early NYC mafia member Antonio Cecala's daughter married Giuseppe Amoroso of Boston, son of Antonino Amoroso and Angela Giamuzzo. Giuseppe was born in "Italy" while Vincenza Cecala was born in NYC.

- The marriage took place in 1913 in Boston and the couple resided in East Boston through 1920. Something may have happened, as by 1930 their teenaged daughter is living in NYC with her grandmother, Antonio Cecala's widow (he was killed 1928), without her parents. There is a widowed Joseph Amoroso listed in the 1930 Boston census, not sure if it's the same one.

- The 1913 marriage of his daughter in Boston took place when Cecala was already in prison on counterfeiting charges. Cecala was said to be one of the men that secured buyers in other cities -- one of the cities they distributed counterfeit bills to was Boston. This marriage looks to be arranged so it's possible Antonino Amoroso was a mafia contact of Cecala's in Boston.

- The Cecalas were from Baucina, Palermo. I couldn't find where Antonino Amoroso or his wife came from.

- Antonio Cecala was a ranking member of either the Morello or Lupo Family. He told Comito that three years prior he became "head" of a "band of incendiaries" who helped him earn money. Given his important role in the counterfeiting op and his close relationship with Lupo and Morello I suspect he was a capodecina in one of their Families. He's consistently linked to top members of both groups, then after his release again is close to Lucchese, Genovese, and Gambino figures (all three Families had members with heritage in Baucina and nearby villages). He went to Sicily in 1925 with Vincenzo Mangano and Giuseppe Traina, plus his Empire Yeast company was taken over by Traina after Cecala's murder which could point to him being with that Family.

Never seen the Amorosos surface later in connection with the New England mafia but the Cecala marriage is an indication they were involved.

The source said Angiulo and Limone were the last guys to get made in 1960/61, but Nicky Bianco was made in 1963. Patriarca was recorded saying the Bianco induction was specially approved by the Commission and he lived in NYC so might have been an exception. When Philly was chastised for making members they were told that one reason the books were closed was Valachi, so maybe some of these non-NYC Families were forced to close their books around 1962.

Patriarca books weren't closed in the sixties? Was it only the NY families?

Thanks to Nash for posting these docs a while back.

[img]https://i.ibb.co/T0k7P7h/patriarca1.png[/img]

- Patriarca being on the Commission but having to step down due to LE pressure makes sense, as Tony Accardo was recorded saying Patriarca had a Commission seat in 1958. We know he wasn't on the Commission for much if any of the 1960s.

[img]https://i.ibb.co/k2Rk909/patriarca2.png[/img]

- According to this, Frank Costello was still boss when he peacefully "encouraged" Phil Buccola to step down. This informant believed ethnic politics were the reason, which is very interesting. Patriarca's father was from Acre, Lazio, not far from Naples, and his mother's family was from Avellino so this tells us he was perceived as Neapolitan. Costello was Calabrian, not Neapolitan, but it suggests the Genovese Family wanted to elevate mainlanders in New England.

- The second part appears to refer to Lombardo, as it's about a Boston-based underboss who held the title under both Buccola and Patriarca. It mentions that he was close to New York himself.

[img]https://i.ibb.co/RYf9g6f/patriarca3.png[/img]

- If this is true, Angiulo's trajectory was: made in 60 or 61, promoted to capodecina by mid-1965 (Pussy Russo said it was recent), and ID'd by the FBI as underboss in 1969.

- Any idea what Family or areas Cassesso was connected to outside of Boston?

[img]https://i.ibb.co/YBMjxw9/patriarca4.png[/img]

- Along with Ray Patriarca saying he was a member of an NYC Family circa 1946, here we have further evidence he was a Genovese member. Interestingly so were Mike Rocco and two redacted names.

- Question is when Ray Patriarca was made. If Frank Costello did it, it was most likely one of the first Genovese ceremonies after the books opened up in the mid-1940s. Patriarca must have been a newly made Genovese member when Buccola requested he transfer to New England in 1946.

Like the informative post about possible early members of Boston.

- Getting back to Teresa's claims, he said that in the 1950s Lombardo was the overall boss, especially of Boston's North and West ends. Anthony Santaniello controlled the South End. Phil Buccola had the East End, and he was also Butsey Morelli's replacement in Providence. Lombardo retired and Buccola replaced him for a few years before he fled to Italy.

