Tommy Scafidi interviewed by Dave Schratwieser

[B.]

Really, a wonderful job looking into this, Chin. A lot to think about.

We're missing many details on Stanfa's history in the Philly family. I don't know how much his earlier role in the family would have impacted his later candidacy as boss, though he seems to have been viewed as an outsider by those born and raised in Philadelphia. If he hadn't driven Bruno home the night of his murder, he would have truly come out of nowhere when he became boss.

Just some thoughts I was working on earlier related to Stanfa, Bruno, and the Gambino brothers:

Stanfa's Membership in Sicily / Philly

- Following Angelo Bruno's murder in the early 1980s, US authorities relayed info from Italian investigators that John Stanfa had been a member of the Sicilian mafia. Nino Giuffre's testimony twenty years later backs this up, where he stated that John Stanfa sponsored him into the Caccamo family after briefly returning to Sicily in the 1980s. Two of Stanfa's brothers were also members of the Caccamo family and a vague reference on the Goodfellas tapes suggests Stanfa's father Giuseppe(?) was a mafioso.

- Phil Leonetti was under the impression Stanfa was inducted by Bruno, but he doesn't appear to have known the details firsthand, only that Stanfa was already a member under Bruno. Stanfa most likely transferred membership from the Caccamo family to Philadelphia in the 1970s. It's confirmed that Angelo Bruno fully recognized Sicilian membership and had formal ties to the Sicilian mafia. Sicilian->US transfers and vice versa used to be fairly common under those circumstances.

- According to Sicilian pentito Antonino Calderone, Amedeo "Al" Indelicato was inducted in Philadelphia in the 1950s and returned to Sicily. Indelicato's father Giuseppe was an important mafioso in their hometown of Catania, but they had to wait for Angelo Bruno's cousin Calogero Sinatra (the boss of Vallelunga) to return to Sicily to introduce father/son as "amico nostra", as Sinatra had been formally introduced to Indelicato in Philly. I don't know if Al Indelicato moved/transferred to Sicily permanently, as there is an Amedeo Indelicato (b.1930) who died near Allentown in 2006, but he was never identified by any of the countless informants/witnesses so I would guess he transferred to Catania. Either way, it shows continuity between Philly and the Sicilian mafia during the time Stanfa moved to the US.

- When Rocco Scafidi was taken off the shelf by Angelo Bruno, it was formalized at a making ceremony. He was not "re-made", but it was a formal process and he was brought in front of the attendees alongside the new member inductions. Given Bruno took this approach to taking someone off the shelf, he may have formalized Stanfa's transfer at an induction ceremony or in a formal setting, which could have contributed to the belief that he was "made" in Philadelphia.

- Felice reported info that the NYC families approved some kind of formal process for bringing Sicilian mafia members into their families in the 1970s, though the exact details aren't clear. This could have been something like a ceremony, but for transfers opposed to inductions, as there is no available evidence that US families "re-made" Sicilians, while we have many examples of transfers. Nick Gentile reported that his transfer to the San Francisco family decades earlier had to be approved by the SF consiglio and was followed by a celebratory dinner, so maybe all transfers were originally formalized at a gathering.

Angelo Bruno's Visit to Sicily / Caccamo

- Angelo Bruno was recorded discussing his trip to Sicily in the early 1960s, where he met and had dinner with what he describes as countless Palermo mafia bosses and their aides. He also met mafia leaders/members across the entire island, including his hometown of Villalba/Vallelunga and as far as Catania. Given the number of Palermo mafia figures he claims to have met, he very well might have met mafiosi from Stanfa's hometown of Caccamo, a prominent Palermo mafia village.

- John Stanfa was still living in Caccamo during Bruno's visit and may have already been a made member, as he moved to Philadelphia in 1964. Nino Giuffre's testimony as well as earlier info from Italian authorities suggests Stanfa was already a Sicilian man of honor by 1964, unless he was made on a later return visit to Caccamo. A 23-year-old from a mafia blood family was the norm for inductees in Sicily, so it wouldn't be strange if John Stanfa was a member by the early 1960s.

