Birmingham Mafia Figures + Connections

[dixiemafia]

Only thing I see wrong was saying Russellville was in the Birmingham area. Russellville is in extreme NW Alabama, quite a few hours away from B'ham Metro.

It's interesting about them being from those towns as one of my Aunt's was from Chiusa Sclafani. She came via Ellis Island and then off to Santa Clara California and then Montgomery.

Not totally sure, but I'm betting the Bruno family had some ties in B'ham as well. They ended up filthy rich and some of them died in a plane crash either in NE Bama or NW Georgia. They pretty much owned the B'ham Metro grocery store market

[Confederate]

Only thing I see wrong was saying Russellville was in the Birmingham area. Russellville is in extreme NW Alabama, quite a few hours away from B'ham Metro.

It's interesting about them being from those towns as one of my Aunt's was from Chiusa Sclafani. She came via Ellis Island and then off to Santa Clara California and then Montgomery.

Not totally sure, but I'm betting the Bruno family had some ties in B'ham as well. They ended up filthy rich and some of them died in a plane crash either in NE Bama or NW Georgia. They pretty much owned the B'ham Metro grocery store market

There's some kind of Italian American Group in Birmingham that has an exhibition displaying Italian artifacts, memorabilia & the history of migration to this area & their tremendous contribution to Birmingham & small surrounding areas. A lot of them were stone masons.
The fact that the Sicilians who migrated to this area were olive complected was really a very minor reason for any early discrimination. It was the fact that they were Catholic & not Southern Baptist that played a much larger role in some early discrimination. However, as time went by, that didn't really matter anymore.

[B.]

Swing and a miss from my end. This Giuseppe Rametta is from Santo Stefano Quisquina, which is right next to Alessandria Della Rocca. Looks like his daughter married a Lazzara.

As we talked about today, not a swing and a miss. It's the same guy and him being from S.Stefano Quisquina makes sense given his Tampa connections.

His daughter living in Rochester is interesting, as Rochester had early mafiosi identified by Lennert from Grotte, Agrigento. Immigrants from Grotte also settled in Birmingham and are mentioned in the Birmingham Italian report I was referencing.

Thanks to ScottD for chiming in, too. Always appreciate the insight into Tampa.

Domenico and his son Joe Arcuri of the Gambino family were from Alessandria Della Rocca and first lived in Tampa, where Domenico is believed to have been involved with the local mafia. Later, Joe Arcuri would serve as the Gambino family's go-between with the DeCavalcante family, allegedly because of the Agrigento connection. NYC Riberesi mafioso the Carubias also hung around Arcuri -- JD said Marco Carubia was suspected of being an Arcuri crew member but may in fact have been a DeCavalcante like Anthony Carubia.

The Arcuri relationship to the DeCavalcante Riberesi in the 1960s - 1990s could point to others from Santo Stefano and ADR being close to the early Riberesi in Birmingham, i.e. Ramatta.

--

Speaking of Lennert, he told me the alleged mafia member who was killed when Scannello was arrested may have been Luigi Tomasino, a young man from Sutera, Caltanissetta. The Birmingham Italian report I mentioned says the village Sutera brought many immigrants to Birmingham. I am a little confused, though, as the man who was killed when Scannello was arrested was said to be older, while Tomasino was quite young. Still, this is a great lead and could point to other mafiosi/criminals from Sutera.

Only thing I see wrong was saying Russellville was in the Birmingham area. Russellville is in extreme NW Alabama, quite a few hours away from B'ham Metro.

It's interesting about them being from those towns as one of my Aunt's was from Chiusa Sclafani. She came via Ellis Island and then off to Santa Clara California and then Montgomery.

Not totally sure, but I'm betting the Bruno family had some ties in B'ham as well. They ended up filthy rich and some of them died in a plane crash either in NE Bama or NW Georgia. They pretty much owned the B'ham Metro grocery store market

Thanks for that correction. I was confusing it with Bessemer, Alabama, where the Gallos were from -- my mistake. Pretty incredible the Riberesi lived so far outside of Birmingham. Caterinicchia of Russellville did have a PO Box in Birmingham so he traveled there for mail at least.