- According to Willie Fopiano in "The Godson," around 1932 Buccola was the boss, Lombardo the underboss, and Cucchiara the consigliere. Henry Selvitella and Tony Sandrelli were the capos.

Early Sicilian connections:

- Girolamo Asaro was a powerful member in 1896 Castellammare and looks to have remained influential over a decade later in Manhattan where he's arrested as an international fugitive. He moves to Boston after 1908. Following his 1912 accidental death, several Schiro affiliates from New York attend his Boston funeral including Stefano Magaddino, Gaspare Milazzo, and Giuseppe "Bonipito" (Bonventre?). Following Girolamo's death, his family returns to NYC and investigations into his descendants in the Bonanno Family show no known ties to Boston.

- Looking through immigration records, a large number of Sicilians in Boston were not just from Salemi but also Marsala and Palma, Trapani. Other villages like Vita, Partanna, and Campobello di Mazara show up here and there. Salemi was by far the most dominant in terms of numbers so not surprising these top Boston mafia leaders came from there. Very few seem to be from the upper coast like Castellammare and Alcamo, though there are some as evidenced by the Asaros. Many Boston Sicilians list "Trapani" but hard to tell if they mean the town or the province.

- Salvatore Cangemi from Salemi was a close associate of his mafia paesans Gaspare Messina, Frank Cucchiara, and Joseph Lombardo. Strong candidate for membership in the early Boston faction.

Cangemi:

[img]https://i.ibb.co/r7qkJyy/salvatorecangemi.png[/img]

- Early Philadelphia member Biagio Passanante (b. 1883) moved to Boston in 1916 then moved back to PA two years later. He was from Campobello di Mazara, Trapani.

- People from Aragona were in Boston by the turn the of century. Alfonso Veneziano is the first one I see, marrying there in 1902. There were plenty of immigrants from Sciacca, Porto Empedocle, and other familiar Agrigento towns in Boston shortly after the turn of the century and through the next couple of decades. A Lorenzo Marino from Siculiana lived in Boston circa 1917-1918, which brings to mind the Gaetano Marino I found from Siculiana. There were many other Marinos in Boston from Sciacca.

- If Gentile's friend Marino wasn't from Agrigento, another possibility is a Gaetano Marino in Boston born 1890 in Riesi, Caltanissetta. He was living there during the general period Gentile visited but Gentile wasn't close to guys from Caltanissetta so the connection wouldn't fit his usual patterns. However this is a Sicilian Gaetano Marino we can definitively link to a Boston residence at the time. The LaMattinas were from Pietraperzia so there were mafiosi from that region in Boston.

- There were of course a ton of immigrants from Palermo in Boston, so DiCola, the Teresas, and Buccola fit in.

Thanks Pogo.

Even accounting for sleepers they probably weren't bigger than 80 members at any point.

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Agrigento ties?

- Along with Gaetano Marino being a possible member of an outside Family living in Boston, later on James Fiore was a Buffalo member living in Winthrop, MA. He was nephew of the Falcone brothers and belonged to the Utica decina. He associated with Patriarca members but didn't transfer membership. Don't know where Fiore's father came from but if he was a blood relative of the Falcones some of his heritage was from Sciacca. Joe Falcone visited Fiore in Boston.

- There was a possible Patriarca member in Boston named Anthony Indelicato whose father came from Sciacca. The Indelicatos of NYC were from Sciacca and cousins of the Falcones, so could be a connection here with Fiore also living in the area. Was Indelicato's membership ever confirmed?

- Elderly Salvatore Giglia and the younger Biagio DiGiacomo, both from Aragona, were identified as capodecinas in the 1980s with Sicilian mafia ties. No other members from Aragona have been ID'd to my knowledge. They appear to have ties to paesani in Rockford but this group (?) is largely a mystery.

- Salvatore Michael Caruana, who went missing in the 1980s, was a made member close to the Patriarcas whose family likely descends from Agrigento. He was born in the US and I've seen nothing to indicate he was tied to Sicilian mafiosi but he was a major drug trafficker. A 1984 FBI report says the Sicilian mafia faction of Montreal (distinct from the Bonanno faction) collaborates with the Patriarca Family. The Sicilian mafia faction of Montreal was dominated by the Caruana-Cuntreras, so you have to wonder who their contact was in New England -- presumably it involved drugs. Michael Caruana was still on the street at this time so between his surname and drug activities I'd consider him a candidate.

They had 64 members in 1993. That is probably not too far off from their peak.


Pogo