- Angelo Bruno may have made a point to visit Caccamo during his vacation. He made a point to determine if Phil Testa's ancestral hometown had a mafia family and was hoping to make contact, but there was no family there. Despite their problems, Bruno was still close to Dominick Pollina and the Philly family had a strong Caccamesi foundation, so he may have similarly wanted to meet mafia figures in Caccamo.

- More importantly, Bruno's daughter married Ralph Puppo, whose father Orlando was a Philadelphia mafia member of Caccamese heritage. Bruno described visiting Abruzzo province because his wife's family came from there, so he may have similarly visited the hometown of his daughter's in-laws given its convenient location near Palermo and its mafia presence. If so, Bruno could have met Stanfa's mafia superiors, relatives, or even Stanfa himself.

- It's probable that Caccamo mafia figures were among the many Palermo mafia leaders who had dinner with Bruno in Palermo and/or he visited Caccamo during his mafia-linked tour of the island. This would have simplified Stanfa's transfer to Philadelphia.

Other Connections / Questions

- In the 1960s, Bruno was recorded chastising Dominick Pollina for attempting to contact a mafia boss in Sicily and not following protocol. He explained that a US mafia member must contact his boss, who would contact the Commission, who in turn would contact the mafia leadership in Sicily and arrange the contact. Who was Pollina trying to contact? If he was trying to contact the mafia boss in his hometown of Caccamo that would show the Philly Caccamesi, at least Pollina, maintained ties to the Caccamo mafia into the 1960s.

- What was Stanfa's relationship to his compaesani in Philly? Dominick Pollina, Orlando Puppo, Vincent Catania, George Scimeca, and Joseph Fusci were all living Caccamesi members in Philly when Stanfa came to the US.

- Did Stanfa transfer back to the Caccamo family temporarily when he served as Nino Giuffre's sponsor in the early 1980s or did he stand in as a "guest" given he was originally made in Caccamo and related to prominent members? Seems unlikely the post-Bruno Philly leadership made arrangements for a transfer; Caccamo probably saw him as one of their own regardless.

Gambino Brothers + Bruno / Stanfa

- Like with Stanfa, Italian authorities relayed info to US investigators in the early 1980s that John Gambino was made in Sicily, like his brother Rosario. Unless info on an NYC induction comes to light, I suspect this is true, though John would have transferred to the Gambino family while Rosario did not. However, the same report states that Giuseppe Gambino was also believed to be made in Sicily, which is not true. So they were incorrect about Giuseppe, correct about Rosario, and we'll see if anything comes out on John.

- Phil Leonetti testified that Nicky Scarfo told him that he (Scarfo) was introduced to Rosario Gambino as "amico nostra" by Angelo Bruno in the 1970s. This led Scarfo to erroneously believe Rosario was a member of the NYC Gambino family, but they learned in the mid-1980s from John Gotti that Rosario was a Sicilian mafia member. Another example of Angelo Bruno recognizing Sicilian mafiosi as "amico nostra".

- The Gambino brothers and their father Tommaso were photographed having dinner with Angelo Bruno and John Stanfa, along with female relatives, in the 1970s. NJ-based Sicilian mafia member Domenico Mannino was also with them as well as an unidentified man.

- John, Rosario, and Giuseppe Gambino visited Angelo Bruno's home for Easter during the mid-1970s. Their father however did not attend this visit, so the above mentioned photograph appears to have been a different occasion.

- Angelo Bruno and Paul Castellano had a meeting at the Gambino brothers' Valentino's club in Cherry Hill in 1977. The meeting was allegedly to discuss the recent voter approval of casino gambling in Atlantic City.

- Bruno's close associate Long John Martorano lived in Cherry Hill near the Gambino brothers and the men are believed to have been close. Martorano was of Sicilian heritage, with ancestry from Belmonte Mezzagno in Palermo province, the same hometown as many early Philly / South Jersey members and Gambino capodecina Giuseppe Traina.

