Bust Today with DeCavalcante Tie

[JeremyTheJew]

I never heard that Spilotro was head of a drug op.

It doesn't surprise me, but you'd think with everything written about him this would have been more known

[Villain]

I never heard that Spilotro was head of a drug op.

It doesn't surprise me, but you'd think with everything written about him this would have been more known

Lots of stuff regarding Spilotro are still not known by the general public...for example, Spilotro belonged to the Battaglia faction and so by the mid 60s the crew pooled 25% of their funds and started investing heavily in commercial real estate in Arizona, where they owned a massive industrial office complex. They also owned car leasing companies, laundries, hotels, motels, resorts trucking, building supplies, wholesale companies, clothing factories, food processors, dairy products and theatres. So who were Battaglias guys down In AZ? Joe English, Spilotro and Schiro and they were connected to Phoenix-based guys such Frank Moreno, Fred Pedote, Arden Lee Smith and Brian “The Mad Pineapple” Ho. Besides the dope trade, they aso controlled extensive network of massage parlors and they also stole systematized gold from the nearby Motorola factory.

[Wiseguy]

Exactly my prior point. Thank You

According to the feds, by the late 1960s there were allegedly 23 major smuggling rings which operated on the Arizona/Mexico border and only five of those were wholly or partially controlled by Cosa Nostra crime families from New York City, such as the Gambinos and Bonannos, and also Tampa, Detroit and Chicago.

in the united states as a whole lcn was the dominant force in drug trafficking at that time, although obviously there were other groups involved

I agree but those days (late 60s, early 70s) also marked the rise of new ethnic groups and some were already schooled by the US CN.

Heres some details on the previous info....

According to the feds, the main New York guys who frequented the 360- mile Arizona-Mexico border and were suspected of being involved in the dope business were Antonio Gambino, younger brother of Mafia boss Carlo Gambino, Joe Bonanno, former crime boss who was later exiled by his own organization to the Arizona area, along with an “army” of other exiled members and old associates such as Peter Notaro and Peter Maggadino.

For example, Antonio Gambino was known for constantly frequenting the Arizona-Mexico border along with a suitcase, which almost never contained less then $50,000. Gambino usually used one of the hundreds of flying pilots in Arizona, who made their living by transporting drugs across the border, and as a precaution, Gambino always identified himself as “Pete Patterson”. In addition, Gambino was allegedly connected in that same business to one Chicago mobster known as Lou Rosanova.

The Detroit faction was “represented” by another old time crime boss known as Pete Licavoli Sr., who by now resided in Tucson, Arizona, and was closely affiliated with the Outfit. Sources say that Licavoli was behind the movement of large quantities of cocaine and heroin to Anchorage, Alaska, and other parts of the country.

And as for the Chicago boys, their “overseer” of the dope shipment in the same area was Tony “The Ant” Spilotro, followed by his long time associate Paul Schiro. Before becoming the Outfit’s main enforcer in Las Vegas, and since Chicago became “too hot” for him, Spilotro’s first job as national mobster was being one of the main overseers of the narcotics shipment which went through the Arizona area and then straight to Chicago. According to the FBI, the full extent of the operation was not known, but some government investigators had documents that the gang supplied a major portion of hard drugs for the Chicago market and possibly for some of the smaller Midwest cities.

Some reports say that the ring was responsible for bringing in $8 million worth of Mexican brown heroin into the United States each year.

The difference is the LCN had control of the larger eastern markets. As late as 1972, the French Connection still supplied 75-80% of the U.S. market, though it rapidly decreased in the following years.

By 1975, while the LCN remained an important factor in trafficking, black and Hispanic groups handled the bulk of heroin trafficking in NYC. Even then, there were 4 LCN heroin traffickers among the top13 drug traffickers in NYC that year. Then of course you had the Pizza Connection from 1975 to 1984, and Iron Tower from 1984 to 1988.

[Villain]

The difference is the LCN had control of the larger eastern markets. As late as 1972, the French Connection still supplied 75-80% of the U.S. market, though it rapidly decreased in the following years.

By 1975, while the LCN remained an important factor in trafficking, black and Hispanic groups handled the bulk of heroin trafficking in NYC. Even then, there were 4 LCN heroin traffickers among the top13 drug traffickers in NYC that year. Then of course you had the Pizza Connection from 1975 to 1984, and Iron Tower from 1984 to 1988.

