Facts about Frank Cali (pre-murder)

[B.]

Cali's wife is the sister of Pietro Inzerillo, current gambino soldier.
Their father, Salvatore, died in 1987 in NJ due a car crash, he was a Sicilian mafia member.
Salvatore had two brother Francesco, recently died, and Tommaso (still alive and free) and a sister who is married to Joe Gambino.
Their mother is Silvana Gambino, sister of Vittoria, wife of John Gambino.

Salvatore's father was Pietro (sicilian mafia soldier later official Gambino soldier) who died in 2007 (something like that, or 2003, now I don't remember). Pietro's brothers are Salvatore (Gambino family member) Antonino (Gambino family captain killed in 1981), Francesco and Giuseppe who was the father of 5 guys including Salvatore the sicilian mafia superboss killed in 1981. Two other sons were killed during the mafia war, two others are alive and free in Palermo. One of them, Rosario, has 3 sons living in New York.

Thanks for breaking it down.

The elder Salvatore Inzerillo (great-uncle of Cali's wife) is the father of Francesco Inzerillo, who you have described as one of Cali's top men and a possible Gambino soldier, right? Or is his father someone else?

And Joe Gambino married Pietro Inzerillo's daughter, which would make both Joe and John Gambino uncles of Cali's wife through two different marriages, one on the paternal side and the other maternal side. Joe's son Tommy Gambino (who was present at the crime scene afterward, as you pointed out) would then be Cali's wife's first cousin. Is this the same as "Heavy Tommy", described by Michael DiLeonardo as a young associate he was grooming? It would be either Joe or John's son since it is not Rosario's son. Whichever son he is, I would be curious if he stayed involved in the life, as DiLeonardo said he was not cut out for it like Cali.

As Wiseguy mentioned, Cali had a wine business. Rosario's son Tommy Gambino also has a wine business. Curious if their business interests crossed paths.

Anyway, thanks to everyone for contributing... it's nice to see the known details of him in one place now that he's deceased. It wouldn't surprise me if someone tries to do a book on him given the publicity this is getting and everything he's alleged to have been involved in internationally.

[B.]

I posted this information before in one of the previous Gambino Sicilian faction threads in 2017. It is taken from various LE and government reports.

- Two close associates of Frank Cali are brothers Antonino and Silvestro LoVerde, who are in the produce business. They ran into legal issues due to their association with Cali due to the fact that Cali was an acting captain in the Gambino family. This was around the mid-to-late 2000s.

- The LoVerdes are from Palermo and when Silvestro came to the US in the late 1980s he got a job with Ferro foods through his cousin Sal Adamita after coming to the US. Their father Leonardo LoVerde had also been in the produce business.

- Silvestro later went into the citrus fruit business with Gambino associate Frank Inzerillo of Bensonhurst. Antonino and Leonardo LoVerde also worked for this business. The LoVerdes are osentsibly legitimate but associate closely with mafia members/associates and were at one time suspected of drug trafficking which they denied.

- Frank Inzerillo, who was on record with Frank Cali, served as the conduit between Cali and other members, including Mickey Paradiso. Inzerillo was in charge of setting up meetings for Cali.

- Frank Fappiano said that Cali was introduced to him as a made man as early as 1999. When D'Amico became acting boss in 2005, Cali took over as acting captain of the D'Amico crew.

- Cali was seen at locations and events related to the Gambino family by 1990 and was officially on record before 1994. He had been involved in loansharking for some time by this point. He was also involved in a telephone card scam with D'Amico and Joe Watts, and at some point in the 90s he was put in charge of the Gambino's interest in the 18th Avenue feast. He also began operating gambling machines in clubs and cafes in Brooklyn. Silvestro LoVerde worked at one of these cafes, which was also used as a meeting place for Cali, D'Amico, and Cefalu.

- Silvestro was employed at one point with Frank's father Cesare Cali. Cesare Cali was a business partner of Domenico Adamita, who I assume is a relative of Sal Adamita and therefore the LoVerdes.

- LoVerde has traveled with Frank Cali at least three times. LoVerdi, Cali, Frank Inzerillo, and other men from Brooklyn, including LoVerde's relatives (Sal Adamita?), have gone to the Dominican Republic and Costa Rica together.

- Other partners in an import business owned by LoVerde and Cali were Santo Zito and Nicola Stellato.

- LoVerde also did a lot of business with Carmine Sciandra through his Top Tomato stores.

- Frank Cali drove to the wake of John Gotti in 2002 with Michael DiLeonardo.

- Cali was observed meeting with Cefalu often in the mid-to-late 2000s. Michael Paradiso, John D'Amico, Cali, and Cefalu were seen meeting together in late 2005.

- Tommy Gambino and Cali were partners in a business together in the early 90s called Ital Products Express. Rosario and Tommy Gambino are related to the LoVerdes through marriage. John and Joe Gambino are also close to the LoVerdes.

[JCB1977]

Awesome thread B

[Niagarafalls]

It’s crazy to think that with all of these connections/relations that this could be a sanctioned hit.

[B.]

It’s crazy to think that with all of these connections/relations that this could be a sanctioned hit.

This level of blood, marital, and business interconnection was the norm for most if not all early mafia figures in Sicily and the US (and still today in Sicily) but that hasn't stopped sanctioned murders from happening throughout history. But I would really like to avoid this thread becoming about the shooting. Let's keep it about Frank Cali's connections and activities while he was alive.

