Who runs the DeCavalcantes?

[slimshady_007]

Could just be a coincidence, but I learned that Joseph Merlo Sr. went by the nickname "Joe Milk". He is long deceased, but might be an indication that the street boss referred to as "Milk" is one of the Merlos. Also worth pointing out that the Merlos and Majuris are related somehow and Merlo Jr. reported direct to Charlie Majuri when he was on the ruling panel, so the mention of "Milk's" relative being an early "underboss of consiglieres" could leave open some possibilities if "Milk" is indeed a Merlo.

What’s Merlo Jr’s story? Cant find much on him

[Frank]

Could just be a coincidence, but I learned that Joseph Merlo Sr. went by the nickname "Joe Milk". He is long deceased, but might be an indication that the street boss referred to as "Milk" is one of the Merlos. Also worth pointing out that the Merlos and Majuris are related somehow and Merlo Jr. reported direct to Charlie Majuri when he was on the ruling panel, so the mention of "Milk's" relative being an early "underboss of consiglieres" could leave open some possibilities if "Milk" is indeed a Merlo.

What’s Merlo Jr’s story? Cant find much on him

I see that Merlo Jr is 75 years old. Then there is Merlo 3, he is around 46. Then there is a Mike Merlo that is in his 50s, I assume he is Merlo jnrs son too. Mike Merlo was the name of an early Chicago LCN boss and I believe he was related to the Jersey Merlos. I know there is a connection between Chicago and Jersey as another Chicago leader Lolardo and his brother. After Lolardo was killed, his brother left Chicago and I believe was a member of the Jersey Family. It would be interesting if the Mike Merlo of Chicago had connections to the milk industry. The Chicago Outfit where involved in milk. That could be a possibility of Merlo Sr having the nicname Milk. This is just something that came to my mind. Maybe the dots connect, maybe they don't.

[Pogo The Clown]

I see that Merlo Jr is 75 years old. Then there is Merlo 3, he is around 46. Then there is a Mike Merlo that is in his 50s, I assume he is Merlo jnrs son too.

Mike Merlo is 65/6. He is a made member and the brother of Joe Jr. Unless you mean another Mike Merlo?


Anyway good find B. All things considered "Milk" is probably Joe Jr. or Mike. The Merlos were also really close with the Riggis. Mike Merlo was supposedly married to one of John Riggi's daughters.


Pogo

[Frank]

I see that Merlo Jr is 75 years old. Then there is Merlo 3, he is around 46. Then there is a Mike Merlo that is in his 50s, I assume he is Merlo jnrs son too.

Mike Merlo is 65/6. He is a made member and the brother of Joe Jr. Unless you mean another Mike Merlo?


Anyway good find B. All things considered "Milk" is probably Joe Jr. or Mike. The Merlos were also really close with the Riggis. Mike Merlo was supposedly married to one of John Riggi's daughters.


Pogo

No you are right, if Mike Merlo is known as a made man, then where I read it was either dated and 10 years behind or a misprint. But the important thing is that one of the Merlos could be Milk.

[B.]

Joe Merlo Jr.'s son Joe III is not a member. He is a ~30-year-old homosexual theater actor. Where does the info come about Merlo III being a member come from? If there is a younger Joe Merlo in the family, it would have to be Michael's son or another relative and not Merlo III, but I have no clue where that info is from to begin with.

Joe Merlo Jr. used to be married to the daughter of Pino Schifilliti. I'm not sure Merlo's exact age but he is younger than 75 -- I believe close to 60-years-old.

The Merlos were one of the first Riberese families to settle in Elizabeth around the turn of the century (the Riggis were very early as well) and ran a dairy farm, which I assume is where the nickname "Joe Milk" came from. The relation to the Majuris is through Frank Majuri's wife, mother of Charlie, who herself was the sister of capodecina Joseph Caruano and, according to LaRasso's FBI file, the niece of Louis LaRasso. As Pogo mentioned, the Merlos are related by marriage to the Riggis, plus one of LaRasso's daughters married a Merlo.

So if "Milk" is Joe Jr. or Mike Merlo, Stango was absolutely on the money when he said "Milk's family was the root of the tree", with them being confirmed related to all of the following:

Riggi
LaRasso
Majuri
Shifilliti
Caruano

And those are just the relations we know about. There are bound to be other relations I haven't come across, plus those above names have their own sets of relations to other mafia figures. Majuri being a relative of Barney Bellomo one.

[Snakes]

Could just be a coincidence, but I learned that Joseph Merlo Sr. went by the nickname "Joe Milk". He is long deceased, but might be an indication that the street boss referred to as "Milk" is one of the Merlos. Also worth pointing out that the Merlos and Majuris are related somehow and Merlo Jr. reported direct to Charlie Majuri when he was on the ruling panel, so the mention of "Milk's" relative being an early "underboss of consiglieres" could leave open some possibilities if "Milk" is indeed a Merlo.

Great info.

[SonnyBlackstein]

Could just be a coincidence, but I learned that Joseph Merlo Sr. went by the nickname "Joe Milk". He is long deceased, but might be an indication that the street boss referred to as "Milk" is one of the Merlos. Also worth pointing out that the Merlos and Majuris are related somehow and Merlo Jr. reported direct to Charlie Majuri when he was on the ruling panel, so the mention of "Milk's" relative being an early "underboss of consiglieres" could leave open some possibilities if "Milk" is indeed a Merlo.

Great info.

+1

[B.]

Joe Merlo Jr.'s son Joe III is not a member. He is a ~30-year-old homosexual theater actor. Where does the info come about Merlo III being a member come from? If there is a younger Joe Merlo in the family, it would have to be Michael's son or another relative and not Merlo III, but I have no clue where that info is from to begin with.