Theres no question that much larger portions of the dope shipments for the US came from across the pond such France/Corsica and Italy/Sicily. Sources like Mexico and some countries from Central America were always "second choice" because of the quality of the heroin, although many top level mobsters exploited those too at the time. In plane words, they imported drugs from everywhere but the main source was western Europe.

[johnny_scootch]

Last time I saw John LaBarbera (maybe 5 years ago or more) he had on a 60k watch and he was driving a new Rolls Royce..lol

but you're right on the whole.

I was speaking to someone about the LaBarbera family recently and I was very surprised by it so I looked around to see if I could confirm and turns out that John LaBarbera's mother is a Settecasi. Not just any Settecasi but a Settecasi from Alessandria Della Rocca. She's either the younger sister or a younger cousin of theGiuseppe Settecasi. The person I was speaking to mentioned her funeral and so I was able to find this


Maria LaBarbera, 93, passed away on March 13, 2014, at the home of her daughter, Rose Marie, in Colonia, N.J., surrounded by her loving family.
Relatives and friends are kindly invited to attend the funeral from the Corsentino Home for Funerals, 620 Second Ave., corner of John St., Elizabeth, N.J., on Monday, March 17, 2014, at 9:15 a.m., thence to St. Anthony's R.C. Church, in Elizabeth, where at 10:30 a.m. a Funeral Mass will be offered. Visitation will be held at the funeral home on Sunday from 4 to 8 p.m. Entombment will be at Rosedale Cemetery Linden, N.J.
Maria was born in Alessandria Della Rocca, Italy. She came to Elizabeth, where she resided for 47 years until moving to Colonia in 2003.
She enjoyed traveling, going to Atlantic City, and attending her weekly gatherings with her girlfriends, where they would play cards for pennies. She was known for cooking everything from scratch, especially her traditional Sicilian cookies, which everyone loved.
Most of all, she adored being around her grandchildren, and spending time with her family.
A devoted and caring mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and sister, she is survived by her children, Joseph and his wife, Mary LaBarbera; Angela and her husband, Fred Adams; Ben and his wife, Doreen LaBarbera; Rose Marie and her husband, Joe Ruvolo, and Giovanni (John) and his wife, Angelica LaBarbera; 17 loving grandchildren; 22 adoring great-grandchildren; and sister, Vincenza Settecasi, in Italy. She was predeceased by her beloved husband, Vincenzo LaBarbera.

To Plant Memorial Trees in memory, please visit our Sympathy Store.
Published in The Star-Ledger on Mar. 15, 2014.
obits.nj.com

[johnny_scootch]

Johns father Vincent was a made guy too I believe. Just another link in the chain that connects Sicily to the US.

[Philly d]

was he made in italy? he came over late.

[johnny_scootch]

was he made in italy? he came over late.

No clue but it’s certainly possible considering the DeCav history of recognizing Sicilian membership in contrast to other groups such as the Genovese family.

[Villain]

was he made in italy? he came over late.

No clue but it’s certainly possible considering the DeCav history of recognizing Sicilian membership in contrast to other groups such as the Genovese family.

Thanks for the remind since i need this for another topic

[NJShore4Life]

Most of the DeCav guys in particular the old heads , can trace their roots back to or were born/their parents were born in Sicily, in particular Ribera.

[B.]

Last time I saw John LaBarbera (maybe 5 years ago or more) he had on a 60k watch and he was driving a new Rolls Royce..lol

but you're right on the whole.

