Riccobene-Scarfo War 1982-1983

[chin_gigante]

Mar. 1982 – Pasquale Spirito is given the contract to kill Harry Riccobene and brings Nicholas Caramandi and Charles Iannece in. They plan to lure Riccobene to a club where he will be hit over the head with a pipe and shot, however the target fails to show. Another attempt was planned to ambush Riccobene on Seventeenth Street. Spirito was the driver and Iannece would be the shooter, however Spirito called it off at the last minute.

Apr. 1982 – Frank Monte and Raymond Martorano approach Mario Riccobene to set up his brother Harry to be killed. From Mario’s house, he would lure his brother to a nearby deserted stretch where Martorano and Frank Vadino would be waiting to shoot him. Mario instead goes to Harry with the information. Harry, Mario, Joseph Pedulla and Victor DeLuca met at Pedulla’s mother’s house in Cherry Hill to plan their counterstrike.

May 1982 – Harry and Mario, Joseph Ciancaglini and Pasquale Spirito go on trial for racketeering charges and are convicted. They are released pending appeal.

13 May 1982 – The Riccobene faction strikes first and kills Frank Monte while picking up his car from a gas station. Joseph Pedulla is the shooter with a rifle hiding in a campervan, Joseph Casdia the driver and Victor DeLuca a blocker.

Following the Monte murder, Raymond Martorano offers Pagan James DeGregorio $20,000 dollars to kill Riccobene. Riccobene tells DeGregorio to kill Martorano though DeGregorio goes through with neither hit.

During the summer, Victor DeLuca planned to shoot Martorano at John’s Vending Machine Company until a bus dropped off passengers nearby and DeLuca abandoned the plan out of fear of hitting a civilian.

8 Jun. 1982 – While making a call at a phonebooth near his house, Harry is ambushed and shot four times by Salvatore Grande at point blank range but survives. Francis Friel identifies Salvatore Testa as the driver whereas Larry McShane/ Ralph Natale identify Joseph Pungitore.

31 Jul. 1982 – While looking for Martorano, Joseph Pedulla and Victor DeLuca find Salvatore Testa at the Italian Market. Pedulla blasts Testa with a shotgun and DeLuca attempts to drive away until being forced off the road by police. After being released on bail, Pedulla and DeLuca both go on the lam until Harry convinces them to hand themselves back in 10 days later.

Before surrendering to the authorities, Nicodemo Scarfo gives Spirito, Iannece and Caramandi the contract on Mario Riccobene. They stalk Riccobene at his house, his job, his girlfriend’s house in Huntingdon Valley and in Trenton with the help of Albert Pontani, however nothing pans out.

17 Aug. 1982 – Scarfo surrenders to begin his two-year sentence on a federal gun charge.

21 Aug. 1982 – Joseph Grande approaches Harry’s car in a jogging suit and fires shots through the window but misses his target.

Sep. 1982 – Spirito is jailed for 11 days for contempt after refusing to testify before a Senate Subcommittee. After being released, Spirito is told by Joseph Ciancaglini to ambush Mario Riccobene at a funeral parlour. Caramandi will act as the driver with Spirito and Iannece as the shooters. Spirito fails to show and then attempts to blame not going through with the hit on Caramandi and Iannece. The trio are then taken off the contract.

Salvatore Testa is put in charge of stalking the Riccobene brothers and gets Iannece to drive himself, Caramandi and Anthony Pungitore Jr to Huntingdon Valley before deciding it wouldn’t be a good place to ambush Mario.

10 Jan. 1983 – Harry Riccobene’s bail is revoked after being pulled over on a minor traffic violation with a gun under the seat in late 1982.

Early 1983 – Spirito, Caramandi and Iannece are given another chance on the Mario Riccobene contract while Testa’s crew continues to stalk the Riccobenes as a second hit team. After explaining the Spirito situation, Caramandi and Iannece are called to a meeting by Ciancaglini and Salvatore Merlino where they are given the contract on Spirito.

29 Apr. 1983 – Spirito drives Caramandi and Iannece around ostensibly looking for Riccobene. Iannece shoots Spirito twice in the back of the head and the killers escape in a getaway car driven by Ronald DiCaprio.

Jul. 1983 – Mario Riccobene and Joseph Ciancaglini are jailed after their appeals are rejected. Scarfo draws up a new hit list of approximately 8 to 10 names. Caramandi, Iannece and Eugene Milano are given the contract on Robert Riccobene. Two weeks after being given the contract, the trio plan to ambush Riccobene outside a corner store at Seventh and Tasker streets however Milano calls it off at the last minute.

Francis Iannarella, Thomas DelGiorno and Nicholas Milano are given the contract on Salvatore Tamburrino while Joseph Pungitore, Salvatore Grande and Joseph Grande are given the contract on Richard Gunner. Joseph ‘Joe Rico’ Gavel is brought in on the Robert Riccobene hit by Testa and told to set up the target at Ninth and Catharine, however Caramandi and Iannece called it off out of distrust for Gavel.

After receiving word that one of the names on the hit list would be at La Cucina Restaurant, Testa and Caramandi walk in with guns while Iannece waits in the car outside however it turns out the target isn’t there. Hearing that a target is at a club called Purgatory, Caramandi, Iannece and Testa (shooters) wait outside while Joseph Pungitore is stationed as a getaway driver and Joseph Grande as a blocker, however, the intended victim failed to show.

