Visiting Buffalo 1963

[B.]

Racalmuto/Buffalo/Hamilton stuff:

- Racalmuto was a prosperous sulphur mining town (like nearby Favara, where the local Family fully controlled sulphur mining in the 1880s) but in 1900 the economic depression caused many to leave for the US. Its population was once 16,000 which is around double what it is now and by 1934 Buffalo had 8000 residents of Racalmutese descent.

- The Buffalo Racalmutese Society was founded in 1912 and the Society credited Calogero Gigli as the first person from Racalmuto to settle in Buffalo in 1891.

- Chairman of the Buffalo Racalmutese Society in 1934 was Giuseppe Pantalone. This is probably the same "Pepe Pantallona" [ph] referenced by Magaddino as having been recruited for a 1920s Buffalo murder with Calogero Bordonaro and "Angeloro" Scibetta [ph]. Scibetta was referred to as Magaddino's "compare". There was a 32-year-old Angelo Scibetta arrested for stock swingling in Buffalo in 1939 but can't find other records of him. Could also be Angelo Scibetta (b. 1885/86) who lived in Buffalo.

- Giuseppe Scibetta was Treasurer of the Buffalo Racalmutese Society under Giuseppe Pantalone and a possible relative Francesco Scibetta was on the club's committee at the time. Buffalo member Calogero Agro's father Gaetano was Secretary and a Vincenzo Agro of Hamilton was an honorary member. Ignazio "Harry" Bordonaro was related to another Hamilton lawyer named John Agro who represented John Papalia, maybe Vincenzo's relative and/or a relative of Gaetano and Calogero Agro in Buffalo.

- Calogero Bordonaro had a brother in Buffalo and there are many records showing his border crossings. There are records of Santo Scibetta's border crossings too and he listed Calogero Bordonaro as his departure contact during a couple visits. Naturally he listed his brother Giuseppe Scibetta as his arrival contact on some of these.

- Calogero Bordonaro's friend and Racalmutese paesan Nicolo Alfano the Bonanno captain had brothers in both Buffalo and Hamilton. I've long believed he's the senior Bonanno leader "Bill Loffa" [ph] on the January 1965 Magaddino tape, as Alfano was on a ruling panel around that time with Paul Sciacca who was the other Bonanno on the 1965 bug.

- Calogero Bordonaro went to Italy in 1938 with a Racalmutese named Giuseppe Farrauto who lived in Hamilton and was a year older than him. A Giuseppe Farrauto from Racalmuto the same age ended up dying in the Bronx decades later, same borough Alfano was once connected to. Don't know if it's the same guy.

- The Fratellanza Racalmuto in Hamilton was formed in 1933 but Racalmutesi started arriving before the 20th century.

--

Highly likely Giuseppe Pantalone and "Angeloro" Scibetta were early Buffalo Family members from Racalmuto based on the Magaddino reference with Calogero Bordonaro. Possible Giuseppe Scibetta and Gaetano Agro were too.

[antimafia]

What I've got on the Bordonaros:

NAME: Calogero Bordonaro
ALIAS:
DOB: 8/20/1891; POB: Racalmuto, Agrigento, Sicily, Italy
DOD: 10/16/1971; POD:
FATHER: Giuseppe Bordonaro; MOTHER: Giovanna Puma
SPOUSE: Grazia Alaima Diloro
OCCUPATION:
ORIGINS: Racalmuto, Agrigento, Sicily
RESIDENCE: 388 McNab Street, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
FBI:

NAME: Harold Bordonaro
ALIAS: Ignazio, Harry
DOB: abt. 1927; POB: Ontario, Canada
DOD: 3/4/1991 (age 64); POD: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
FATHER: Calogero Bordonaro; MOTHER: Grazia Alaima Diloro
SPOUSE:
OCCUPATION: Lawyer
ORIGINS: Racalmuto, Agrigento, Sicily
RESIDENCE: 388 MacNab Street, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
FBI:

chin,

I have a couple of edits for you to consider regarding Harold per https://www.ancestry.ca/sharing/32448559?h=683920:

SPOUSE: Marlene [maiden name unknown, for now]
RESIDENCE: Vinemount (rural neighbourhood in Winona, Saltfleet Township).

I have added a photo of a college-age Harold over at http://www.theblackhand.club/forum/view ... &start=165.

[chin_gigante]

That's great stuff on Borelli and Bordonaro, antimafia.

For Borelli's spouse "Betty V", ancestry has pushed a few hints saying that she could be a Violet Pryslak, born Aug 8, 1909, in Winnipeg. I don't have a clear link between her and Borelli to say for sure but that may be Betty V.

On another note, one thing I found particularly disturbing about Paul Briandi was that in 1936, while married to another woman, he forced Irene Badaczewski into prostitution through forcible confinement and threats of violence. Badaczewski cooperated with authorities but seemed to get second thoughts and disappeared for a while. Briandi pleaded guilty to a compulsory prostitution charge and then the two of them got married.