I was speaking to someone about the LaBarbera family recently and I was very surprised by it so I looked around to see if I could confirm and turns out that John LaBarbera's mother is a Settecasi. Not just any Settecasi but a Settecasi from Alessandria Della Rocca. She's either the younger sister or a younger cousin of theGiuseppe Settecasi. The person I was speaking to mentioned her funeral and so I was able to find this


Maria LaBarbera, 93, passed away on March 13, 2014, at the home of her daughter, Rose Marie, in Colonia, N.J., surrounded by her loving family.
Relatives and friends are kindly invited to attend the funeral from the Corsentino Home for Funerals, 620 Second Ave., corner of John St., Elizabeth, N.J., on Monday, March 17, 2014, at 9:15 a.m., thence to St. Anthony's R.C. Church, in Elizabeth, where at 10:30 a.m. a Funeral Mass will be offered. Visitation will be held at the funeral home on Sunday from 4 to 8 p.m. Entombment will be at Rosedale Cemetery Linden, N.J.
Maria was born in Alessandria Della Rocca, Italy. She came to Elizabeth, where she resided for 47 years until moving to Colonia in 2003.
She enjoyed traveling, going to Atlantic City, and attending her weekly gatherings with her girlfriends, where they would play cards for pennies. She was known for cooking everything from scratch, especially her traditional Sicilian cookies, which everyone loved.
Most of all, she adored being around her grandchildren, and spending time with her family.
A devoted and caring mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and sister, she is survived by her children, Joseph and his wife, Mary LaBarbera; Angela and her husband, Fred Adams; Ben and his wife, Doreen LaBarbera; Rose Marie and her husband, Joe Ruvolo, and Giovanni (John) and his wife, Angelica LaBarbera; 17 loving grandchildren; 22 adoring great-grandchildren; and sister, Vincenza Settecasi, in Italy. She was predeceased by her beloved husband, Vincenzo LaBarbera.

To Plant Memorial Trees in memory, please visit our Sympathy Store.
Published in The Star-Ledger on Mar. 15, 2014.
obits.nj.com

This is a great find.

I haven't seen John LaBarbera's membership confirmed, but he is one of the leading figures in the Ribera Club in recent years. The obit indicates his father is the old DeCavalcante member Vincenzo LaBarbera.

Vincenzo LaBarbera marrying a Settecasi from ADR is very interesting. The Gambino, Bonanno, and Tampa members from ADR were closely tied to the DeCavalcantes, spanning those who lived in NYC, NJ, and Florida.

Giuseppe Settecasi was also the liaison between Agrigento and Montreal. DeCavalcante member Francesco "Joe" Gatto was close to Gerlando Sciascia and has ties to Montreal, so he's someone I would guess helped facilitate the rug smuggling operation between the Bonanno Montreal crew and DeCavalcante in the 1990s. Knowing there may be a Settecasi relation in the DeCavalcantes, that opens up other possible Montreal connections.

We know from the recent recordings of Sciacca boss Accursio Dimino that the Ribera mafia family has slot machines in Montreal in collaboration with those from Cattolica Eraclea. If the DeCavalcante family has managed to build and/or maintain itself, it would seem, like always, that it depends partially on their relationship to Ribera. Given Ribera has a presence in Montreal in recent years we can suspect there is still contact with their compaesani and relatives in the DeCavalcantes.

[johnny_scootch]

I've smuggled a few rugs in my time also.

[B.]

It looks like Vincenzo LaBarbera himself was born in Tampa to parents from Alessandra della Rocca. Travel records show he later had a residence/property in Marlboro, NY, where other DeCavalcantes like the LaMelas and Joseph Miranda lived. LaBarbera then ended up in Elizabeth.

Marlboro, NY (not to be confused with the NJ city) is another one of those strange blips in DeCavalcante history. Nick Delmore and Frank Majuri reportedly traveled there to check over the area as well.

[joerock]

It looks like Vincenzo LaBarbera himself was born in Tampa to parents from Alessandra della Rocca. Travel records show he later had a residence/property in Marlboro, NY, where other DeCavalcantes like the LaMelas and Joseph Miranda lived. LaBarbera then ended up in Elizabeth.

Marlboro, NY (not to be confused with the NJ city) is another one of those strange blips in DeCavalcante history. Nick Delmore and Frank Majuri reportedly traveled there to check over the area as well.

Any info if Miranda is still alive?

[johnny_scootch]

It looks like Vincenzo LaBarbera himself was born in Tampa to parents from Alessandra della Rocca. Travel records show he later had a residence/property in Marlboro, NY, where other DeCavalcantes like the LaMelas and Joseph Miranda lived. LaBarbera then ended up in Elizabeth.

Phil LaMela used his property in Marlboro to bury so many bodies he became known as the Undertaker. He also has a big private sanitation company up there.