I also appreciate those personal stories. Chiusa Sclafani produced some important mafiosi in Kansas City.

Who are the Brunos?

[lennert]

The Birmingham News article on the shooting, as well as Tomasino's arrival. I'm pretty sure this is the guy...

[Angelo Santino]

Swing and a miss from my end. This Giuseppe Rametta is from Santo Stefano Quisquina, which is right next to Alessandria Della Rocca. Looks like his daughter married a Lazzara.

As we talked about today, not a swing and a miss. It's the same guy and him being from S.Stefano Quisquina makes sense given his Tampa connections.

His daughter living in Rochester is interesting, as Rochester had early mafiosi identified by Lennert from Grotte, Agrigento. Immigrants from Grotte also settled in Birmingham and are mentioned in the Birmingham Italian report I was referencing.

Thanks to ScottD for chiming in, too. Always appreciate the insight into Tampa.

Domenico and his son Joe Arcuri of the Gambino family were from Alessandria Della Rocca and first lived in Tampa, where Domenico is believed to have been involved with the local mafia. Later, Joe Arcuri would serve as the Gambino family's go-between with the DeCavalcante family, allegedly because of the Agrigento connection. NYC Riberesi mafioso the Carubias also hung around Arcuri -- JD said Marco Carubia was suspected of being an Arcuri crew member but may in fact have been a DeCavalcante like Anthony Carubia.

The Arcuri relationship to the DeCavalcante Riberesi in the 1960s - 1990s could point to others from Santo Stefano and ADR being close to the early Riberesi in Birmingham, i.e. Ramatta.

--

Speaking of Lennert, he told me the alleged mafia member who was killed when Scannello was arrested may have been Luigi Tomasino, a young man from Sutera, Caltanissetta. The Birmingham Italian report I mentioned says the village Sutera brought many immigrants to Birmingham. I am a little confused, though, as the man who was killed when Scannello was arrested was said to be older, while Tomasino was quite young. Still, this is a great lead and could point to other mafiosi/criminals from Sutera.

Only thing I see wrong was saying Russellville was in the Birmingham area. Russellville is in extreme NW Alabama, quite a few hours away from B'ham Metro.

It's interesting about them being from those towns as one of my Aunt's was from Chiusa Sclafani. She came via Ellis Island and then off to Santa Clara California and then Montgomery.

Not totally sure, but I'm betting the Bruno family had some ties in B'ham as well. They ended up filthy rich and some of them died in a plane crash either in NE Bama or NW Georgia. They pretty much owned the B'ham Metro grocery store market

Thanks for that correction. I was confusing it with Bessemer, Alabama, where the Gallos were from -- my mistake. Pretty incredible the Riberesi lived so far outside of Birmingham. Caterinicchia of Russellville did have a PO Box in Birmingham so he traveled there for mail at least.

I also appreciate those personal stories. Chiusa Sclafani produced some important mafiosi in Kansas City.

Who are the Brunos?

1 Good to know. I misunderstood and thought the Ramatta (with an A) whom you were searching for was from Ribera.

2 DiLeonardo told me that Joe N Gallo was born in Alabama and was of Bisacquinese descent. Arcuri is new to me. One other name I believe I saw in the south was Paradiso, could this also be a connection between AL/FL and the Gambinos?

3 The "Birmingham Family" since when it was formed to when it ended, likely would have been composed of more than just Riberesi, unless we're arguing that each "faction" constituted several independent Families. Idea being that memberships are recognized, if a Corleonese or Trapanese or a Neapolitan made in NY wished to move to Birmingham his membership would transfer and he'd have to be accepted even if he doesn't fit in and the Riberesi don't play any reindeer games with them. And given how other Families appeared spread out in their respective states, Birmingham was likely similar while it was up and running.

4 It's more visible outside of NY because we can look at individual Families and territory, but the Boss was a Representative of the area, his administration would be a way to resolve disputes between people and or factions. Not to go back to Philly (fucking Philly) but you look at the main hubs of Belmontesi, Caccamesi and the other ones, they more or less were friendly but operated semi-separately. So why the need for them to be under one group? Who made that decision? We can speculate but we'll never know, we can only argue its advantages in terms of organization in the broader national perspective. Sabella becoming boss over these seperate groups might have, operationally, not organizationally, assumed the role of what Sicily has in capomandamento.

