Sciascia and Montagna

[B.]

With Montagna hanging in Ridgewood, he would have likely been close to other young up-and-coming Castellammarese soldiers like the Navarras. Sounds like he mingled with Giannini crew types as well but was much different from them (hence his beef with Gambina). People have wondered about Sal Catalano, the old capo of the Ridgewood crew, and one thing I do know is that his nephews (who are legitimate as far as I know) work for Phil Navarra's auto leasing company. So some of those people are still around each other.

[antimafia]

Here's the link to the thread "The Cicale Files" that Wiseguy started back on January 3 of this year:

http://www.theblackhand.club/forum/view ... f=29&t=378

One of the impressions I got after reading some posters' comments in that thread and on Gangsters BB was that Cicale's insights in the e-book were not to be trusted for numerous reasons. Initially I had a strong desire to purchase it, but the posters' comments made me reconsider--I didn't buy the book.

I am always interested in learning about the ties between the Bonanno Family and the Montreal Mafia. Back in November 2010, I started mildly questioning on the RD forum the idea that the Montreal Mafia stopped paying tribute to the Bonannos in New York after Sciascia's murder--one of the reasons was that I looked more closely at Adrian Humphreys's e-mail reply to me in December 2007 that stated, in part, that deceased Bonanno soldier Giuseppe Arcuri's "wake was a reasonably big Bonanno draw for a soldier and for the time: more than a dozen Bonanno members, including at least five captains, paid their respects, as did Montreal."

So even though I had received that reply more than three years earlier, I still thought that the internal RCMP report that Humphreys and Lamothe cited in The Sixth Family definitively answered the question about whether the Rizzuto organization stopped paying tribute after Sciascia was clipped. The answer? The flow stopped. But if Montrealers were paying their respects to Arcuri in New York in 2001, how really severe was the break? Did the tribute indeed stop? Was there in fact a break?

To this day, Adrian Humphreys believes the New York Bonannos had no clue what was going on in Montreal when Vitale and Urso were sent by Massino to Montreal to meet Vito Rizzuto in 2001. (Both The Sixth Family and Mafia Inc. state that Urso at the time was the acting consigliere for the Bonanno Family.) I am not judging Humphreys's opinion in any way--just indicating he hasn't swayed from his position in more than 10 years.

If any of Cicale's claims about the relationship between the New York Bonannos and the Rizzuto organization is correct, then I think one might have to conclude that none of Vitale's 2004 testimony about Massino's fear of retaliation by Rizzuto, about determining how many made Bonannos there were in Canada, and about indirectly asking Rizzuto to replace Sciascia as captain is true. I am inclined to accept that Vitale may have lied about everything he has ever said about Montreal and people connected to Montreal, especially because I don't believe his account of how he came to discover, after the fact, that Joe Lo Presti was killed by Sciascia.

The individuals in the upper echelon of the Montreal Mafia hierarchy who would have faced trial as a result of the Project Colisée arrests were told that an unnamed high-level witness was going to testify about his knowledge regarding the relationship between the New York Bonannos and the Montreal Mafia. Humphreys believes the Montrealers deduced the witness was Vitale; at some point thereafter, the accused decided to plead guilty.

Cicale's claim that Massino ordered Rizzuto to make his way to Maspeth, Queens is suspicious even if one were to argue that travelling by car--i.e., not travelling by plane--meant less of a risk for Rizzuto to be stopped at the border or to cross the border or both. Massino's supposed heavy-handedness here seems to clash with the view of the repentant-and-perhaps docile Massino who, according to the Mafia Inc. book, sent a Gambino emissary to Quebec in late 2003 to warn Rizzuto about Vitale's having turned.

To corroborate that what Vitale said about the 2001 meeting in Montreal was true, Massino and Urso would have to have some reason to do so in the future. The Montrealers who were also present at the meeting would also have to have some reason to spill the reasons. Maybe one day we'll know the truth, but I'm not hopeful.

[B.]

The issue with Vitale is that he was all but shelved around that time period. I don't doubt that he was sent as an emissary to Montreal, as he was one of relatively few high-ranking members who would have been previously introduced to people up there as a member. I do think we should rethink whether his lack of knowledge is indicative of the entire Bonanno family's lack of knowledge -- I don't think that's the case. He may have simply been a messenger and not been clued into other discussions between the two groups. Also, who better to send but someone like Vitale who had according to some sources become expendable to Massino?

I had forgotten that Wiseguy posted about some of this stuff earlier. As for people's comments, after skimming that I didn't see any concrete reason to doubt Cicale. East Bronx has strong opinions about Cicale, but he also considers himself a "friend and neighbor" of Basciano, which means he's completely biased. If there was any info that Cicale has shared that can be strictly proven as a lie, I'd love to see it. Not saying it doesn't exist -- I just haven't seen it. And I wouldn't include him talking about hearsay as a lie -- he likely did get a lot of hearsay thrown his way from Basciano and others about events from before his time.

Anyway, thanks for the other info you posted, Antimafia. Your opinion on Montreal is worth its weight in gold on here as far as I'm concerned.

[Lupara]

The issue with Vitale is that he was all but shelved around that time period.

I've seen this posted many times over the years, but is there any hard evidence that this was indeed the case? I'd love for it to be true that Vitale wasn't in the know, but I'm also someone who want's to rely on facts and evidence.

Anyway, thanks for the other info you posted, Antimafia. Your opinion on Montreal is worth its weight in gold on here as far as I'm concerned.

Antimafia's opinion is always more than welcome.