I think it was Harry Riccobene who pointed out something similar about how often pimps would end up marrying one of the girls who worked for them.

[motorfab]

In addition of Scibetta & the Bordonaros, here is some other Canadian profiles. Unfortunately, I have the some blanks

NAME: Giacomo Luppino
ALIAS:
DOB: ??/??/1900; POB: Italy
DOD: 03/20/1987; POD: Hamilton
FATHER:
MOTHER:
SPOUSE:
OCCUPATION: Retired
ORIGINS: Oppido Mammertina, Calabria
RESIDENCE: 200 Ottawa Street Youth, Hamilton, Ontario
FBI:

NAME: John Papalia
ALIAS: Johnny Pops/The Enforcer
DOB: 03/18/1924; POB: Hamilton
DOD: 05/31/1997; POD: Hamilton
FATHER: Antonio Papalia
MOTHER: Maria Rosa Italiano
SPOUSE: Not married
OCCUPATION:
ORIGINS: Plati/Delianuova, Calabria
RESIDENCE: 16 Railway Street, Hamilton, Ontario (in 1963, he was in Lewisburg penitenciary sentenced to 10 years for drug trafficking)
FBI:

NAME: Dante Gasbarrini
ALIAS: Daniel
DOB: 02/11/1921; POB: Italy
DOD: 02/19/2014; POD: Burlington
FATHER: Luigi Gasbarrini
MOTHER: Antonia Vecchioni
SPOUSE: Pasqualina Sylvestro
OCCUPATION: Contractor
ORIGINS: Fontecchio l'Aquilla, Abbruzzo
RESIDENCE: 749 King Road, Burlington, Ontario
FBI: RCMP: #FPS 480017

And as he was still under the authority of Buffalo in 1963 as discussed here viewtopic.php?f=29&t=8787&p=239585&hili ... li#p239585, here is Paolo Violi

NAME: Paolo Violi
ALIAS:
DOB: 02/06/1910; POB: Italy
DOD: 01/22/1978; POD: Montreal
FATHER: Domenico Violi
MOTHER: Maria (?) Condina. (to be honest, antimafia give me the first name of his mother some months ago, but as I'm an idiot I forgot to noted it so I'm not sure)
SPOUSE: Grazia Luppino (he married her in 1965)
OCCUPATION:
ORIGINS: Sinopoli, Calabria
RESIDENCE: he was in Monreal in 1963, but I don't have the exact adress
FBI:

[NickleCity]

[snip]
I don't see him listed, but Santo Scibetta was very likely a member of the Buffalo borgata. I saw him listed as member during this period, but unfortunately I can't find the link right now. Or he's mentioned here : https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.htm ... o_scibetta

NAME: Santo Scibetta
ALIAS:
DOB: 04/20/1910; POB: Italy
DOD: 03/07/1985; POD: Hamilton or Burlington I'm not sure. He's buried at Burlington but lived in Hamilton ...
FATHER:
MOTHER:
SPOUSE:
OCCUPATION: Store operator
ORIGINS: Racalmuto, Agrigento, Sicily
RESIDENCE: Dundurn Street, Hamilton, Ontario
FBI:

Photo of his grave https://zupimages.net/up/21/12/dq7p.jpg or here if you have an account https://billiongraves.com/grave/Santo-Scibetta/20574535
[snip]

I agree about Santo Scibetta being a likely Buffalo Family member. What we can't figure out is why he, Calogero Bordonaro, and Tony Sylvestro (of Guelph, Ontario) have been depicted by some Canadian writers as "dons," suggesting that those three had a rank higher than soldier -- that's a discussion for another thread, though.


Fab,

Nice bio details for Scibetta.

The Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Burlington (Ontario), where he is buried, has a lot of "illustrious" decedents. He was living at 317 Dundurn Street South in both 1965 and 1972, and very probably in between; and the way Adrian Humphreys wrote of him in The Enforcer, Scibetta was likely living in this residence toward the very end.

I am almost certain Santo's parents are Calogero Scibetta and Raffaela Tirone but I haven't quite yet verified.

I'm not finding evidence that Santo ever married.

I'm trying to confirm that Santo's middle name is Edoardo.
___________

If Santo's brother Joseph is another possible suspected member, then I have the following details for him at this point, a few of which I want to confirm:

NAME: Giovanni Giuseppe Scibetta (also went by the first names Joseph and Bill)
ALIAS:
DOB: June 24, 1896; POB: Italy
DOD: July 31, 1974; POD: Buffalo, Erie County
FATHER: Calogero Scibetta
MOTHER: Raffaela Tirone
SPOUSE: Maria S. Petruzzella (Mary)
OCCUPATION:
ORIGINS: Racalmuto, Agrigento, Sicily
RESIDENCE: neighbourhood: Grant Ferry/Westside, Buffalo, Erie County (zip code: 14213)
FBI:

The family tree for the Scibettas is interesting. A son of Joseph Scibetta, who predeceased him by a year, lived in Bay Beach, a neighbourhood in Fort Erie, Ontario. At the time of Joseph Scibetta's death, his living siblings Santo, Salvatore, Carrie (married to a Russo), Lucia (Lucy married a Calogero Criminisi) were all in Hamilton save one (Concetta Scibetta resided somewhere in Italy), and he was predeceased by brother Calogero of Hamilton (likely the oldest brother).