Joe Merlo Jr. used to be married to the daughter of Pino Schifilliti. I'm not sure Merlo's exact age but he is younger than 75 -- I believe close to 60-years-old.

The Merlos were one of the first Riberese families to settle in Elizabeth around the turn of the century (the Riggis were very early as well) and ran a dairy farm, which I assume is where the nickname "Joe Milk" came from. The relation to the Majuris is through Frank Majuri's wife, mother of Charlie, who herself was the sister of capodecina Joseph Caruano and, according to LaRasso's FBI file, the niece of Louis LaRasso. As Pogo mentioned, the Merlos are related by marriage to the Riggis, plus one of LaRasso's daughters married a Merlo.

So if "Milk" is Joe Jr. or Mike Merlo, Stango was absolutely on the money when he said "Milk's family was the root of the tree", with them being confirmed related to all of the following:

Riggi
LaRasso
Majuri
Shifilliti
Caruano

And those are just the relations we know about. There are bound to be other relations I haven't come across, plus those above names have their own sets of relations to other mafia figures. Majuri being a relative of Barney Bellomo one.

Should also add that when Louis LaRasso's father Alfonse LoRaso left Ribera, his immigration record shows that he was departing from a cousin Michele Merlo in Ribera. Another Michele Merlo from Ribera was one of the first to settle in Elizabeth. So these relations are multi-layered to say the least and who even knows how deep they go back in Sicily. I have a lot more information now on other suspected Riberesi mafiosi who settled in another part of the US I will share in the future and there are many familiar names, so it's pretty much the same names over and over again connected to each other regardless of time period and location, with the common theme of Riberesi heritage and mafia association.

[Frank]

Joe Merlo Jr.'s son Joe III is not a member. He is a ~30-year-old homosexual theater actor. Where does the info come about Merlo III being a member come from? If there is a younger Joe Merlo in the family, it would have to be Michael's son or another relative and not Merlo III, but I have no clue where that info is from to begin with.

Joe Merlo Jr. used to be married to the daughter of Pino Schifilliti. His current wife is a LaBarbera; a Vincenzo LaBarbera was an older DeCav member and John LaBarbera is an active figure in the Ribera Club. I'm not sure Merlo's exact age but he is younger than 75 -- I believe close to 60-years-old.

The Merlos were one of the first Riberese families to settle in Elizabeth around the turn of the century (the Riggis were very early as well) and ran a dairy farm, which I assume is where the nickname "Joe Milk" came from. The relation to the Majuris is through Frank Majuri's wife, mother of Charlie, who herself was the sister of capodecina Joseph Caruano and, according to LaRasso's FBI file, the niece of Louis LaRasso. As Pogo mentioned, the Merlos are related by marriage to the Riggis, plus one of LaRasso's daughters married a Merlo.

So if "Milk" is Joe Jr. or Mike Merlo, Stango was absolutely on the money when he said "Milk's family was the root of the tree", with them being confirmed related to all of the following:

Riggi
LaRasso
Majuri
Shifilliti
LaBarbera
Caruano

And those are just the relations we know about. There are bound to be other relations I haven't come across, plus those above names have their own sets of relations to other mafia figures. Majuri being a relative of Barney Bellomo one.

Sorry about the Merlo3 stuff I read from a chart real quick. It was an old Jersey chart Furio made.

[B.]

In addition to everything else, can't forget that Majuri's nephew Frank Renda is believed to have been made. Renda's step-father is DeCav soldier Nick LaMela, from a family with longstanding involvement in the DeCavs, which makes LaMela Charlie Majuri's brother-in-law. Around it goes.

[Pogo The Clown]

Merlo III as a member was fresh street talk from the usual suspects on the RD.


Great info on the DeCavalcante relations B. Seems that almost all of their members are related to each other in some way.


Pogo

[B.]

The Elizabeth / Union County guys for sure. The older NYC members from Ribera like the Giacobbes, Cocchiaros, Carubias, Lolordo, etc. are most likely (and in some cases definitely) related to familiar names, but most of the NYC guys made in the 1970s and later don't look to have been related in any meaningful way except Farone and D'Agosta, then Abramo and Consalvo, all brothers-in-law. Of course the D'Amatos were brothers, too. But none of those guys fit into the Peterstown gridlock of relationships. Even the Birmingham and Chicago Riberesi were related to familiar names.

It also stands out to me that Sam DeCavalcante and his relatives don't seem to have intersected at all with the Elizabeth / Ribera guys and weren't based there, either. They had their own little group, though:
Frank Rizzo DeCavalcante
Sam Rizzo DeCavalcante
Nick Delmore
Bobby Occhipinti
Vincent Palermo

[JCB1977]

"Some say" = goofs on the internet guessing and presenting it as fact. They have been saying Majuri is the Boss on the forums for 12 years and each time official info comes out it is proven wrong. Maybe if they keep at it they might eventually guess one right.


Pogo

Couldn’t have said it better myself Pogo

[JCB1977]

Is anybody familiar with a guy in New Jersey named Joseph “Demus” Covello, he was a Gambino member who operated large scale gambling in NJ? He was The Godfather of one of Paul “No Legs” Hankish’s daughter in Wheeling, WV and took a lot of Joey Naples’ gambling layoffs. Hankish’s daughter lived in NYC and Covello looked out for her. Naples was a made member in Pittsburgh and he ran the Youngstown rackets, I always found that connection very interesting to New Jersey.

What was Covello’s relationship with the Decavalcante’s since he was operating there?

[JCB1977]

In addition to everything else, can't forget that Majuri's nephew Frank Renda is believed to have been made. Renda's step-father is DeCav soldier Nick LaMela, from a family with longstanding involvement in the DeCavs, which makes LaMela Charlie Majuri's brother-in-law. Around it goes.

Great thread, great info B per usual