General Chicago Outfit Info Dumping Ground

[Camo]

Additonally, there is a CI report from 1972 following Ricca's death, of a meeting where Accardo states that "he will remain boss of organized crime", and that he will increasingly rely on Aiuppa and Gus Alex for support. This is obviously before Aiuppa really stepped up and learned the ropes, but I would say the involvement was a bit beyond simply looking after his own interests. (not that that wasn't a priority for him, as it is all criminals).

Accardo was acting boss during that period. He and Ricca, prior to his death, had to take on that responsibility after Giancana fled the country and was deposed and Battaglia jailed not long after. This was meant to be an interim situation as a reaction to a crisis in leadership, but wound up becoming a more protracted state of affairs as other potential candidates for boss such as Cerone and Alderisio were themselves imprisoned. Accardo was doing a lot more during that period than solely looking after his own interest — he was acting as the head of the Family until a new boss could finally be appointed. This goes back also to the point that someone raised earlier in this thread about the source who claimed that Accardo had stated that Ricca would not be “replaced” after his death; it’s pretty clear, in context, that this meant that no one else would be serving as co-acting boss with Accardo (it wouldn’t make sense to do that anyway, as, again, this was intended to be an interim and temporary state of affairs). Aiuppa was dealing with some serious health issues in the early 70s also, which prevented him from being appointed as official boss for a few years, hence Accardo remaining in an acting capacity in ‘72.

What I find interesting about Ricca is that he basically testified against Cerone in 1972. Now I know he was probably given permission bc he was on his death bed and they granted him
Immunity but for any hard core gangsters, this is unacceptable. He obviously didn’t want to die in jail but I still find it surprising that he did. Were there any wiretaps or CIs that commented on this?

Ricca testified against Cerone in 1970 and then died in 1972. They had to bring him in on a stretcher and he was given immunity, so I assume they realized if he refused, he was probably going to die in jail. He made it two more years, but it would've been close.

I don't think I've ever read anything about what Ricca actually testified to. Any information on the substance of his testimony or a transcript?

Agreed - is there any evidence Ricca actually gave testimony instead of just playing the traditional games in court? These guys were all quite experienced in court rooms at this time and their legal rights (I think thats what made Accardo/Ricca so successful - they used crack attorneys) - I just wonder if this is a case where it wasn't a 'rat move' necessarily...

He did testify. The feds knew he had met with Cerone and he was facing contempt charges and possible deportation. He essentially corroborated what Louis Bombacino said on the stand. I don't know if that alone would have been enough to sink Cerone, but Cerone was convicted and sentenced to prison. Either way, Ricca was dead before Cerone got out and Bombacino would be killed shortly after Cerone's release from prison.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Cerone brought Bombacino into the fold in the first place, correct? I wonder if that was a 'tough shit' scenario for Cerone who was told by Accardo and others to 'blame yourself and let the old man die at home...' type scenario. In my view, the vow of Omerta is somewhat flexible in Chicago considering all we've learned.

I think it was just different rules for the most powerful as we see in all walks of life. If say Tony Spilotro tried that logic he'd have been dead 15 years earlier i'm sure. Hell if Cerone tried it against Accardo and sent him to jail i'm not sure he'd have got a pass either despite being one of the most powerful at the time and i believe the Boss in 1970 right?

Is there any evidence it harmed Ricca's reputation? People talking about it on wiretaps or anything? Too bad it's too early for Nick Calabrese.

[NorthBuffalo]

That's my exact question right there - you don't hear much about people saying that. Surely with all the FBI files we've all poured over, we would have found someone trashing Ricca for talking if it was seen as such in the underworld.

[Camo]

That's my exact question right there - you don't hear much about people saying that. Surely with all the FBI files we've all poured over, we would have found someone trashing Ricca for talking if it was seen as such in the underworld.

You'd have to imagine if Cerone was pissed it was DiFronzo and his guys who were gossipping about it since that was Cerone's Crew and they weren't hit as hard as others with serious convictions. Or maybe people did think it was fine we'll likely never know.