- Angelo Bruno and Martorano's vending machine business distributed cigarettes in pizza locations owned by the Gambino brothers as well as their Valentino's and Casanova restaurants. Domenico Adamita was the owner on record of Casanova and came from Torretta, same hometown as the Gambino brothers. Adamita testified at a hearing that Paolo Gambino, brother of Carlo, also came from his hometown, which is how he became connected to him.

- Both Domenico Adamita and Giuseppe Gambino admitted to knowing Tommaso Buscetta when he was in the US but were reluctant to admit much. Buscetta had relatives in NJ and lived in South Jersey for a time, hanging out at Valentino's. Seems likely he would have crossed paths with Stanfa. I'd be curious if Buscetta said much about members he met in Philadelphia and South Jersey.

- Angelo Bruno testified at a 1977 hearing that he knew the Gambino brothers to be relatives of Carlo Gambino. He said he used to believe they were nephews but learned that wasn't the relation, though he knew they were related somehow. At the same hearing, an LE investigator said Giuseppe Gambino admitted to a blood relation to Carlo.

- It has been alleged that Angelo Bruno approved of the Gambino brothers' drug trafficking activities in South Jersey and Philadelphia, with rumors going as far as to say Bruno received money, though I don't know if any reputable sources have said this and as far as I know it is unsubstantiated. John Stanfa and his businesses were investigated in connection to Sicilian heroin trafficking though nothing substantial was discovered to my knowledge aside from his association / friendship with known Sicilian drug traffickers.

- Giuseppe Gambino was filmed attending Angelo Bruno's funeral.

- Giuseppe Gambino used Salvatore Avena as his lawyer when he lived in South Jersey. Sal Avena was the son of early Philly boss John Avena. Avena was close to Angelo Bruno and would later serve as John Stanfa's lawyer, with Stanfa infamously using Avena's offices to conduct high-level mafia meetings in the 1990s. Stanfa's meeting with Rosario's son Tommy Gambino makes reference to Stanfa's close relationship with Rosario Gambino.

Stanfa and Bruno's Relationship

- As mentioned, Stanfa and Bruno appear together in the dinner photo with the Gambino brothers. Bruno and Stanfa also appear together in another dinner photo that was used on the cover of some editions of Blood and Honor, which includes Philly members Joe Ciancaglini, Carl Ippolito, Frank Sindone, and John Simone. Both photos appear to be from the mid- or late-1970s.

- Angelo Bruno's daughter claimed in an interview that John Stanfa did the brickwork on the Bruno family home in South Philadelphia. The Brunos are said to have purchased the home in the 1950s and it was built in the 1920s, so this must have been part of a remodel or upkeep after Stanfa's arrival.

- Stanfa infamously drove Bruno home the night of his murder. Stanfa lived in the neighborhood and this is further evidence of their close relationship. George Anastasia has written that Long John Martorano begged off from driving Bruno home the night of his murder and volunteered Stanfa instead, but I'm not sure who the original source of this information is. It's true that Martorano was a regular chauffeur for Bruno, especially in his day-to-day activities, though the role he played in selecting Stanfa is questionable.

- Stanfa's role as driver the night of Bruno's murder has resulted in murky allegations that Stanfa was a conspirator in the murder. I don't believe this myself. Bruno appears to have been Stanfa's lifeline within the organization and I haven't seen enough to indicate Stanfa had close relationships to other members who could influence him to participate unless he was told it came on Commission orders. His relationship to the Gambino brothers, who were Bruno allies under Paul Castellano, makes it difficult to believe he would go along with this plot without their consent.

- In addition to the above, John Stanfa was hit with buckshot from the murder weapon and he abandoned his car at the scene, running straight to his own house. He appears to have been taken by complete surprise by the murder and his behavior is not consistent with what one would expect of a conspirator. While it could have been an accident that he was hit with buckshot, it could also indicate Stanfa was seen as collateral damage by the conspirators. We don't know if the killers would have targeted Stanfa if he stayed in the car or at the scene after Bruno's killing.