5 So Scott, what are your thoughts on Tampa "going under" the Gambinos in the 90's? We seem to see the same groups connected since 1910 and given the shared lineage. We've seen nothing for some time but we've also seen nobody from New York or elsewhere coming to Tampa like its an open city either. I wonder if Tampa retired itself into the Gambinos like Bill Bonanno claims Birmingham did with the Bonannos 60 years prior.

Glad the names I had were indeed the right guys.

[sdeitche]

Swing and a miss from my end. This Giuseppe Rametta is from Santo Stefano Quisquina, which is right next to Alessandria Della Rocca. Looks like his daughter married a Lazzara.

As we talked about today, not a swing and a miss. It's the same guy and him being from S.Stefano Quisquina makes sense given his Tampa connections.

--



5 So Scott, what are your thoughts on Tampa "going under" the Gambinos in the 90's? We seem to see the same groups connected since 1910 and given the shared lineage. We've seen nothing for some time but we've also seen nobody from New York or elsewhere coming to Tampa like its an open city either. I wonder if Tampa retired itself into the Gambinos like Bill Bonanno claims Birmingham did with the Bonannos 60 years prior.

Glad the names I had were indeed the right guys.

So that came primarily from was a former FDLE agent who studied/investigated the Trafficantes for 20+ years. His information came from John Mamone. When Mamone was inducted into the Trafficante family by Steve Raffa, Raffa told him either "we are under the Gambinos now" or "with" them, but law enforcement sees this as a partnership where Tampa is subsumed under Gambinos. With Tampa losing most of it's power, it 's a natural progression. You also see the Gmabinos moving into the area (Trucchio, Gotti Jr.). I've tried to reach out to Mamone in the past to get more information on this but not too successful. Haven't thought about it in years. Might try again.

But the ties with the Gambinos, while not as explicit as some others, have always been there if you dig a little.
1. We have the Arcuris coming from Tampa as B said. There are still Arcuris here in Tampa
2. Joe Arcuri maintained contacts with the Tampa family throughout his life.
3. As did Arcuri's nephew JOe Franco. In fact, he is on a wall chart from the FDLE in the late 1980s, listing Franco as a major "associate' of Tampa
4. in the 1960s, Agostino Amato and his son Vincent move to Florida, first stopping in Tampa to meet with Trafficante, eventually settling in Miami. Amato actually has his name on the mortgage of Trafficante's home in Tampa. They maintain close connections through the death of Agostino and Trafficante in 1987.
5. In the early 1990s the FDLE and Broward Sheriff's Dept name VIncent Amato as a member of the Trafficante family Miami faction, under Steve Raffa.
6. In the 1990s the Trucchio crew and John Alite move into Tampa. They hook up with Terry Scaglione, grandson of longtime Tampa mobster Nick Scaglione.
7. Somewhere in here Mamone is made into Trafficante family, although he is ostensibly a Genovese associate from NJ.
8. LoScalzo and Raffa are named as unindicted co-conspirators in New Orleans Bally Gaming case, where Gambinos also show up.

Also for reference, the LoScalzos are from Allessandria Della Rocca. Vincent was born there. Trafficantes are from same. Steve Raffa is from Cianciana

[sdeitche]

Swing and a miss from my end. This Giuseppe Rametta is from Santo Stefano Quisquina, which is right next to Alessandria Della Rocca. Looks like his daughter married a Lazzara.

As we talked about today, not a swing and a miss. It's the same guy and him being from S.Stefano Quisquina makes sense given his Tampa connections.

His daughter living in Rochester is interesting, as Rochester had early mafiosi identified by Lennert from Grotte, Agrigento. Immigrants from Grotte also settled in Birmingham and are mentioned in the Birmingham Italian report I was referencing.

Thanks to ScottD for chiming in, too. Always appreciate the insight into Tampa.