[PolackTony]

Hell if Cerone tried it against Accardo and sent him to jail i'm not sure he'd have got a pass either despite being one of the most powerful at the time and i believe the Boss in 1970 right?

Cerone was not the boss of Chicago in 1970. So far as we know, he was never the boss. The press, such as the Chicago Tribune, referred to him as “the operating head of the Chicago crime syndicate” and similar designations, though as was often the case with discussions of the Chicago outfit by the press, they were wrong. Per FBI sources, Cerone had earlier been in the running to be appointed boss following the demotion of Giancana and the jailing of Battaglia, but then Cerone was himself hit with Federal charges in early 1969, taking him out of the running until his legal issues played out (he was, of course, sentenced to 5 years in 1970). As I noted above, Accardo (with Ricca until his death) served as interim acting boss up until Aiuppa could be installed as boss around 1975. After that point, Cerone, following his release from prison, served as underboss for Aiuppa.

[Snakes]

Hell if Cerone tried it against Accardo and sent him to jail i'm not sure he'd have got a pass either despite being one of the most powerful at the time and i believe the Boss in 1970 right?

Cerone was not the boss of Chicago in 1970. So far as we know, he was never the boss. The press, such as the Chicago Tribune, referred to him as “the operating head of the Chicago crime syndicate” and similar designations, though as was often the case with discussions of the Chicago outfit by the press, they were wrong. Per FBI sources, Cerone had earlier been in the running to be appointed boss following the demotion of Giancana and the jailing of Battaglia, but then Cerone was himself hit with Federal charges in early 1969, taking him out of the running until his legal issues played out (he was, of course, sentenced to 5 years in 1970). As I noted above, Accardo (with Ricca until his death) served as interim acting boss up until Aiuppa could be installed as boss around 1975. After that point, Cerone, following his release from prison, served as underboss for Aiuppa.

For a while there, the assumed line of succession for years was Giancana>Battaglia>Cerone>Alderisio>Aiuppa, but the timeline just didn't support it. Too many inconsistencies. I think Battaglia was the only guy confirmed to be acting as boss between Giancana and Aiuppa (aside from when Ricca and Accardo shared it).

[PolackTony]

Hell if Cerone tried it against Accardo and sent him to jail i'm not sure he'd have got a pass either despite being one of the most powerful at the time and i believe the Boss in 1970 right?

Cerone was not the boss of Chicago in 1970. So far as we know, he was never the boss. The press, such as the Chicago Tribune, referred to him as “the operating head of the Chicago crime syndicate” and similar designations, though as was often the case with discussions of the Chicago outfit by the press, they were wrong. Per FBI sources, Cerone had earlier been in the running to be appointed boss following the demotion of Giancana and the jailing of Battaglia, but then Cerone was himself hit with Federal charges in early 1969, taking him out of the running until his legal issues played out (he was, of course, sentenced to 5 years in 1970). As I noted above, Accardo (with Ricca until his death) served as interim acting boss up until Aiuppa could be installed as boss around 1975. After that point, Cerone, following his release from prison, served as underboss for Aiuppa.

For a while there, the assumed line of succession for years was Giancana>Battaglia>Cerone>Alderisio>Aiuppa, but the timeline just didn't support it. Too many inconsistencies. I think Battaglia was the only guy confirmed to be acting as boss between Giancana and Aiuppa (aside from when Ricca and Accardo shared it).

Correct and we have this confirmed via a quality member source in Frank Bompensiero, whose intel came from Chicago members such as Roselli, LaPorte, and Alderisio. Battaglia became acting boss following Giancana’s demotion, but then when he was himself imprisoned not long after, Ricca and Accardo were forced to step in to head the Family until a new boss could be appointed, a situation that persisted into the early 1970s.

All of the contenders (Cerone, Alderisio, Prio, Buccieri, Aiuppa) were dealing with serious legal and/or health issues, three of them dying during this period. Hence, Accardo having to stay on as interim acting until Aiuppa’s health stabilized and he was made official.

As is often the case, when we have members sourced at hand, things turn out to have been different than what had been believed to have been the case by outsiders.