- Stanfa was visited in the hospital by Frank Sindone and John Simone, two other alleged conspirators. They were said to have spoken quietly in Sicilian, which some have interpreted as a sign of guilt. Again, I am not of this opinion. It is natural that two family leaders would visit Bruno's driver in the hospital as part of the family investigation into the murder. Regardless of their guilt or innocence, as mafia figures they would have kept their conversation about the boss's murder coded and quiet. I am not as confident in his innocence as I am with Stanfa, but I similarly question the belief that Simone was a conspirator in the Bruno murder.

John Gambino's Influence in Philly

- In the 1970s, John Gambino was a partner with his brothers in Father & Son pizzeria based in Philadelphia. While not as close to Bruno as his brothers, he attended the Easter visit to Bruno's home.

. It's not clear what South Jersey Gambino capodecina Antonio Inzerillo's relationship was like to Philadelphia before his 1981 murder beyond the fact that his close associates were Angelo Bruno's friends. John Gambino was promoted to capodecina after Paul Castellano's December 1985 murder, so there was only a short window of time where he served as capodecina while Scarfo was on the street. Scarfo's ties were to the Genovese family, so we can presume John Gambino held relatively little influence over the Philly leadership through 1986.

- In 1986, Long John Martorano told Nick Caramandi that he had arranged for his son George to be "with" a New York family instead of Philly. Martorano was also arranging for his own appeal and was believed to be plotting a power play to take over the Philadelphia family if the appeal succeeded. Given his claims that he had arranged for his son to be with an unspecified New York family, he may have been attempting to gain political support from New York for his own plot. Given his ties to the Gambino brothers, it's reasonable to believe he was attempting to gain backing from the Gambino family and may have arranged for his son to be "with" them.

- John Gambino reportedly supported Reds Pontani as acting boss of Philly around 1987. This would indicate Gambino had influence in the family through New Jersey. Trenton was rapidly shrinking in terms of membership and influence in the Philly family, with Reds Pontani having been a soldier in Phil Leonetti's crew. This could lend itself to the idea that Martorano had also received support from John Gambino, as Martorano was based in South Jersey. If Martorano had successfully appealed his case in the mid-late 1980s, would John Gambino have backed him to take over?

- If it's true Gambino backed Reds Pontani, was this on behalf of the entire Gambino family or something Gambino did on his own? Along the same lines, if he backed Stanfa, was this something he did individually or on behalf of the Gambino leadership?

- Given John Gambino lost standing and was demoted by Gotti after his incarceration, this may have contributed to Stanfa losing his support from the entire Gambino family, but would need to know the exact timeline on Gambino's demotion and the events that led up to Philadelphia losing recognition.

- John Gambino shows up again as Philly's point of contact in 2010 when Ligambi (on behalf of Merlino) wanted to address issues with the Lucchese and DeCavalcante families. On these recordings we also learn that former Philly associate Danny D'Ambrosio, who plotted to murder the Philly leadership, is associating with John Gambino, which must seem like an insult to the Philly leadership.

- On the Stefanelli tape, John Gambino claimed to have met Joe Ligambi socially years earlier, but not as a made member. Based on the timeline, this had to have been during the 1980s. So he was definitely rubbing shoulders with the Scarfo-era guys in the 1980s, probably in South Jersey.

- We see John Gambino show up as a possible influencer in Philly in 1987, 1990/1991, then again in the 2010s. Was this a sporadic arrangement, or are we missing other examples? Giuseppe Traina was the liaison to Philly continuously between ~1919-1969 (maybe before and after, too, but definitely during that period) and influenced Philly heavily, so would be interesting to know if John Gambino's role was semi-official and sanctioned by the leadership of both families like Traina, or if it was more the result of John Gambino randomly asserting influence on his own.

[Manhattan_]

My thoughts are that Simone and Sindone had no involvement in the Bruno murder. They were slaughtered as part of the plot for the west side to put Nicky Scarfo in as Boss eventually. Tests named Pete Casella as his UB and the WS wanted Nick in that spot so when that did not happen the WS treachery was unleashed against Testa Sr. - Nick Scarfo thinking that Sal Testa would one day figure those out - had Testa Jr. killed.

[chin_gigante]

[...]

