Questions for Massino that Scott could ask..

[JohnnyS]

Might be worth asking him about Giuseppe Bosco. An excerpt from one of the conversations between Massino and Basciano in January 2005 about recent inductees:

MASSINO: The best one out of all them guys is I told you. Joey – ah Bosco. Giuseppe Bosco.
BASCIANO: Joe Bosco. Yeah. Yeah.
MASSINO: Baldo loves him. The rest of them…
BASCIANO: Yeah, but just because Baldo loves him too Joe that’s
MASSINO: But you go to know the one thing who knows these guys better than Baldo? And now you see what you just said, I trust your judgement.
BASCIANO: … Yeah.
MASSINO: I trust Baldo’s judgement.

Seems to have a high opinion of him. And if he is the same "Joe Bosch" that Lovaglio identified, then we could get some insight into a former acting boss we know very little about

You read my mind I was literally about to post about Bosco.

[newera_212]

Why didn't he consider the 2000 meeting a legitimate Commission meeting?

LMAO -not sure if you are busting balls or not, but this really isn't too bad of a question actually.

The Bosco stuff... awesome. Never even thought of that.

I mean, besides having two of the more important ones killed...did Massino trust/respect the zips? It seems like he held Baldo to high regard but at the same time, never really elevated any of them. It'd be kind of hard for Massino to keep his distance and deny the influence of that faction, especially because he himself was pretty entrenched in the Queens/Brooklyn Metro Ave border that the whole Zip world revolved around. That was Massino's old stomping grounds too, to a degree.

My question... I'd like to know if Massino felt a way about being kept out of the joint-family NYCHA window replacement scheme. If he ever felt like they deserved to be in that game and if he ever tried to sit down and edge his way in, or if he purposely took a step back and figured it wasn't going to end well

Also - did he really lose a sitdown over a Queens livery service business to Genovese Solider Victor Colletti? If anyone could tell us about the Genovese Corona / Queens crew, it might be Massino. I know Colletti had some joint bookmaking ventures with a few Bonnanos that were close to Massino. We sure as shit aren't going to get any info about that crew out of anyone who's actually in it... lol

[Wiseguy]

My question... I'd like to know if Massino felt a way about being kept out of the joint-family NYCHA window replacement scheme. If he ever felt like they deserved to be in that game and if he ever tried to sit down and edge his way in, or if he purposely took a step back and figured it wasn't going to end well

Also the gas scam. Where the Bonannos reappeared with the multi-family rackets was the stock scams beginning in the mid-late 1990s.

[nizarsoccer]

My question... I'd like to know if Massino felt a way about being kept out of the joint-family NYCHA window replacement scheme. If he ever felt like they deserved to be in that game and if he ever tried to sit down and edge his way in, or if he purposely took a step back and figured it wasn't going to end well

Also the gas scam. Where the Bonannos reappeared with the multi-family rackets was the stock scams beginning in the mid-late 1990s.

Second this one. What prevented them from recruiting their own set of Russians to do all the heavy lifting and profiting of this venture?

[Wiseguy]

Second this one. What prevented them from recruiting their own set of Russians to do all the heavy lifting and profiting of this venture?

I imagine the Bonannos, being on the outs at the time, would have run into the same obstacles they would with other rackets where the other four families were working jointly to control it and the Bonannos weren't invited.

[Pogo The Clown]

I seem to recall the Bonannos being approached by the other families for some kind of joint Union/labor racket and Massino declining because he didn't want the heat that comes from labor racketeering. My memory is hazy but I remember something like that.


Pogo

[SonnyBlackstein]

Any unknown/unreleased info on the Westside. Any info on their admin, who did he know, interact with etc etc.

[nizarsoccer]

Second this one. What prevented them from recruiting their own set of Russians to do all the heavy lifting and profiting of this venture?

I imagine the Bonannos, being on the outs at the time, would have run into the same obstacles they would with other rackets where the other four families were working jointly to control it and the Bonannos weren't invited.