[Camo]

Hell if Cerone tried it against Accardo and sent him to jail i'm not sure he'd have got a pass either despite being one of the most powerful at the time and i believe the Boss in 1970 right?

Cerone was not the boss of Chicago in 1970. So far as we know, he was never the boss. The press, such as the Chicago Tribune, referred to him as “the operating head of the Chicago crime syndicate” and similar designations, though as was often the case with discussions of the Chicago outfit by the press, they were wrong. Per FBI sources, Cerone had earlier been in the running to be appointed boss following the demotion of Giancana and the jailing of Battaglia, but then Cerone was himself hit with Federal charges in early 1969, taking him out of the running until his legal issues played out (he was, of course, sentenced to 5 years in 1970). As I noted above, Accardo (with Ricca until his death) served as interim acting boss up until Aiuppa could be installed as boss around 1975. After that point, Cerone, following his release from prison, served as underboss for Aiuppa.

Thanks for the correction. That's another thing i missed as for a long time on here as Snakes said below it was assumed Cerone succeeded Battaglia in 67 and was Boss until 70 when he was jailed i believe.

Wait a minute though what happened between 67-69 then? Nevermind actually saw you cleared that up below didn't realize Accardon and Ricca took over as early as 67 i thought it was in 69 or 70. 70 didn't really make sense anyway as i believe Ricca was dying by that point.

[Camo]

That's been something we've seen a lot over the years assumptions about positions that didn't factor in people going to jail or being in legal trouble. We saw similar with Tramunti/Corallo in the Lucchese's and a lot of it with Carmine Persico. Carmine Galante too whatever you call him in the 70s for a long time people had it as 73-79 but that didn't make sense with his legal troubles, turns out it was 76-79.

[Snakes]

Cerone probably would have taken over but he was indicted only a couple of months after Battaglia was imprisoned.

[Camo]

That makes sense. Crazy how much of our understanding (thanks to you guys) has changed over the years. I remember when it was always Felix Alderisio on Charts from 67-71 i believe.

[PolackTony]

That makes sense. Crazy how much of our understanding (thanks to you guys) has changed over the years. I remember when it was always Felix Alderisio on Charts from 67-71 i believe.

The “rate limiting factor” here, as always, is the availability of informant sources and the quality of the same (not all sources are created equal with respect to a secret society, and Chicago put a deadly serious premium on the “secret” part of the equation; LCN member sources are obviously the gold standard here, while some associates were positioned such that they had varying degrees of access and insight into the organization itself).

For many years, I believed the Alderisio thing, because it’s what people had written before. I read it as a kid, and never saw any reason to question it years later. Claims like this are published, and they become sedimented as “fact”, repeated again and again by anyone writing after the original proponent of the claim. Once one starts taking on the received wisdom of this subject through a critical lens, many such assumed “facts” wind up being either false, or based on rather flimsy evidence and reasoning.

In 1969, LA outfit member CI Frank Bompensiero reported to the FBI following a meeting that he had with Alderisio and Jimmy Fratianno. The meeting could be held so that Alderisio could query Fratianno about his affiliation and resolve the matter for the Chicago admin. Per Fratianno, when Giancana was still Chicago boss, he had told Fratianno that he was transferring his membership to Chicago, but this transfer wasn’t properly ratified with the LA admin and was not subsequently recognized as valid by LA boss Nick Licata (Fratianno had claimed at the 1969 meeting that he was to have reported directly to Giancana, rather than to a capodecina, a claim that Alderisio challenged, stating that he himself had been a soldier reporting directly to Giancana and had heard of no such arrangement for Fratianno). Bompensiero reported that as of this meeting, so far as he was aware, Alderisio still retained the rank of soldier (presumably, the FBI had specifically queried Bompensiero on this point, as they had believed Alderisio to have had some administrative rank), but was participating on Chicago’s “Consiglio” (we know that in other Families that used a Consiglio, a soldier could indeed sit on one). Bompensiero further related that after Giancana fled the US in 1966, he was demoted to soldier and succeeded by Battaglia. Following the latter’s subsequent imprisonment, Accardo and Ricca were serving as heads of the Family with the assistance of the Consiglio. No mention was made of Cerone here and if Cerone had in fact been boss, whether acting or official, during this time, I would strongly presume that guys like Bompensiero and Fratianno would have been aware of this.

