Redaction in FBI Files

[Snakes]

For the purposes of general curiosity, I decided to match a sample of an FBI file released by FOIA request to one which is stored by the National Archives (and publicly shared on the Mary Ferrell website), which traditionally restricts only the most confidential of information. My findings were generally interesting and at times, mystifying or confusing. The document is a ten page extract of Joe Divarco's FBI file. Items that were redacted from the FOIA copy are in bold.

On 9/2/76, Joe Di Varco, capo for Chicago Family for near northside area informed Arrigo that he, Arrigo, was to be "made" a member of Chicago Family in immediate future. Di Varco noted that membership books of family have been closed for many years but an exception was being made in Arrigo's case due to Arrigo's close personal relationship to Di Varco. Di Varco is to be Arrigo's sponsor at initiation ceremony. Di Varco indicated such ceremony will be presided over by Tony Accardo, boss of Chicago Family.

In the morning of August 17, 1976, Victor Russo at Juice Distributors 2236 West Roscoe advised that Joseph Di Varco was at that location on a daily basis and would be there that morning. He made a phone call to Di Varco's residence and learned that the subject was en route. Di Varco arrived in a red-over-white 1976 Chevrolet, two-door, with Illinois license CT 7517. This registration is listed in the files of Illinois Secretary of State to Joseph Di Varco, 4275 West Jarvis, Lincolnwood.

On September 9, 1976, Frank Mareska, an Investigator for the Illinois Bureau of Investigation, advised that he has been surveilling Joseph Di Varco. He advised that Di Varco meets with his cohorts at Carton Restaurant in the Maryland Hotel at Delaware and Rush Streets in the morning on a daily basis. Mareska noted that he meets regularly with Mike Glitta and Herbie "The Cat" Liberti. Acts as an usher, escorting persons to the booth occupied by the subject for a brief conversation.

Benny Goldberg, a well-known hoodlum and bookmaker on the northside of Chicago, is attached to the Di Bella - Di Varco group. Due to the fact that Goldberg is Jewish, he spends considerable time with the Lennie Patrick group and acts as an intermediary between the Patrick and the Di Bella - Di Varco organizations.

CG T-2 in June of 1976, advised that the subject is the designated heir to Di Bella's position as the chief of the near northside organized crime group and has started to make changes within that group in anticipation of Di Bella's death.

CG T-3 in June of 1976, advised that Di Varco had called a meeting of many club owners in the Rush Street area to discuss the "street tax". This meeting was to be held at 1:00 PM on June 11, 1976, at Nini's.

[Snakes]

More entries to come as I finish them.

[funkster]

Very strange that they redacted that info. Seems there would be no reason to.

[Snakes]

Arrigo is still alive and worked as an informant but that still begs the question of why did they release it to NARA in this condition but not for a FOIA request? I would assume that they redacted some of the other stuff to protect their informants from potentially being compromised but we are talking about 40 years later with most of the major players on the Northside dead - is it really that necessary?

[Cheech]

Sometimes I think they do it just to do it. If that makes sense.

[Antiliar]

The FBI doesn't like to reveal that anyone is an informant, alive or dead. There's exceptions like Valachi, Scarpa and Gentile of course, but they are rare. You guys should have seen the Frank Bompensiero file. It was almost blank page after blank page. Interestingly I've seen DiFronzo's and Lombardo's names in files that they released. I'm trying to get them to reprocess Richard Cain's file since he informed. On Cain, even though he reported that he was made, I found some other info that leads me to believe he was lying.

[Giacomo_Vacari]

The FBI does that a lot with informants, weather alive or dead. San Jose family had three Informants at the same time. Some members and researchers felt Angelo Marino was an informant. Marinos file is redacted heavy not much in there. Salvatore Contenza admitted in 94 on his death bed to SJ administration, that he and Peter Misuraca were both informants. I believe the third was Frank Sorce was in Reno at the same time the informant was living near that city.

[Pogo The Clown]

Salvatore Contenza admitted in 94 on his death bed to SJ administration, that he and Peter Misuraca were both informants.

