Nunzio Maniaci

[Ed]

Was Milwaukee Crime Family August Maniaci's father, Nunzio Maniaci, also an LCN member? I believe he was although Bill Feather @ MMC doesn't list him. An FBI document refers to an unidentified LCN member-informant (evidence suggests it's Maniaci) telling agents that his father was also a member. thanks

[Angelo Santino]

Let me check my sources and get back to you tomorrow.

[cavita]

To my knowledge, Augie Maniaci was the only made member in Milwaukee who gave up information.

[Ed]

Milwaukee had at least one more member informer in the 1960s, though not on the level of Maniaci.

[cavita]

Milwaukee had at least one more member informer in the 1960s, though not on the level of Maniaci.

Seriously? I've never heard this before. Who is it?

[Ed]

Milwaukee had at least one more member informer in the 1960s, though not on the level of Maniaci.

Seriously? I've never heard this before. Who is it?

ha, trying to figure that out!

Do you know anything about Nunzio's status?

[B.]

What about Nunzio Maniaci's brother-in-law Vincent Mercurio? There is one report where he is said to be a non-member, while another report refers to him as a member.

I believe Augie Maniaci was the source of both reports. If so, was he attempting to protect his uncle at one point given that Mercurio was a non-criminal involved in local politics and legitimate civic activities? The report where he is said to be a member is more descriptive of Mercurio's occupation and activities, stating Mercurio was part of the anti-Balistrieri faction. The other report was part of an interview where a list of Milwaukee figures was read to the informant and for Mercurio it simply says "not a member". I would lean toward the more detailed report which refers to him as a member.

I suspect Nunzio was a member given the statement you mentioned (probably from his son) and that Augie Maniaci seems to have been born into the tradition like most of the other Milwaukee members, especially given Augie's historic knowledge of the organization. There's also Augie Maniaci's marriage to a Rockford mafioso's daughter, which could indicate a mafia connection between both parental in-laws.

Nunzio died in 1962. Did Augie began cooperating after that? As I believe you've noted before on Rat Trap, sometimes cooperation coincides with the death of an older relative in the mafia.

[cavita]

What about Nunzio Maniaci's brother-in-law Vincent Mercurio? There is one report where he is said to be a non-member, while another report refers to him as a member.

I believe Augie Maniaci was the source of both reports. If so, was he attempting to protect his uncle at one point given that Mercurio was a non-criminal involved in local politics and legitimate civic activities? The report where he is said to be a member is more descriptive of Mercurio's occupation and activities, stating Mercurio was part of the anti-Balistrieri faction. The other report was part of an interview where a list of Milwaukee figures was read to the informant and for Mercurio it simply says "not a member". I would lean toward the more detailed report which refers to him as a member.

I suspect Nunzio was a member given the statement you mentioned (probably from his son) and that Augie Maniaci seems to have been born into the tradition like most of the other Milwaukee members, especially given Augie's historic knowledge of the organization. There's also Augie Maniaci's marriage to a Rockford mafioso's daughter, which could indicate a mafia connection between both parental in-laws.

Nunzio died in 1962. Did Augie began cooperating after that? As I believe you've noted before on Rat Trap, sometimes cooperation coincides with the death of an older relative in the mafia.

I believe, from the FBI files I've seen referencing his cooperation he started informing in late 1963/early 1964.

[B.]

I believe, from the FBI files I've seen referencing his cooperation he started informing in late 1963/early 1964.

Thanks, man. So it was after his father's death. No doubt there were other factors (like undermining Balistrieri's leadership), but it may have played a role. Like Ed says in his article, Anthony Lima began cooperating around the time his uncle/sponsor died, then you have George Fresolone saying he cooperated knowing that his mentor Pat Martirano would die of cancer before his cooperation became public. Not the main motivation for cooperating in these cases, though it seems like something they'd all consider.

--

What about the Maniacis' Sicilian hometown?

Records for Nunzio say Palermo, though sometimes immigrants from smaller villages in upper Palermo province simply say "Palermo" though they weren't from the central metro area.