[Bklyn21]

Cali also traveled internationally with Franco Lupoi, who had connections with the 'Ndrangheta. Lupoi was reported to have set up international narcotics trafficking between Italy and the U.S. Highly doubtful that Cali accompanied him for an innocent vacation.

Was Lupoi from Italy or was he from the nyc area?

Link about Franco Lupoi 2014 Transatlantic bust. Lupoi is Calabrian and heavily connected to Ndrangheta and Cali etc...

[Bklyn21]

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source= ... R5&ampcf=1

[CabriniGreen]

I read this here, that Cali put Nicchi and Mandala in contact with a Miami based trafficker... who had direct ties to Venezuela..... a Mongiovi? They apparently ran a Miami outpost for the Caruana Cuntreras......

No idea who this guy was.....




https://books.google.com/books?id=d5NOD ... li&f=false

[CabriniGreen]

Also, this article says Settimo Mineo was reaching out to the Inzerillos.. So, this was potentially the beginning of " Newer Bridge?", joking, but not really.

If they would have been left alone a year or 2, we woulda been looking at ANOTHER New Bridge type indictment...

Also says Cali got fruit from Sicily, didnt know that before. If true, he was REALLY tied into Sicily businesswise....


https://m.livesicilia.it/2019/03/14/par ... i_1043394/

[B.]

It was mentioned that Frank Cali had New Jersey license plates. Records show that in addition to Brooklyn and Staten Island, Cali was associated with an address in Carteret, NJ. It appears a food importing business he owned, Bontel USA, was registered to an address in Carteret, NJ in addition to an address in the Carroll Gardens section of Brooklyn.

It is possible that his vehicle was registered to his company, Bontel USA, which would explain the New Jersey plates.

There are also records linking Cali to an address in Plainfield, NJ, though I don't know which business, if any, of his is linked to this one.

[felice]

Yes, Frank Inzerillo is Salvatore's son. That Salvatore was born in 1927 and I think recently died too.

There are other names to add, plenty of them

[felice]

And yes all the Gambino bros plus their brother in law Erasmo have a son named Tommy.
Heavy Tommy is Joe's son.
John's son is more reserved. Rosario's son is living in LA, Erasmo's son is living in SI too and he is very close to the Inzerillos and Calì

[B.]

Here is a 2008 Italian article on Cali:
http://www.repubblica.it/2008/01/sezion ... glish.html

I don't know how reliable all of the information is, but it seems like a good source of background info on him along with info on the Sicilian mafia connections in the early- through mid-2000s.

- Augusto Cesare and Agata traveled to Palermo every few months and kept a "flat" there.

- A reference is made to an LE report that suggests Frank Cali became a Gambino member in 1997.

- It mentions that the RCMP of Canada had an ongoing interest in Cali even back then along with US and Italian law enforcement. This suggests he may have been involved in Canadian activities before 2008 which is interesting timing with everything that would go on there.

- The article also mentions that Giovanni Inzerillo (son of Totuccio) and Boccadifalco member (and longtime Gambino associate) Filippo Casamento traveled to Toronto for a few days in 2004 before traveling to NYC where they met with Canada-based Casteldaccia mafia members Michele Modica and Michele Marrese. It sounds like this meeting also included Nicola Mandala, Gianni Nicchi, Giuseppe Inzerillo, and Salvatore Greco. The article implies that this meeting as well as others involving Sicilians between 2004-2006 were connected to Frank Cali. Nicchi and Mandala traveled in cars linked to Cali and Silvestro LoVerde's companies.

- A Vincenzo Spatoliatore was either heard or recorded talking to Frank Cali's father about the publicity Frank has received and the attention it has put on Cosa Nostra. There was a Giuseppe Spatoliatore who was an early Profaci/Colombo member from Villabate who later moved back to Sicily. I wonder if Vincenzo Spatoliatore is from Villabate and if there could be a relation. It should be noted that Nicola Mandala who visited Frank Cali is from Villabate. Gambino "zip "members Antonino and Gaetano Napoli were also from Villabate.

- A FNU Romolo is mentioned being recorded calling Cali's father at his video store (Arcobaleno) about the press Cali has received.

- Not directly related to Cali, but Francesco Inzerillo was recorded telling Giovanni and Giuseppe Inzerillo in 2007 that they needed to leave Sicily, Italy, and Europe due to the harsh treatment of the mafia under 416 bis and said they needed to go to Central and South America. Giovanni Inzerillo's father was murdered boss Totuccio, his mother is a Spatola, and Giovanni is described as the godson of Filippo Casamento.

[CabriniGreen]

I musta read that one 50 times.... it's like Frank Cali 101...

[B.]

Felice, do you have any info on Vincenzo Spatoliatore?

It's interesting how the Villabatesi look to have started out affiliated with Lupo/D'Aquila (Giuseppe Fontana), ended up with Mineo/Profaci en masse, then when Profaci died and the Colombo family's Sicilian ties fizzled out by 1970, you have the Napolis from Villabate show up under the Gambino family in the 1970s/80s and in the 2000s a representative of the Villabate, Mandala, family shows up to do business with the Gambinos. If Spatoliatore is from there as well and a mafioso, that is another example.

Interesting how as much as things change, they circle back around even if it's mostly incidental.