Who were part of the administration in 1994? I'm guessing Manny Figlia was one of them. I can't imagine there many other members still alive by then. Thanks.


Pogo

[Ed]

The FBI does that a lot with informants, weather alive or dead. San Jose family had three Informants at the same time. Some members and researchers felt Angelo Marino was an informant. Marinos file is redacted heavy not much in there. Salvatore Contenza admitted in 94 on his death bed to SJ administration, that he and Peter Misuraca were both informants. I believe the third was Frank Sorce was in Reno at the same time the informant was living near that city.

thanks for the post.

RE: Costanza and Misuraca being informants. Is that admission contained in an FBI file or just street rumours?

RE: Marino being an informant. You never know about things, but I never got the impression he cooperated, at least in the 1960s. I don't know about later on. From what I could tell, most of the Intel about him in the 1960s came from a listening device in his place of business, or from other informants.

[Giacomo_Vacari]

The administration at the time, was Figlia-Boss, Guttadauro-Consiglieri, Napolitano-Capo of the north crew, Marino-Capo of the south crew, and Cusenza-Capo of Modesto. There was no Underboss from 1983 till Figlia called it quits in 95. Vito Adragna and Marino Guttadauro both wanted that position, but Figlia kept that spot vacant cause he did not want a war on his hands as they had just lost Angelo Marino and Salvatore Vassallo. Salvatore Marino was not present as he was in lock up at the time, awaiting transfer to SQ.
It was Leo Cusenza who let it slip to his Modesto crew, which had two soldiers and five or more associates left. Cusenza passed away in 95, and Guttadauro moved to Sicily that same year. Salvatore Marino was in prison, and Manny decided it was time to call it quits. The FBI files shows two informants died in the 1980's and the last one died in the 1990's. Costenza in 94, Misuraca in 88, Frank Sorce died in 85 and was the only member at the time living in Nevada. Angelo Marino may have been an informant as some suggested, but all evidence points to Sorce as the informant.

[Pogo The Clown]

Many thanks for the info. The family looked to be pretty inactive by then.


Pogo

[Ed]

The administration at the time, was Figlia-Boss, Guttadauro-Consiglieri, Napolitano-Capo of the north crew, Marino-Capo of the south crew, and Cusenza-Capo of Modesto. There was no Underboss from 1983 till Figlia called it quits in 95. Vito Adragna and Marino Guttadauro both wanted that position, but Figlia kept that spot vacant cause he did not want a war on his hands as they had just lost Angelo Marino and Salvatore Vassallo. Salvatore Marino was not present as he was in lock up at the time, awaiting transfer to SQ.
It was Leo Cusenza who let it slip to his Modesto crew, which had two soldiers and five or more associates left. Cusenza passed away in 95, and Guttadauro moved to Sicily that same year. Salvatore Marino was in prison, and Manny decided it was time to call it quits. The FBI files shows two informants died in the 1980's and the last one died in the 1990's. Costenza in 94, Misuraca in 88, Frank Sorce died in 85 and was the only member at the time living in Nevada. Angelo Marino may have been an informant as some suggested, but all evidence points to Sorce as the informant.

thanks for the info. It just confirms what I wrote about in the past.

[Giacomo_Vacari]

That family pretty much went inactive with the deaths of Tony, Joe and Phil in the mid to late 1980s. Gallo passed away in 91 and Napolitano resumed Capo of the north crew. By then SJ was starting to run on fumes. The last blows came in 94 and 95, especially after Emanuele had a talk with Jersey Sal Profaci and Testa about New Yorks Colombo war, and what Amuso and Casso were doing in their families that Figlia had enough.

[Snakes]

This is a side-by-side comparison of two "versions" of DiVarco's FBI file. The first is the one received from the FBI via FOIA request and the second is one from NARA. Note the differences between the two concerning redacted information:

divarco01a.jpg

divarco01b.jpg

[Snakes]

More comparisons from the same field report:

divarco02a.jpg

divarco02b.jpg