The Scibetta-Criminisi connection is more than interesting. The Criminisis also have ancestry from Racalmuto. In the mid-1980s, Ralph Criminisi and Ralph Scibetta (nickname: Jilly) got caught together for smuggling coke into Ontario; they were eventually convicted and sentenced. Pat and Angelo Musitano's aunt Beatrice (née Musitano) is married to a Ralph Criminisi -- this Ralph might very well be the same person who was working with Jilly Scibetta.

In 1977 the FBI identifies Santo Scibetta crossing the US border for the purpose of talking to Joe Todaro Sr. about loansharking operations taking place in Canada.

[B.]

Scibetta also traveled to Buffalo with Giacomo Luppino in the 1960s to meet with the Buffalo leadership.

[antimafia]

That's great stuff on Borelli and Bordonaro, antimafia.

For Borelli's spouse "Betty V", ancestry has pushed a few hints saying that she could be a Violet Pryslak, born Aug 8, 1909, in Winnipeg. I don't have a clear link between her and Borelli to say for sure but that may be Betty V.
[snip]

I decided to go down the rabbit hole. This Violet Pryslak sounds interesting: one MyHeritage record shows she had the middle name "Wanda," the record of one border crossing indicates she used the alias Betty Price, she stated her nationality as German when crossing the border one particular time, stated her nationality as Polish on another cross-the-border occasion, and her parents were born in Austria per the Manitoba Vital Statistics Branch (search of databases can be done at https://vitalstats.gov.mb.ca/Query.php).

And I found out that a V.B. Borelli who had the same DOB as Violet Pryslak had died on July 18, 1978 in Wayne, Michigan per the Michigan Department of Vital and Health Records (see https://www.ancestry.ca/discoveryui-con ... cessSource). She might have been just visiting Michigan temporarily.

I'll try calling the Fairview Cemetery and/or try the number/email for the Niagara Falls Cemetery Services -- while I'm at it, I'll try to get both an exact DOD for Felix Borelli and confirmation of his parents' YOBs and YODs, as I've seen some conflicting records. I suspect I'll be redirected to either the Niagara Falls Museum or the Niagara Falls Public Library.

[faffy444]

to my knowledge Betty Borelli died in N.F. ONT. CANADA.

[antimafia]

to my knowledge Betty Borelli died in N.F. ONT. CANADA.

Per the Fairview Cemetery record and gravestone photo?

[faffy444]

relative

[antimafia]

^^^^
Thanks. You've saved me some effort.

[faffy444]

i don't recall the circumstances of her death but am pretty sure she died in N.F. ONT. she was my aunt through marriage.actually she was my great aunt through marriage.

[thekiduknow]

Valachi identified Vito Agueci as a member in his testimony in 1963, so he can be added as confirmed.

[kyrieleis]

Great chart so far! Other than Carmen Barillaro, were there any other major associates or soldiers loyal to Magaddino in Hamilton/Ontario? I know Magaddino's power there diminished heavily after Papalia's death, especially since John Papalia's brother went inactive..

- Kyrieleis

[motorfab]

While researching Ontario, I came across this document https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.htm ... o_cruciata (for censored passages see here: https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.htm ... no_ontario)

2 new names that I didn't know:

Luis Inazzella in Niagara Falls and an individual from Castellammare del Golfo named Giuseppe Tarantula (Tarantola?) residing in Toronto.

Unfortunately I couldn't find anything on them.

------
In one of her articles, Anna Sergi mentions a meeting with several Ontarians & Montrealers mafiosi that took place in Niagara Falls:

"At the beginning of the 1960s, in Niagara Falls, New York, a series of meetings were organized between Stefano Magaddino, resident in USA [abovementioned], from Canada, Vincenzo Luppino [son of Giacomo Luppino and brother-in-law of Paul Violi], Santo Scibetta [from Hamilton within the Magaddino family], John Papalia [abovementioned], Paolo Violi [abovementioned], Vincenzo Cotrone(i) [from Montreal], Vincenzo Zappavigna, Carmelo Antonio Cotroneo and Matteo Vizzari. meetings was the re-organization of the “locali”Footnote3 and the division of territories, but also the establishment of a “chamber of control” with an oversight role over the “locali” to handle any dispute." [full article: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10 ... 22.2151036]

Regarding the topic of the meeting, I don't know exactly if they were from the a 'ndrangheta or with the Buffalo Crime Family (or both) but Matteo Vizzari (deceased in 2001) & Vincenzo Zappavigna resided in Lincoln, Ontario, near Niagara Falls. I can't find anything on Cotroneo.