Bonanno Info (1980s - 2000s)

[felice]

well, that white haired guy with those silly glasses is probably Filippo Casamento

[toto]

No probably. Definitely. I was looking and thinking who is this guy? He looks familiar.

I notice a couple of years ago a certain Domenico Ligammari from Alessandria della Rocca family was arrested . He has a resemblance to Giovanni. Decide for yourself.

[Hailbritain]

What's the story behind the ligammari double suicide ??

[B.]

JD, Benuzz is probably pinuzzo a diminutive of Pino, Giuseppe. So the guy's first name is probably Giuseppe

This topic had me brushing up on some Pizza Connection stuff and there are references to Pino Ganci as "Pinuzzo" in phone calls. He was closely associated with the Bonannos during this period and was believed to operate at Sal Catalano's discretion, but I've always seen him referred to as a member of the Sicilian mafia. Do you or Toto happen to know of sources who have confirmed his membership in Sicily? Buscetta? Otherwise he seems like a possible candidate for "Benuzz". Lino also could have been mistaken about his affiliation as well (i.e. someone told Lino that "Benuzz" was made and he assumed it was with the Bonannos).

[toto]

Confirmed many times by many people as soldier of San.Giuseppe Jato family. Even referred to as this by Brusca who knew him personal and met him in New York when he visited there one time.

[felice]

almost all the guys named Giuseppe are nicknamed Pino or Pinuzzo, anyway, yes, It could have been Giuseppe Ganci.

about the Ligammari's suicide...a mistery

[toto]

It can't be Giuseppe Ganci. JD said: "Bonanno member as of 1979."

So Bonanno from 1979 until at least when Lino flipped. That's 15 years Ganci died.

[felice]

the guy's face at bonomo's right is so familiar. behind Casamento is probably his brother Frank. he was there and likey in the same table of his brother.

[B.]

It can't be Giuseppe Ganci. JD said: "Bonanno member as of 1979."

So Bonanno from 1979 until at least when Lino flipped. That's 15 years Ganci died.

It's probably not Ganci anyway unless Lino was confused about his affiliation, but I'm not seeing where it would imply he was alive until Lino flipped.

Thanks for confirming he was with the SGI family for sure.

[B.]

Pino D'Aguanno is another possibility. He would have been in his early 50s in 1979. Resident of the Bushwick / Ridgewood area in the Catalano crew.

[toto]

But if its the case the guy was already dead Lino will know this. The quote from JD says "as of 1979" means since and has an implication the guy is still a member. Means the guy must be alive 2002 or whenever Lino flipped. Anyway, it's a minor observation.

About Pino D'Aguanno - is there any photograph of him? I'm surprised his name is never connected to Pippo Bono's wedding. There's plenty of guys of that age in the photos.

[B.]

But if its the case the guy was already dead Lino will know this. The quote from JD says "as of 1979" means since and has an implication the guy is still a member. Means the guy must be alive 2002 or whenever Lino flipped. Anyway, it's a minor observation.

Not sure I understand. It would just mean that Lino knew him as a member by 1979 and may or may not have known what happened to him later, unless I'm missing something vital from the quote and just not seeing it.

[HairyKnuckles]

HK -- Didn't know Giordano would be in Massino's crew. Seems unlikely he would have been an acting captain following the three captains hit, as Giordano was crippled following that. Still possible, as we know he was able to fly his plane in the few years after, but it sounds like he's identified as a captain at the time of the three captains hit or prior.

Some of these guys may have also been briefly named captains without crews, or very small crews, which isn't that uncommon.

Also I don't think it was saying that Virtuoso blocked Grimaldi from being made, but that Virtuoso's membership was delayed in addition to Grimaldi due to an unrelated issue.

Is all this info that JD is posting coming from a memo/debriefing of Massino or any other of the CW? Or is it from a FBI file from FOIA request? Knowing which, would help out a lot.

Oh, then I misunderstood. I thought JD meant that Grimaldi´s induction was opposed due to Virtuoso having a problem with it. Sorry, my bad.

[LcnBios]

.

[B.]

Some other stuff I've come across from the 1980-2000s period this topic is about:

- In 1994, soldier John Zancocchio was investigated for his organized crime links and kicked out of the Teamsters. Zancocchio was said to have attended John Gotti Sr.'s 1988 Christmas party along with Joseph "Messina", Sal Vitale, Frank Lino Sr., and James Tartaglione. I thought Massino was in prison by this time but honestly my timeline for when Massino was on the lam / in prison might be off -- can anyone clarify exactly when Massino was off the streets? Given the spelling it could also refer to the Bonanno soldier actually named Joseph Messina but that seemed unlikely to me given the other attendees.

Zancocchio was also said to have attended the wake of Bonanno soldier Nicholas "Nicky Red" Lorenzo held in 1988 at a funeral home in Madison avenue. Does anyone have more info on Nicky Lorenzo? I asked in another thread if he's related to soldier Ronnie Lorenzo.

Another reason cited during the investigation was Zancocchio's association with Anthony Aiello, Joseph Massino, Joseph Bonanno and Michael Sabella, which Zancocchio refused to comment on. Anthony Aiello had been in prison for some time at this point and I'm surprised to hear they would connect him with Zancocchio. Also, the Joseph Bonnano they are referring to must be "Jersey Joe" who later flipped -- he is identified as a member of the Bonannos at this time, so his membership might go back farther than I assumed. Aiello is mistaken as a Bonanno member at the time, though, so maybe Bonanno was not yet made. Does anyone know if Michael Sabella was part of the Graziano crew or otherwise had a reason to be connected to Zancocchio?

- Attorney Tommy Lee was used as the go-between for Basciano and Massino when Basciano was acting boss and Massino was behind bars. Lee was apparently trusted by Massino and passed information on the organization's inner-workings between both men despite being a non-Italian associate. Among other things, Lee told Massino that Basciano had requested to kill captain Patty DeFilippo, soldier Frank Coppa Jr., soldier Joseph Lino, and the parents of Joseph D'Amico.

I'm not sure the reason for the DeFilippo contract, but when Basciano was put in lock-up with Massino later on and Massino confronted him about these contracts, he admitted to requesting the contract on DeFilippo. However, he told Massino that he did not request contracts on Coppa Jr. and Lino, nor D'Amico's parents.

The motivation for the Coppa Jr. and Lino hits would have obviously been to send a message to their fathers for flipping, but despite allegedly carrying the message to Massino, Tommy Lee later testified that Basciano told him they "shouldn't pay for the sins of their fathers" and that both Coppa Jr. and Lino (who had been in Basciano's crew) always showed up when they were called. Basciano had seen D'Amico's parents eating in a Little Italy restaurant which apparently inspired him to request a contract on them for their son having flipped.