Domenico and his son Joe Arcuri of the Gambino family were from Alessandria Della Rocca and first lived in Tampa, where Domenico is believed to have been involved with the local mafia. Later, Joe Arcuri would serve as the Gambino family's go-between with the DeCavalcante family, allegedly because of the Agrigento connection. NYC Riberesi mafioso the Carubias also hung around Arcuri -- JD said Marco Carubia was suspected of being an Arcuri crew member but may in fact have been a DeCavalcante like Anthony Carubia.

The Arcuri relationship to the DeCavalcante Riberesi in the 1960s - 1990s could point to others from Santo Stefano and ADR being close to the early Riberesi in Birmingham, i.e. Ramatta.

--

Speaking of Lennert, he told me the alleged mafia member who was killed when Scannello was arrested may have been Luigi Tomasino, a young man from Sutera, Caltanissetta. The Birmingham Italian report I mentioned says the village Sutera brought many immigrants to Birmingham. I am a little confused, though, as the man who was killed when Scannello was arrested was said to be older, while Tomasino was quite young. Still, this is a great lead and could point to other mafiosi/criminals from Sutera.

Only thing I see wrong was saying Russellville was in the Birmingham area. Russellville is in extreme NW Alabama, quite a few hours away from B'ham Metro.

It's interesting about them being from those towns as one of my Aunt's was from Chiusa Sclafani. She came via Ellis Island and then off to Santa Clara California and then Montgomery.

Not totally sure, but I'm betting the Bruno family had some ties in B'ham as well. They ended up filthy rich and some of them died in a plane crash either in NE Bama or NW Georgia. They pretty much owned the B'ham Metro grocery store market

Thanks for that correction. I was confusing it with Bessemer, Alabama, where the Gallos were from -- my mistake. Pretty incredible the Riberesi lived so far outside of Birmingham. Caterinicchia of Russellville did have a PO Box in Birmingham so he traveled there for mail at least.

I also appreciate those personal stories. Chiusa Sclafani produced some important mafiosi in Kansas City.

Who are the Brunos?

1 Good to know. I misunderstood and thought the Ramatta (with an A) whom you were searching for was from Ribera.

2 DiLeonardo told me that Joe N Gallo was born in Alabama and was of Bisacquinese descent. Arcuri is new to me. One other name I believe I saw in the south was Paradiso, could this also be a connection between AL/FL and the Gambinos?

3 The "Birmingham Family" since when it was formed to when it ended, likely would have been composed of more than just Riberesi, unless we're arguing that each "faction" constituted several independent Families. Idea being that memberships are recognized, if a Corleonese or Trapanese or a Neapolitan made in NY wished to move to Birmingham his membership would transfer and he'd have to be accepted even if he doesn't fit in and the Riberesi don't play any reindeer games with them. And given how other Families appeared spread out in their respective states, Birmingham was likely similar while it was up and running.

4 It's more visible outside of NY because we can look at individual Families and territory, but the Boss was a Representative of the area, his administration would be a way to resolve disputes between people and or factions. Not to go back to Philly (fucking Philly) but you look at the main hubs of Belmontesi, Caccamesi and the other ones, they more or less were friendly but operated semi-separately. So why the need for them to be under one group? Who made that decision? We can speculate but we'll never know, we can only argue its advantages in terms of organization in the broader national perspective. Sabella becoming boss over these seperate groups might have, operationally, not organizationally, assumed the role of what Sicily has in capomandamento.

5 So Scott, what are your thoughts on Tampa "going under" the Gambinos in the 90's? We seem to see the same groups connected since 1910 and given the shared lineage. We've seen nothing for some time but we've also seen nobody from New York or elsewhere coming to Tampa like its an open city either. I wonder if Tampa retired itself into the Gambinos like Bill Bonanno claims Birmingham did with the Bonannos 60 years prior.

Glad the names I had were indeed the right guys.

So that came primarily from was a former FDLE agent who studied/investigated the Trafficantes for 20+ years. His information came from John Mamone. When Mamone was inducted into the Trafficante family by Steve Raffa, Raffa told him either "we are under the Gambinos now" or "with" them, but law enforcement sees this as a partnership where Tampa is subsumed under Gambinos. With Tampa losing most of it's power, it 's a natural progression. You also see the Gmabinos moving into the area (Trucchio, Gotti Jr.). I've tried to reach out to Mamone in the past to get more information on this but not too successful. Haven't thought about it in years. Might try again.