Great insights, as always, B. I'd never thought about Stanfa being put through a ceremony as a transfer (ala Scafidi's reinstatement) but it certainly makes sense and would align with Leonetti's comments on Stanfa's membership.

I'm on the same boat as you when it comes to Stanfa's involvement (or lack thereof) in the Bruno murder. I believe the information about Martorano getting out of driving Bruno home that night comes from Sonny Riccobene. If memory serves, Sonny was at Cous' that night and remembered Long John saying he couldn't drive Bruno home for a vague reason. Bruno's lawyer was also at that dinner and wanted to go home to listen to a broadcast of an opera, so Sonny was told to take the lawyer home. Then Stanfa was selected to be Bruno's driver. Martorano then went on to tell Sonny that he (Martorano) had been involved in Bruno's murder.

[Pmac2]

Manhattan I agree

[Pmac2]

Wonder who stanfas capo was in 1980 must have been whoever I forgot the south philly capo was in 80. I thought someone only had 1 soldier. Chang or something weird

[Pmac2]

There was that other capo in bruno's family in Chester that had 1 soldier. I've seen this before

[Pogo The Clown]

There was that other capo in bruno's family in Chester that had 1 soldier. I've seen this before

You are think of the Santo Idone who was Capo of the Chester Crew. Anthony Iacono, Joseph Scalleat Sr, Santo Romeo, Dominic Rugnetta and Antonio “Nino” Sciglitano were some of the made members of his crew.


Pogo

[chin_gigante]

My thoughts are that Simone and Sindone had no involvement in the Bruno murder. They were slaughtered as part of the plot for the west side to put Nicky Scarfo in as Boss eventually. Tests named Pete Casella as his UB and the WS wanted Nick in that spot so when that did not happen the WS treachery was unleashed against Testa Sr. - Nick Scarfo thinking that Sal Testa would one day figure those out - had Testa Jr. killed.

The Genoveses told Testa he should make Scarfo consigliere or underboss, not specifically just underboss

[B.]

Back to Scafidi, I'd also like to hear more about him serving as a "lookout" for one of the 1986 induction ceremonies. Along the same lines, Pete Caprio said he was driven to his 1982 induction ceremony by Joey Merlino. Seems Philly was fine using young associates to help facilitate ceremonies, at least under Scarfo.

[dack2001]

Sindone was direct with Bruno but wasn't a capo. Ciancaglini reported to Sindone. I suspect Stanfa reported direct to Sindone also and both were in on the plot to kill Bruno. When Phil Testa was made underboss Narducci was bumped up to captain of his crew. Probably acting capo, but Sindone was supervising most of Bruno's partnerships in South Philly and they met direct almost daily. I don't believe that Caponigro was going to take down Bruno unless he had someone along with the weight to control South Philly. Both Stanfa and Sindone were seen meeting with Caponigro prior to Bruno being whacked. It was Scarfo, Testa and their group who were certain right away Sindone was in on the plot. It was Sindone and Stanfa who were sitting in Bobby Manna's place while they were killing Caponigro and Salerno. Think they were there because they were "investigating" Bruno's murder? They fled out of there and Stanfa ran for almost two years and Sindone went to Cali until Ciancaglini lured him back and killed him.

Sindone would have been one of the few in the position to know most of Bruno's partnerships that "belonged" to the family. Caponigro needed Sindone and wouldn't have killed Bruno without him. Gambinos felt strong enough suspicion on Stanfa to request Scarfo to not take him out when he got out of prison in 87 That was seven years later. Don't know about Simone, he may have been just an opportunist, but I'm convinced Sindone and Stanfa were in on the plot. That's setting aside the logistics of killing Bruno like he did if the driver and others weren't in on it.

[B.]

I agree about Sindone's involvement. I am still unconvinced on Stanfa, though I'm open to new info that points to his involvement. The problem is the conspirators themselves didn't come forward. It's like trying to figure out the Castellano murder without Gravano but less obvious. I do believe Sonny Riccobene's info about Martorano, as they were longtime friends and Martorano's behavior surrounding the murder is suspicious. Martorano had incentive as he was not going to be made under Bruno.