[toto]

According to Frank Coppa and Richard Cantarella Massino was even thinking of killing Vitale but didn't want to hurt his wife (vitales sister). So he shelved him instead.

[TommyGambino]

Brilliant thread lads.

[rayray]

How well did the Montreal Sicilian faction/crew work within the Bonanno crime family? Did they primarily just work with the Administration or did they have dealings with other Sicilians (Zips) that were state-side?

[Angelo Santino]

This is from 1985-2012. Some of the info might need to be updates as more has come out since then.

http://s1.postimg.org/nxi4v8yxb/bon.jpg

[Pogo The Clown]

Good one. We can scratch Anthony Graziano as Consiglieri and Richard Cantarella as Acting UnderBoss. Turns out they never held those spots.


Pogo

[Angelo Santino]

Good one. We can scratch Anthony Graziano as Consiglieri and Richard Cantarella as Acting UnderBoss. Turns out they never held those spots.


Pogo

Ok, do we know who held those positions or should I leave it blank?

But are we sure about Cantarella, wasn't he listed as that in the indictment or FBI debriefing? I recall reading that in a government issued doc and implied he succeeded Antanasio in that position.

I could label which crew these members came from, that might help clear up who came from where. Being that we scraped away who most of the New Bosses were for most of the century. Focusing on the crews and who was elevated from where is interesting in itself and quite revealing of where the powers came from.

[Pogo The Clown]

JD cleared it up. Some members thought Cantarella was but he claimed he wasn't. He and Graziano were on a panel overseeing Capos for Massino (basically serving thosse functions) which is where the confusion came from.


Here is the updated info for 2012-present. Michael Mancuso named the new Boss in 2012 but was of course in prison.


Michael "Mikey Nose" Mancuso (2012-Present) In Prison.
-Ruling Panel: (2012-2013)
-The ruling panel included Capos Thomas “Tommy D” DiFiore, Anthony "Fat Anthony/Mr. Fish" Rabito and Vincent Asaro.
-Thomas “Tommy D” DiFiore (2012/3-2014) Imprisoned.
-John Palazzolo (2014-2015) Imprisoned.


It looks like a new Consiglieri was named around 2013/4 but no info has been released on who that is. Same could be true for the UnderBoss.


Pogo

[Angelo Santino]

I'll update it. Thanks!

[OlBlueEyesClub]

This is a pretty good thread. Appreciate all the information being passed around here. I'm of the opinion that The Rizzutos, stopped answering to The Bonannos after the Sciascia situation. Vitales testimony supports this I think, as he specifically says what Rizzuto told them about them being their own little boss and everyone being equal and that they had no bosses. Vitale also says that the last time he was aware of tribute being paid to NY from Montreal was in '99. However, the fact that Coppa, Cantarella and Lino have all testified that Vitale was essentially shelved, makes sense as well, as Vitale just may not have been in the loop.

Of course "The Sixth Family" and Lamothe flat-out state that The Rizzutos no longer flying the Bonanno banner is indeed the case. And Business Or Blood also alludes to this. But Mafia Inc. claims it isnt true and that to this day the Rizzutos answer to the Bonannos. And as good as that book is, it also seems to imply that the Gambinos have for a long time and possibly still are essentially the decision makers for the Bonanno's and as an extension, Montreal. I find that interesting to say the least. That book also alludes to The Sicilian Mafia aiding the US troops in the Invasion of Sicily. Going as far as to say they, the Sicilian mobsters, took out sniper fire. And thus made it easier for the US troops. They imply that Don Calo being named an honorary US soldier and the fact that the Sicilian mobsters were placed into all the authorative positions, as this being the proof of this. The average historian disagrees greatly with this, and if I'm not mistaken, even before the war and Mussolini, as far as Sicily went, the Mafiosi always held these government positions. And the fact is, the Italian Army were just ill-equipped against US soldiers.


What Cicale says is interesting as well, but Cicale has never been touted as a reliable source. So I'm not denying his claims, but I'm not ready to accept them either. As far as Giancinto Arcuri goes, was he related to some of the Arcuris who resided in Montreal? If he was, that would explain the Montreal presence at his funeral. One can also point to the fact that there weren't any Bonannos present at the funerals of Nicolo, Nick Jr. or Vito, and use that to support "The Sixth Family" and Lamothes view of things.

To end this, I'm new here, but Montreal Mafia has always been on of my most interesting topics to read into. I suspected a long time ago of Leonardo becoming more active in family affairs after the deaths of his uncle, brother and father , while others on the Real Deal and Gangsterbb would swear that he was just a lawyer, whenever I'd raise the subject. Anyway, does anyone else think that we may learn more about the Rizzuto/Montreal/Bonanno connection or lack thereof, if and when the Cavaliere law office bugs become public?

[OlBlueEyesClub]

Their own little family* is what I meant in the first couple of sentences. Not "own little boss". And sorry about the double post guys.

[toto]

Vitale's testimony doesn't support anything. He was shelved at that time. The points you mention have been proved wrong in this thread. As I mentioned before nobody who understands Cosa Nostra believed this silly story of sixth family and disobedience to the boss. Cosa Nostra has its own politics and "culture" and this is why you don't find this kind of "I don't answer". The only way to not answer is to kill the boss. It's basic.

Vito Rizzuto and Montreal decina had a vital role in a chain between Sicily and Calabria and Toronto and New York. That's why they can give $100k at Christmas. Not from Montreal local rackets. The Montagna story is completely believeable.

If they break away or disobey they lose the authority to act in this chain. There's no need to explain why its the case. It is obvious to anybody who understands Cosa Nostra.