That kind of plays into the Commision debate around here. The Bonannos got kicked out the Commision so didn't participate in the Concrete Club/Commision adjudicated joint family rackets. But since the Commision ceased to exist post Paul's death, what justification/protocol was used to not invite or dissuade the Bonannos from participating in joint family activities where panels were used like the Windows scam or the gas tax scheme.

[Wiseguy]

I seem to recall the Bonannos being approached by the other families for some kind of joint Union/labor racket and Massino declining because he didn't want the heat that comes from labor racketeering. My memory is hazy but I remember something like that.


Pogo

Now that you mention it, that was in the book Five Families.

Capo Anthony Graziano withdrew from the gasoline excise tax scams that generated millions of dollars. "Let's forget it," was Massino's terse explantion.

That same paragraph says Massino pulled Tartaglione off a mob construction committee, saying "We really have nothing to do with the construction unions." The reason the book gives is that Massino believed danger came from depending on other families and virtually banned participating in joint projects.

Seems there were exceptions, i.e. the stock scams.

More questions for Massino to answer...

[cobra]

- can he identify people from pippo bono wedding?

[Amershire_Ed]

I’d love to hear a little more insight from Massino on his relationship with Basciano. The Basciano book makes it seem like Massino didn’t really like Vinny but he was one of the few guys in the borgata he could trust. Like he would avoid Basciano at times but also give him more responsibility.

I’d also like to know when Massino first considered cooperation. Was it something he had in the back of his mind when he was still on the street, or was it something that didn’t creep into his psyche until he went to trial?

[nizarsoccer]

I seem to recall the Bonannos being approached by the other families for some kind of joint Union/labor racket and Massino declining because he didn't want the heat that comes from labor racketeering. My memory is hazy but I remember something like that.


Pogo

Now that you mention it, that was in the book Five Families.

Capo Anthony Graziano withdrew from the gasoline excise tax scams that generated millions of dollars. "Let's forget it," was Massino's terse explantion.

That same paragraph says Massino pulled Tartaglione off a mob construction committee, saying "We really have nothing to do with the construction unions." The reason the book gives is that Massino believed danger came from depending on other families and virtually banned participating in joint projects.

Seems there were exceptions, i.e. the stock scams.

More questions for Massino to answer...

Do you have anymore details about Anthony Graziano's involvement? Because I couldn't find anything on them besides that little vague blurb. I don't even know what time frame that had to happen because the Bonanno's were completely absent from any and all indictments or Casso's testimony in 1996. The main scheme that connected all 4 involved Families blew up in 1993 so Casso would have known about it, unless it was after 1993 and involved some tiny operation like the one Alex Lukov/Marco Minuto ran.

[Southshore88]

My question... I'd like to know if Massino felt a way about being kept out of the joint-family NYCHA window replacement scheme. If he ever felt like they deserved to be in that game and if he ever tried to sit down and edge his way in, or if he purposely took a step back and figured it wasn't going to end well

Also the gas scam. Where the Bonannos reappeared with the multi-family rackets was the stock scams beginning in the mid-late 1990s.

I think I remember Massino’s testimony stating he wanted to minimize their exposure to the other families in join rackets. He could be right (or half-right) when he says that while the other truth being the other families didn’t trust or want to partner with the Bonnanos.

All of the questions so far have been great

[Wiseguy]

Do you have anymore details about Anthony Graziano's involvement? Because I couldn't find anything on them besides that little vague blurb. I don't even know what time frame that had to happen because the Bonanno's were completely absent from any and all indictments or Casso's testimony in 1996. The main scheme that connected all 4 involved Families blew up in 1993 so Casso would have known about it, unless it was after 1993 and involved some tiny operation like the one Alex Lukov/Marco Minuto ran.

That's the only place I've read about it too. Perhaps it was simply a matter of Graziano seeing the money potential and wanted the family to grab a piece but Massino kept him from getting involved.

[Pogo The Clown]

That same paragraph says Massino pulled Tartaglione off a mob construction committee, saying "We really have nothing to do with the construction unions." The reason the book gives is that Massino believed danger came from depending on other families and virtually banned participating in joint projects.

Yes that was what I was thinking of. Thanks.


Pogo