What is the source for Sindone and Stanfa fleeing while Caponigro and Salerno were being killed? Fish Cafaro knew the Gigante faction killed Caponigro/Salerno and Stanfa was seen in NYC, so I believe they were all there under the pretense of investigating the murder and naturally Stanfa would be a key "witness" in their investigation, but I haven't seen anything that makes it clear NYC was planning to kill Stanfa at the time. Stanfa went on the lam in part because of the subpoena to testify and the ensuing perjury charge.

Again, I'm open to new info but we're missing firsthand sources when it comes to both the Bruno murder conspiracy and the Genovese murdering the conspirators. Cafaro didn't know many of the details as Salerno was not directly involved.

Rocco Scafidi described Sindone as a "high-ranking member" in 1975 when reporting a meeting he attended with Sindone and Phil Testa (who he specifically named as the underboss). A 1977 report lists Frank Narducci and Sindone directly under Angelo Bruno and Testa, with Narducci said to supervise the family's gambling while Sindone supervised loansharking. We know Narducci was a captain from other info, but I assume Sindone was with the administration. One of the Philadelphia books (Mobfather? Can't remember) refers to him as a captain, no clue where they got it. I'd be surprised if other soldiers were formally assigned to another soldier but no doubt people were "under' him on an operational level even if he wasn't a captain.

[Ivan]

I've seen Sindone identified as a captain a zillion times B., no idea where it comes from but it's fairly common.

[Manhattan_]

My thoughts are that Simone and Sindone had no involvement in the Bruno murder. They were slaughtered as part of the plot for the west side to put Nicky Scarfo in as Boss eventually. Tests named Pete Casella as his UB and the WS wanted Nick in that spot so when that did not happen the WS treachery was unleashed against Testa Sr. - Nick Scarfo thinking that Sal Testa would one day figure those out - had Testa Jr. killed.

The Genoveses told Testa he should make Scarfo consigliere or underboss, not specifically just underboss

That was the deceit - the WS knew that Testa was going to pick Casella and not Scarfo for his UB - In Leonetti’s book it says that his uncle was really surprised that he did not get picked for the UB position and they used this against Phil Testa and then used Casella to blow up Testa. Then tell Casella to leave and never return . He got a pass . Everyone else got slaughtered for treason except Pete Casella he was used and then chased. This Nicodemo Scarfo is now Boss .

[chin_gigante]

My thoughts are that Simone and Sindone had no involvement in the Bruno murder. They were slaughtered as part of the plot for the west side to put Nicky Scarfo in as Boss eventually. Tests named Pete Casella as his UB and the WS wanted Nick in that spot so when that did not happen the WS treachery was unleashed against Testa Sr. - Nick Scarfo thinking that Sal Testa would one day figure those out - had Testa Jr. killed.

The Genoveses told Testa he should make Scarfo consigliere or underboss, not specifically just underboss

That was the deceit - the WS knew that Testa was going to pick Casella and not Scarfo for his UB - In Leonetti’s book it says that his uncle was really surprised that he did not get picked for the UB position and they used this against Phil Testa and then used Casella to blow up Testa. Then tell Casella to leave and never return . He got a pass . Everyone else got slaughtered for treason except Pete Casella he was used and then chased. This Nicodemo Scarfo is now Boss .

Leonetti's book does not allege that Casella was used by the Genovese family. It said he was friendly with a Genovese captain who intervened to save his life. Leonetti has never said that the Genovese family or his uncle had anything to do with Testa's death.

[Manhattan_]

Forget Leonetti - Scarfo himself probably did not even know ! This all went down the way it did bc the WS thru Bobby Manna wanted Nick as Boss. Again Chin think about the bloodletting in the aftermath of Bruno and then Testa everyone involved brutally slain and or tortured but PC gets a pass from the WS ? 40 years later and no one can say for sure who the mysterious Genovese family friend of PC is ? PC got a pass bc he was down with the WS all along. Just by chance Bobby Mannas Hoboken headquarters was “ Casella’s Restaurant”