This isn’t to say that Bompensiero was infallible, of course, but this account is our “gold standard” for this question as Bompensiero was a veteran LCN member with deep and extensive contacts with members in Families across the US and as such was an invaluable informant for the FBI (even member sources are not all created equal in terms of the information they are privy to). Apart from reporting, in this case, directly from a meeting with Alderisio, where Alderisio was acting at the behest of Chicago’s Consiglio, Bompensiero was also a longtime close friend of Chicago captain Frank LaPorte and Johnny Roselli, then a soldier reporting to LaPorte. Bompensiero was so close to Chicago that the Feds even mistakenly listed him as a Chicago member on one list. He continued to report Chicago-related intel to the FBI over the subsequent years, also serving as the member sources who confirmed for us that Aiuppa was made official boss around 1975.

Alderisio was then himself indicted and arrested in 1969 in a raid by Federal LE and imprisoned two months later, dying of a heart attack almost exactly two years into his term, in September of 1971. It is evident that he was never boss and probably never held any administrative rank. From the outside looking in, this may not have been clear, however, as Alderisio — by his own account — had been a soldier direct with the boss and then subsequently seems to have been a soldier taking part in the Consiglio; the sort of guy who, if one didn’t have access to the formal mafia organization, would certainly have seemed to have been “a boss”. Not all guys with the rank of soldier are created equal either.

[Camo]

Great post. Alderisio was close to NY right? I could be mixing him up but i'm almost certain it was him and if so maybe meetings with NY convinced people of his importance so they just slotted him into the position when no one else was available.

That's a major problem people can't accept not knowing things so they just fill in charts with whatever "makes sense" to them. There's so much of that in New York too. It was "common knowledge" for a long time that Philip Mangano was Consig from 31-51 but it was actually Joe Biondo for example.

[PolackTony]

Alderisio was born in the Bronx and had lifelong familial ties to the Bronx/Yonkers, though he moved to Chicago as a kid. I’m sure that he would have had some mob connections in NYC, though no specific, close ties come to mind ATM (if I’m forgetting something here, hopefully someone will remind me). He was, however, known for having particularly close ties to the Milwaukee outfit, hence his nickname, “Milwaukee Phil”.

And I agree about the impulse to “fill things in”. I much prefer to simply be clear about the limits of evidence around a given question, and to be up front about what lays beyond the veil of ignorance. Some (many!) of these problems and gaps in our understanding will simply never be resolved, barring some hitherto unknown set of valid/reliable evidence coming to light.

[NorthBuffalo]

Alderisio was born in the Bronx and had lifelong familial ties to the Bronx/Yonkers, though he moved to Chicago as a kid. I’m sure that he would have had some mob connections in NYC, though no specific, close ties come to mind ATM (if I’m forgetting something here, hopefully someone will remind me). He was, however, known for having particularly close ties to the Milwaukee outfit, hence his nickname, “Milwaukee Phil”.

And I agree about the impulse to “fill things in”. I much prefer to simply be clear about the limits of evidence around a given question, and to be up front about what lays beyond the veil of ignorance. Some (many!) of these problems and gaps in our understanding will simply never be resolved, barring some hitherto unknown set of valid/reliable evidence coming to light.

Alderisio kept close connections to the Bronx and numerous members of the Genovese family - Patsy Ricciardi for example was from the Bronx too and took over a few of Alderisio's rackets before being killed by Frank Schweis a decade after Phil passed. The older posters may remember the Bronx poster PizzaBoy who knew Patsy in his youth and stayed in touch with him even after he was in Chicago.

That was something I don't think you can really find in FBI charts - those incredibly deep connections.

[Cosmik_Debris]

Alderisio as boss I believe mainly stems from Bill Roemer. I believe in his book(s) he talks about Alderisio taking over around 1967 and remarks how odd he thought it was because he was always a muscle/shakedown/hitman guy with no brains, which was different from previous bosses.