But the ties with the Gambinos, while not as explicit as some others, have always been there if you dig a little.
1. We have the Arcuris coming from Tampa as B said. There are still Arcuris here in Tampa
2. Joe Arcuri maintained contacts with the Tampa family throughout his life.
3. As did Arcuri's nephew JOe Franco. In fact, he is on a wall chart from the FDLE in the late 1980s, listing Franco as a major "associate' of Tampa
4. in the 1960s, Agostino Amato and his son Vincent move to Florida, first stopping in Tampa to meet with Trafficante, eventually settling in Miami. Amato actually has his name on the mortgage of Trafficante's home in Tampa. They maintain close connections through the death of Agostino and Trafficante in 1987.
5. In the early 1990s the FDLE and Broward Sheriff's Dept name VIncent Amato as a member of the Trafficante family Miami faction, under Steve Raffa.
6. In the 1990s the Trucchio crew and John Alite move into Tampa. They hook up with Terry Scaglione, grandson of longtime Tampa mobster Nick Scaglione.
7. Somewhere in here Mamone is made into Trafficante family, although he is ostensibly a Genovese associate from NJ.
8. LoScalzo and Raffa are named as unindicted co-conspirators in New Orleans Bally Gaming case, where Gambinos also show up.

Also for reference, the LoScalzos are from Allessandria Della Rocca. Vincent was born there. Trafficantes are from same. Steve Raffa is from Cianciana

[Angelo Santino]

So that came primarily from was a former FDLE agent who studied/investigated the Trafficantes for 20+ years. His information came from John Mamone. When Mamone was inducted into the Trafficante family by Steve Raffa, Raffa told him either "we are under the Gambinos now" or "with" them, but law enforcement sees this as a partnership where Tampa is subsumed under Gambinos. With Tampa losing most of it's power, it 's a natural progression. You also see the Gmabinos moving into the area (Trucchio, Gotti Jr.). I've tried to reach out to Mamone in the past to get more information on this but not too successful. Haven't thought about it in years. Might try again.

But the ties with the Gambinos, while not as explicit as some others, have always been there if you dig a little.
1. We have the Arcuris coming from Tampa as B said. There are still Arcuris here in Tampa
2. Joe Arcuri maintained contacts with the Tampa family throughout his life.
3. As did Arcuri's nephew JOe Franco. In fact, he is on a wall chart from the FDLE in the late 1980s, listing Franco as a major "associate' of Tampa
4. in the 1960s, Agostino Amato and his son Vincent move to Florida, first stopping in Tampa to meet with Trafficante, eventually settling in Miami. Amato actually has his name on the mortgage of Trafficante's home in Tampa. They maintain close connections through the death of Agostino and Trafficante in 1987.
5. In the early 1990s the FDLE and Broward Sheriff's Dept name VIncent Amato as a member of the Trafficante family Miami faction, under Steve Raffa.
6. In the 1990s the Trucchio crew and John Alite move into Tampa. They hook up with Terry Scaglione, grandson of longtime Tampa mobster Nick Scaglione.
7. Somewhere in here Mamone is made into Trafficante family, although he is ostensibly a Genovese associate from NJ.
8. LoScalzo and Raffa are named as unindicted co-conspirators in New Orleans Bally Gaming case, where Gambinos also show up.

Also for reference, the LoScalzos are from Allessandria Della Rocca. Vincent was born there. Trafficantes are from same. Steve Raffa is from Cianciana

1 I will try and ask Di Leonardo if he has any knowledge on the subject, maybe find something out from a New York perspective. Can't hurt to try.

2 What is the current status of Tampa today? Is LoScalzo still regarded as holding rank (regardless of what people coin as viable)? I'm reminded of Tommy Gambino (Carlo's son) out in LA, he's still a member, he's likely not holding rank or "kicking up" as Sopranos-enthusiasts understand it, but when people go to California or wish to be introduced to his contacts in Sicily, I'm sure Tommy welcomes them and/or makes the 3rd party introductions. But technically that's not a crime, he may not actively involved in what transaction is to be discussed, so what do we call that? No easy answer. "Sleeper" is too simplistic... So LoScalzo could sit in his house for 10 years and cut coupons, but if he's got Gambinos still meeting with him, that means he's still "linked in" regardless if he's done nothing for 10 years. That's not organized crime, that's Mafia in its purest form.