Augie Maniaci's Rockford father-in-law was from Casteldaccia, right by Bagheria/Santa Flavia, where the majority of the Milwaukee members were from. Augie Maniaci was named for his maternal grandfather Agostino Mercurio and the name Agostino is common in nearby Termini Imerese as St. Agostino is the patron saint. The surname Mercurio is also heavily associated with Termini, so pretty sure the mother's side is from there.

I suspect Maniaci's father was also from that Bagheria-Casteldaccia-Termini coastal area given all the other ties. Def Palermitano either way.

--

Interestingly, Augie Maniaci's first cousin moved to Australia and became an actor and radio personality:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gus_Mercurio

[cavita]

I believe, from the FBI files I've seen referencing his cooperation he started informing in late 1963/early 1964.

Thanks, man. So it was after his father's death. No doubt there were other factors (like undermining Balistrieri's leadership), but it may have played a role. Like Ed says in his article, Anthony Lima began cooperating around the time his uncle/sponsor died, then you have George Fresolone saying he cooperated knowing that his mentor Pat Martirano would die of cancer before his cooperation became public. Not the main motivation for cooperating in these cases, though it seems like something they'd all consider.

--

What about the Maniacis' Sicilian hometown?

Records for Nunzio say Palermo, though sometimes immigrants from smaller villages in upper Palermo province simply say "Palermo" though they weren't from the central metro area.

Augie Maniaci's Rockford father-in-law was from Casteldaccia, right by Bagheria/Santa Flavia, where the majority of the Milwaukee members were from. Augie Maniaci was named for his maternal grandfather Agostino Mercurio and the name Agostino is common in nearby Termini Imerese as St. Agostino is the patron saint. The surname Mercurio is also heavily associated with Termini, so pretty sure the mother's side is from there.

I suspect Maniaci's father was also from that Bagheria-Casteldaccia-Termini coastal area given all the other ties. Def Palermitano either way.

--

Interestingly, Augie Maniaci's first cousin moved to Australia and became an actor and radio personality:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gus_Mercurio

I don't know if this had anything to do with it either but on March 24, 1964 Maniaci was arrested in Milwaukee on a charge of obtaining mortgage interests in property under false pretenses along with Joseph A. Anegli, Kenneth Weiss, Richard J. Haas, John Forman, Julius Jovitski, Isadore Bogrop, John Aiello and Raymond Hayes. Perhaps this being a federal offense coupled with the dissatisfaction of Balistrieri made him cooperate. Also, when I was researching the San Giuseppe Iato birth records a while back I did notice there were a lot of Maniaci names in that town.

[B.]

Good info -- father dying, federal charges, and heated opposition to the new boss are a perfect recipe for cooperation.

[Ed]

Here is the document I was referring to.


https://ia800104.us.archive.org/BookRea ... 3&rotate=0

There is no indication where T-51 is from in the body of the document but his FBI handlers are from the Milwaukee office and are August Maniaci’s usual contacts.

(T #’s aren’t usually transferable between FBI documents…different offices used the same T #’s to refer to completely different mobsters…but sometimes a high or unique T # from the same FBI office was assigned to the same mobster in repeated documents.)

In another document, the same informant (likely, because he is only referred to as T-51 again and the symbol code is redacted) attended the wedding of Joseph Cerrito’s daughter in 1964.

Sal Costanza provided the FBI with a list of attendees but Maniaci’s name is omitted, and there is no mention of another Milwaukee-based LCN member. (Perhaps Costanza wasn’t introduced to Maniaci as an LCN member or T-51 isn’t Maniaci in this particular document.) This is where my doubt comes in a bit.

https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.htm ... 4&tab=page

As B. stated, the informant’s father died sometime in the interim which is consistent with Nunzio Maniaci. I thought the informant was Maniaci but I’ve never before seen his father officially identified as an LCN member.


I’m going to dig into Mercurio. thanks guys.