Early Fall 1983 – Frank Martines is added to the hit list and given to Francis Iannarella and Thomas DelGiorno. Gunmen attempt to draw Thomas Auferio out of his house by shooting his car, only for Auferio to reportedly disappear to Hazleton. Santo Idone is ordered to look for the missing Riccobene associate and gives the contract to Joseph Scalleat. However, it turns out Auferio isn’t in Hazleton and is never hunted down.

14 Oct. 1983 – After Iannarella and DelGiorno have trouble with the Martines contract, others are brought in. He is shot while sitting in a truck outside his home by Iannece and Eugene Milano but survives. Caramandi is the driver with Joseph Grande, Joseph Pungitore, Frank Narducci Jr and Phillip Narducci as blockers.

Caramandi, Iannece and Milano plan to ambush Robert Riccobene on Greenwich Street, however Milano calls it off at the last minute again so Caramandi and Iannece complain to Testa, getting Milano taken off the contract and replaced with Iannarella. Approximately a dozen attempts are made to ambush Riccobene.

Caramandi and Iannece are given the contract on Robert Rego and they plan to shoot him at his home however he is never there.

03 Nov. 1983 – Salvatore Tamburrino is shot to death in his variety store by Nicholas Milano and Phillip Narducci. Iannarella and DelGiorno supervised the hit from the car.

06 Dec. 1983 – Robert Riccobene is shot in the back of the head with a shotgun outside his mother’s house by Iannarella. Charles Iannece and Joseph Pungitore are also on the scene.

10 Dec. 1983 – Testa, Eugene Milano, Joseph Pungitore and a fourth individual are ambushed by unidentified assailants and shots are fired though none of the targets were injured. It was the last attempt made by the Riccobene faction and shortly afterward Salvatore Merlino reports that the war is over.

[chin_gigante]

Victims:

Harry Riccobene (shot and wounded 08 Jun. 1982)
Salvatore Testa (shot and wounded 31 Jul. 1982)
Pasquale Spirito (shot and killed 29 Apr. 1983)
Frank Martines (shot and wounded 14 Oct. 1983)
Salvatore Tamburrino (shot and killed 03 Nov. 1983)
Robert Riccobene (shot and killed 06 Dec. 1983)

[Tony Monte]

Victims:

Harry Riccobene (shot and wounded 08 Jun. 1982)
Salvatore Testa (shot and wounded 31 Jul. 1982)
Pasquale Spirito (shot and killed 29 Apr. 1983)
Frank Martines (shot and wounded 14 Oct. 1983)
Salvatore Tamburrino (shot and killed 03 Nov. 1983)
Robert Riccobene (shot and killed 06 Dec. 1983)

Forgot Frank Monte

[chin_gigante]

Cheers, slipped my mind.

Frank Monte (shot and killed 13 May 1982)

[Pogo The Clown]

Great list and breakdown CG. Man shows how inept these guys were back then. Thanks for compiling and posting it.


Pogo

[richard_belding]

Pedulla & Deluca initially bribed an officer or court judge after being arrested on site for the Testa shooting. Not much luck it did them, ten days later they were back in prison.

[Adam]

Something I find interesting, is that there are certain associates who are involved in all of this who we never hear about again for the most part. We all know all the made guys who got taken down during the Scarfo years and what happened to them, but what happened to a lot of these associates? Guys like Ronald DiCaprio, Richard Gunner. Joseph Gavel, Thomas Auferio.

[Ivan]

Ronald DiCaprio is doing life for murder.

[jmack]

Ronald DiCaprio is doing life for murder.

I thought DiCaprio only got 20 years in that case. If I remember correctly, he should have been released in the early 2000’s.

[Ivan]

You're right, I check and he got out in '98. I thought he was given life without parole. He's 74.

[Adam]

You're right, I check and he got out in '98. I thought he was given life without parole. He's 74.

Getting out in 98 after taking part in a murder in 83 and getting convicted in 87? That's a pretty good sentence for him.

[Ivan]

You're right, I check and he got out in '98. I thought he was given life without parole. He's 74.

Getting out in 98 after taking part in a murder in 83 and getting convicted in 87? That's a pretty good sentence for him.

That's what I thought too. I actually thought that the guy on the BOP website might not be him because the sentence was so light, but there's no other Ronald DiCaprio on there.

[chin_gigante]

I've done more thinking about this and I remember reading about an incident where Faffy Iannarella was guarding Joey Merlino in case the Riccobene faction tried to go after him. They were in a hotel or a bar or something and they bumped into Sammy Tamburrino so Faffy went up to him and told him they were walking out alive.
I'm travelling this week and don't have access to my copy of Blood and Honour and limited access to the internet so if anyone else remembers that story or where it came from it would be appreciated

[Tony Monte]

Yes it was from Blood and Honor. Faffy and Joey were drinking at a bar near where veterans stadium used to be. A few of the Riccobene crew members were outside, Faffy had his cousin bring him a gun and when they walked out pointed the gun and the Riccobene crew and said we’re leaving here alive.

[NJShore4Life]

Yes it was from Blood and Honor. Faffy and Joey were drinking at a bar near where veterans stadium used to be. A few of the Riccobene crew members were outside, Faffy had his cousin bring him a gun and when they walked out pointed the gun and the Riccobene crew and said we’re leaving here alive.

That may explain why Faffy is currently back in the fold and held in high regard in 2019 South Philly.