[dixiemafia]

There's some kind of Italian American Group in Birmingham that has an exhibition displaying Italian artifacts, memorabilia & the history of migration to this area & their tremendous contribution to Birmingham & small surrounding areas. A lot of them were stone masons.
The fact that the Sicilians who migrated to this area were olive complected was really a very minor reason for any early discrimination. It was the fact that they were Catholic & not Southern Baptist that played a much larger role in some early discrimination. However, as time went by, that didn't really matter anymore.

Let me know if you find out what it is and if I'm by there I can try to check it out and take some pics if they let you.

Yea it definitely has changed over the years as there is still a huge Catholic population in B'ham and Mobile. Quite a few big Catholic schools that play good sports in the state too.

Those asking about the Bruno's: https://www.lib.ua.edu/libraries/bruno/ ... elo-bruno/

Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruno%27s

I'm not sure if they were tied or not to organized crime but it would have been tough to start a grocery store in B'ham back then where they opened up shop without some kind of help.

[B.]

The Birmingham News article on the shooting, as well as Tomasino's arrival. I'm pretty sure this is the guy...

That 100% confirms it. I've edited the original post with what you've found. Thank you, Lennert!

Tomasino being from Caltanissetta opens up the possibility of other local mafiosi from there, as Birmingham was a major destination for Suteresi immigrants. Alongi of the Genovese family was of Suteresi heritage and they lived in New Orleans before NYC.

2 DiLeonardo told me that Joe N Gallo was born in Alabama and was of Bisacquinese descent. Arcuri is new to me. One other name I believe I saw in the south was Paradiso, could this also be a connection between AL/FL and the Gambinos?

3 The "Birmingham Family" since when it was formed to when it ended, likely would have been composed of more than just Riberesi, unless we're arguing that each "faction" constituted several independent Families. Idea being that memberships are recognized, if a Corleonese or Trapanese or a Neapolitan made in NY wished to move to Birmingham his membership would transfer and he'd have to be accepted even if he doesn't fit in and the Riberesi don't play any reindeer games with them. And given how other Families appeared spread out in their respective states, Birmingham was likely similar while it was up and running.

4 It's more visible outside of NY because we can look at individual Families and territory, but the Boss was a Representative of the area, his administration would be a way to resolve disputes between people and or factions. Not to go back to Philly (fucking Philly) but you look at the main hubs of Belmontesi, Caccamesi and the other ones, they more or less were friendly but operated semi-separately. So why the need for them to be under one group? Who made that decision? We can speculate but we'll never know, we can only argue its advantages in terms of organization in the broader national perspective. Sabella becoming boss over these seperate groups might have, operationally, not organizationally, assumed the role of what Sicily has in capomandamento.

2 - If you talk to DiLeonardo, ask him if he knows anything about Gallo's father Antonio. The Gallos were part of the Bisacquinesi colony near Birmingham, then Joe N Gallo continued close association with fellow Bisacquinesi Gambino members in New York and Baltimore, including surnames found in the Alabama colony. DiLeonardo's grandfather was a Bisacquinese close to mafiosi from Agrigento, sort of what we're seeing from the make-up of the Birmingham colonies.

3 - Oh, in no way do I think the Birmingham family was exclusively or even mostly Riberesi, nor is there any reason to suspect the separate colonies each had their own "family". We still only have Bill Bonanno's account of one Birmingham family and while their Italian population was almost exclusively western Sicilian, I don't think they had a large enough total Sicilian population to produce a large number of mafiosi.

^ Ribera isn't mentioned as a significant population in Birmingham and all we can see of them is this rural farming cluster far outside of Birmingham, yet it is Caterinicchia who is receiving a chunk of money from the Boston boss at his Birmingham PO Box. Caterinicchia appears to be important even if the Riberesi were a minority and located remotely.

