Vancouver "mafia" under Joe Gentile

[antimafia]

Here is a obituary of Gerlando Gentile. The obituary is mentioned in the Informer dedicated to Gentile on page 6

[snip]

Death certificates respectively for Gerlando Gentile and wife, Rosa (née Fazio):

[antimafia]

^^^^
I should have mentioned that B. found FamilySearch records for both Gerlando Gentile and Rosa Fazio back in early 2019 -- see viewtopic.php?p=99765&hilit=gerlando#p99765 -- that helped him establish that Gerlando is Nick Gentile's brother and that Gerlando's son Joe is Nick's nephew.

In the "Mafia history and Nicola Gentile" thread (viewtopic.php?p=171266), I plan to post some vital records for Nick Gentile's parents.

Obituary for Rosa Fazio Gentile, i.e., Gerlando's wife:

[antimafia]

Respectively, a newspaper obituary for Joe Gentile, his registration of death, and his medical certification of death; the DOD on the two latter documents differs from the date in the obituary, with the registration of death showing an amendment, and the medical certification showing the physician mistakenly using the year 1994 instead of 1995 in the certification section.

[antimafia]

^^^^
Some of you might be able to see Joe Gentile's obituary while on your smartphone but not when you're on a laptop. If this is the case, go to https://www.newspapers.com/article/the- ... /41241240/ to view the obit on your laptop.

[motorfab]

Works fine for me with both, thanks !

[motorfab]

LCNBios has updated the bio of Anthony Mangione, a member of the Los Angeles Crime Family, indicating that Mangione was in contact with a Joseph Gentile from Vancouver.

Gentile is identified by Piscopo as a former member of the L.A. borgata. There is no evidence that this is Giuseppe Gentile the Vancouver boss (I have never seen anything indicating that Giuseppe Gentile lived in California), but it definitely looks like at least a relative.

In the coincidence department: Anthony Mangione was from Siculiana and like Giuseppe Gentile, he ran a pizzeria

https://lcnbios.blogspot.com/2024/02/an ... geles.html

[B.]

Wow yeah. There were several recurring connections placing Mangione in the same network as the Gentiles so I'd suspect the "LCN member" in Vancouver named Joe Gentile was indeed Nick's nephew.

Very possible Gentile was a remote member of LA in Vancouver, as someone doesn't need to have lived in the city they're affiliated with, but given Piscopo said he was a "former" LA member it raises the question of who he would have transferred to. Joe Gentile was close to Montreal Bonanno figures but who knows. This is at least the most substantial lead on his membership.

[antimafia]

The LCNBios blog post to which Fab linked several hours earlier indicates that Mangione’s father-in-law was Dr. Giuseppe Romano, a onetime boss of Cleveland. Recall that the Joe Romano in British Columbia has been alleged to be a “mob associate” — see my post at
viewtopic.php?p=99683&hilit=Vancouver+m ... ano#p99683 (same thread). I’ll try to see whether these two Romanos are related in any way.

When newspapers generally reported at the time about the death of Giacomo Luppino in Hamilton, they remarked on his ties to Joe Gentile of Vancouver.

In my next post I’ll attach screenshots of 2 pages from Wade Rowland’s book.

[antimafia]

^^^^




My Evernote links to the above:

https://www.evernote.com/shard/s229/sh/ ... FBUZoyf_EA

https://www.evernote.com/shard/s229/sh/ ... YjQo_JBDtg

[antimafia]

Re: Joe Romano of Vancouver:

The Canadian federal government ordered his deportation to the US in February 1981.

I'll post some newspaper clippings at some point later but I can tell you now that Joe Romano was an American citizen from New York -- I still haven't researched his place of birth (POB); his YOB is likely 1932 -- who had been living in Vancouver since 1967.

[B.]

Dr. Giuseppe Romano was from Termini Imerese if that helps at all. As you and I have discussed before there was a large colony from Termini in the Toronto area so it is a paesan group with a strong Canadian connection.

[antimafia]

Dr. Giuseppe Romano was from Termini Imerese if that helps at all. As you and I have discussed before there was a large colony from Termini in the Toronto area so it is a paesan group with a strong Canadian connection.

Yes, Giuseppe Romano's precise POB in Palermo is helpful, as initially I was only getting hits that he was born in Palermo. There are tons of records for him.

I've seen two YOBs for his son-in-law Anthony Mangione: 1900 (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:62L7-ZKFF) and 1901 (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VPX7-HN2). Lots of records for him and his wife, Maria Concetta Romano.

Unfortunately, I'm not finding records that would help me flesh out Joe Romano's family tree, despite his having resided in both the US and Canada. I've been able to piece together that he a) was likely born in 1932, b) was married, c) had 5 or 6 kids, d) was said to have been from New York, and e) had gone to San Francisco for a trip before being ordered deported.

[antimafia]

Dr. Giuseppe Romano was from Termini Imerese if that helps at all. As you and I have discussed before there was a large colony from Termini in the Toronto area so it is a paesan group with a strong Canadian connection.

Yes, Giuseppe Romano's precise POB in Palermo is helpful, as initially I was only getting hits that he was born in Palermo. There are tons of records for him.

I've seen two YOBs for his son-in-law Anthony Mangione: 1900 (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:62L7-ZKFF) and 1901 (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VPX7-HN2). Lots of records for him and his wife, Maria Concetta Romano.

Unfortunately, I'm not finding records that would help me flesh out Joe Romano's family tree, despite his having resided in both the US and Canada. I've been able to piece together that he a) was likely born in 1932, b) was married, c) had 5 or 6 kids, d) was said to have been from New York, and e) had gone to San Francisco for a trip before being ordered deported.

So if some of the newspaper reporting in Canada about Joe Romano is correct, his full name was Joseph James Romano, he was born in Argentina, and he died in LA toward the end of July 1987.

The 1950 US Census record below lists a 17-year-old Joseph Romano who was born in Argentina, while his parents -- James and Frances -- and his younger sister were all born in New York State.

[antimafia]

Link to my Evernote item containing the page seen farther below, which is taken from Wade Rowland's Making Connections book:

https://www.evernote.com/shard/s229/sh/ ... QFf4lF05HA

NB: The author incorrectly identfied Domenico Luppino as being the son-in-law of a "Remo" Commisso of Toronto. Upon marrying Rosetta Commisso, Luppino became the son-in-law of the Cosimo Commisso b. Feb. 12, 1912; this Cosimo's wife, Pasqualina Stalteri b. May 9, 1916, was said to be a cousin of the Vincenzo "Jimmy" Deleo who was an early member of the Siderno Group's camera di controllo in Toronto.

The other references to "Remo" Commisso are to the Rocco Remo Commisso who, along with his two brothers, is well known to us mobwatchers. His relationships with Violi and Gallo are correctly depicted, save the use of the word "associates."

[B.]

What is known about Carlo Gallo in terms of background?

Along with Joe Gentile being presumed by us to have been a made member and now likely a confirmed ex-LA member via Piscopo, it's very likely Gerlando Gentile was a made member, affiliation unknown. You have to wonder how many fully-initiated members lived in Vancouver at different times. Probably not many but something is there.

This Vancouver element is turning out to be very interesting given the "boss" was a nephew of an influential early US mafia leader across many locations, there were close ties to the Bonanno Montreal decina via the Calabrian Violi, and as you've highlighted there were also close ties to the broader Calabrian group in Ontario. It wasn't one-dimensional, i.e. Siculianesi being connected to paesans in other locations, but something wider.