^ Caterinicchia's PO Box in Birmingham shows that even though he lived in a Riberesi colony hours away, he was coming to Birmingham to receive messages and likely would have made contact with other members of the Birmingham family. Patience must have been an important quality for mafiosi during this time.

- Why Birmingham fell under Tom Gagliano's direction after their disbandment could be random Commission politics, or it could tell us something about some of the unknown members of this group. So far I have seen zero indication of Corleonesi presence in Birmingham but it can't be ruled out... Bisacquino is near there. However, Joe Profaci served in a similar capacity when they broke up the Newark family and that is because the Newark family had a Villabatesi boss and membership, including a cousin of Profaci. That would lend itself to some deeper connection between Gagliano and Birmingham we can't yet identify.

- Going back to the "other potential mafiosi" section of the original post, there are indications that mafia activity also included the populations of Bisacquinesi, Campofranchesi, Suteresi, and other Agrigentini. If we look at these towns on a map, though, we can see that regardless of provincial boundaries these towns were geographically part of the same region. We see something similar in early Buffalo, Chicago, Williamsburg, etc. where the local mafia family was formed by men from villages near the border of different provinces but are nonetheless geographically close.

^ It's like if you live in the US, you're not going to say "I live on the county line and the town on the other side of that is in a different county, so we have nothing in common" -- a neighboring town is still a neighboring town. I'm not telling you anything, only explaining this for anyone reading.

- The Birmingham Italian history report that said the early Sicilian colonies were largely compaesani-based with an attitude of "my village is better than yours" likely translated to the mafia in some way even though they were one family. While the Birmingham family was one unified group as far as we can reasonably conclude, the distance between colonies probably meant that Birmingham family members had a defacto role within their separate colonies of paesani.

^ As the report says, this separation weakened the Italian communities and forced them to adapt to a more Americanized identity more quickly. We know the Bisacquinesi were heavily located in Bessemer, while the Riberesi were hours away in Russellville. In Philadelphia, these colonies of paesani were able to come together in South Philadelphia and Camden where a mafia culture could further congeal, while the central location of Birmingham had angry Ku Klux Klan members and local politicians and police who deliberately stopped Italians from maintaining their own independent identity and activities.

- I see you're coming around to my idea of the operational "capomandamento", haha. I kid with you, but I do think that's a helpful way of understanding the development of the early US mafia's transition from the village-like colonies in most of Sicily into a larger territorial body represented by a national political representative. This would have been closer to the mafia in metro Palermo, yet still different. It's not a perfect comparison -- more like an analogy than anything.

- I need to trace this source to find out if it was in fact a member:


^ The reference to "30 members" resonates with my intuition about the size of early US groups before they accelerated inductions and theoretically merged into larger territorial groups. That number also stands out because it is larger than we would expect most decinas to be, so it doesn't appear to be a confusion between capodecina and rappresentante.

^ I am trying not to let my pet theory biases influence me here, though. If this was just an associate, it is easier to dismiss, but it does complement some historical and circumstantial info. We also have an unspecified Philadelphia FBI source who said the same thing and Celeste Morello's work with Riccobene led her to similar conclusion. There is something there but we're missing too many dots to connect them all.

[B.]

Those asking about the Bruno's: https://www.lib.ua.edu/libraries/bruno/ ... elo-bruno/

Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruno%27s

I'm not sure if they were tied or not to organized crime but it would have been tough to start a grocery store in B'ham back then where they opened up shop without some kind of help.

Thanks, man!

So the Brunos came over from Bisacquino in 1909 and started a supermarket chain. Funny his name was Angelo Bruno. If I can find anything on them I will let you know.

[sdeitche]

So that came primarily from was a former FDLE agent who studied/investigated the Trafficantes for 20+ years. His information came from John Mamone. When Mamone was inducted into the Trafficante family by Steve Raffa, Raffa told him either "we are under the Gambinos now" or "with" them, but law enforcement sees this as a partnership where Tampa is subsumed under Gambinos. With Tampa losing most of it's power, it 's a natural progression. You also see the Gmabinos moving into the area (Trucchio, Gotti Jr.). I've tried to reach out to Mamone in the past to get more information on this but not too successful. Haven't thought about it in years. Might try again.

But the ties with the Gambinos, while not as explicit as some others, have always been there if you dig a little.
1. We have the Arcuris coming from Tampa as B said. There are still Arcuris here in Tampa
2. Joe Arcuri maintained contacts with the Tampa family throughout his life.
3. As did Arcuri's nephew JOe Franco. In fact, he is on a wall chart from the FDLE in the late 1980s, listing Franco as a major "associate' of Tampa
4. in the 1960s, Agostino Amato and his son Vincent move to Florida, first stopping in Tampa to meet with Trafficante, eventually settling in Miami. Amato actually has his name on the mortgage of Trafficante's home in Tampa. They maintain close connections through the death of Agostino and Trafficante in 1987.
5. In the early 1990s the FDLE and Broward Sheriff's Dept name VIncent Amato as a member of the Trafficante family Miami faction, under Steve Raffa.
6. In the 1990s the Trucchio crew and John Alite move into Tampa. They hook up with Terry Scaglione, grandson of longtime Tampa mobster Nick Scaglione.
7. Somewhere in here Mamone is made into Trafficante family, although he is ostensibly a Genovese associate from NJ.
8. LoScalzo and Raffa are named as unindicted co-conspirators in New Orleans Bally Gaming case, where Gambinos also show up.

Also for reference, the LoScalzos are from Allessandria Della Rocca. Vincent was born there. Trafficantes are from same. Steve Raffa is from Cianciana

1 I will try and ask Di Leonardo if he has any knowledge on the subject, maybe find something out from a New York perspective. Can't hurt to try.

2 What is the current status of Tampa today? Is LoScalzo still regarded as holding rank (regardless of what people coin as viable)? I'm reminded of Tommy Gambino (Carlo's son) out in LA, he's still a member, he's likely not holding rank or "kicking up" as Sopranos-enthusiasts understand it, but when people go to California or wish to be introduced to his contacts in Sicily, I'm sure Tommy welcomes them and/or makes the 3rd party introductions. But technically that's not a crime, he may not actively involved in what transaction is to be discussed, so what do we call that? No easy answer. "Sleeper" is too simplistic... So LoScalzo could sit in his house for 10 years and cut coupons, but if he's got Gambinos still meeting with him, that means he's still "linked in" regardless if he's done nothing for 10 years. That's not organized crime, that's Mafia in its purest form.

LoScalzo spends a lot of time at a cigar bar in Tampa, but he's 83 years old so not really doing a lot, though I did see two recent photos of him and he looks great for his age. I think after he dies, there will not be another boss of Tampa. Almost all the remaining "active" guys are in their 70s and 80s so it's difficult to imagine them being engaged in illicit activities. The last concrete material I saw linking them to activity is over 10 years old now.

The flip side is that there is no one really looking into them. The FBI here locally is not strongly looking at OC, the local intelligence divisions of police and sheriffs depts are gang-focused, and the FDLE has moved away from organized crime investigations in the Tampa area.

[B.]

Other family connections to those Sicilians towns:
'
- Agostino Amato and his sons were Gambino members from Allesandria Della Rocca and lived in Florida.

- Bonanno captain Angelo Salvo was from Allesandria Della Rocca along with his Bonanno soldier nephew Antonino Busciglio. They were extremely close to the DeCavalcante Riberesi in Elizabeth, with Busciglio working for the DeCavalcante union.

- Bonanno captain Giovanni Ligammari was from ALlesandria Della Rocca and had relatives in the AdR mafia. Close to Gerlando Sciascia from Cattolica Eraclea.

Scott -- didn't the DeCavalcantes have a close relationship with Raffa in Florida?

[pharion]

Arcuri also had soldier Alphonso Spitaleri in his crew according to Gravano. Spitaleri and his father Giosafat were from the city of Palermo, I think either Villafrate or Mezzojuso.

[sdeitche]

Other family connections to those Sicilians towns:
'
Scott -- didn't the DeCavalcantes have a close relationship with Raffa in Florida?

Yes, somewhere in my files I have notes from an interview with an FBI agent in the late 90s where he told me about meetings with some Decav mobsters and Raffa. And also I believe Raffa or visited, Sam the Plumber before he died.