From the Kefauver Crime Committee investigation of 1950-51 to the recent indictments of major Pennsylvania organized criminals, there lies a grim documented history of the sustained exploitation and subversion of government, business, labor, and private citizenry by the crime syndicates. The daily cost of maintaining heroin addiction has been estimated at roughly $15, giving an average yearly cost of $87 million for all addicts in Pennsylvania. Criminal charges against state officials or employees affecting the performance of their public duties or the maintenance of the public trust and criminal charges against persons attempting to influence such state officials or employees to benefit from such influence or attempt to influence. 71 P.S. 99 Philadelphia Evening Bulletin, February 21, 1966, p. 4. 1990 Report. Ill-, gas and Monzelli were convicted in Philadelphia on local charges of attempting to bribe local officials. Posted on: September 17, 2020, 09:31h. However, since that time the narcotics traffic in Philadelphia has markedly increased. 56 Statement quoted in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, February 16, 1968, sec. IRS agents seized two whole filing cabinets full of numbers gambling records and $56,000 in cash from his headquarters. 17496 and 18023. "[41] Concurrently the numbers racket in Philadelphia was one of the topics studied by the U.S. Senate Special Committee to Investigate Organized Crime in Interstate Commerce, chaired by Estes Kefauver. At its peak in the 50s and 60s, Abe Minker. All Special Agents in the Environmental Crimes Sectionhave extensive training in the handling of residual and hazardous waste and often assist the Bureau of Narcotics Investigations with methamphetamine laboratory search warrants. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania), Criminal No. It is essential that all law enforcement agencies take strong measures to ensure their own integrity. Labor racketeering violence continued in the 1960's, and only recently have violence and extortion taken a more subtle and businesslike tone. 214 John A. Gardiner, "Wincanton: The Politics of Corruption," Task Force Report: Organized Crime, Appendix A, and The Politics of Corruption: Organized Crime in an American City (New York: Russell Sage Foundation, 1970). Government Printing Office, 1965), p. 213. Such organizations engage in offenses such as cargo theft, fraud, robbery, kidnapping for ransom, and the demanding of "protection" payments. "Dial it. (Philadelphia: US. (This information was obtained during forty-one hours of legally wiretapped conversations in 1955). 224-225; also, Organized Crime and Illicit Traffic in Narcotics, Pt. Other such charges are brought to our attention by whistle blowers and, on a number of occasions, state officials or employees have stepped forward to report a bribery attempt. General terms of payment are "six-for-five" per week, or a return of six dollars for every five borrowed. Frank S. Palermo, Sr., member, Southeastern Cosa Nostra family. 50 U.S. vs. Monzelli, et al. Some numbers banks, horse books, loan shark operations, and narcotics distribution rings are run by independents under tight Cosa Nostra control. 160 Welch vs. Stokes, et al. Local 830, the Board found, had used "intimidation and coercion" to force three small independent beer distributors to sign union contracts. Organized crime in Pennsylvania engages in a broad spectrum of criminal activities, These include the "victimless," consensual vice crimes - illegal gambling, loan sharking, and prostitution. They were still active well into the 1970s. 175 Annual Report of the Attorney General of the United States for Fiscal Year, 1959, p. 227. In 1967, IRS agents raided the Monroeville-based bookmaking operation of John LaGorga. As the case approached trial, the principal prosecution witness refused to testify, and the state negotiated a guilty plea with Alex Fudeman and John Wittig, who received suspended sentences. It is now a matter of public record, acknowledged by the President's Crime Commission, the U. S. Department of Justice, congressional investigating committees, and federal, state, and local law enforcement authorities, that a national conspiracy of organized criminals exists in the United States and operates in Pennsylvania. The Criminal Division EDAG reports to the Attorney General and the First Deputy Attorney General. [29] Bureau of Narcotics investigations revealed that LaRocca had attended an organized crime meeting in Sierra Madre, California, on March 14, 1956, in company with Gary, Indiana, racketeer Anthony Pinelli, Los Angeles Cosa Nostra boss Frank DeSimone, and Salvatore Marino, a caporegime in the LaRocca family residing in California. In 1960 Frank Palermo, Sr., and Paul John "Frankie" Carbo were indicted by a federal grand jury in Los Angeles for extorting purse money from heavyweight boxer Don Jordan. Along with these, six members of the Stefano Magaddino Cosa Nostra family who lived in Erie were indicted and four were convicted. Joseph Golden, Inspector, Homicide Division, Philadelphia Police Department. 53 See Philadelphia Evening Bulletin, March 11, 1965, for an account of the arrest. 47 U.S. vs. Fina, et al. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania), Criminal No. The Director of the Criminal Division is responsible for keeping members of the Executive Office advised of all non-routine or sensitive matters. Bureau of Investigative Services is composed of those units and programs which provide support in the areas of intelligence gathering and analysis, including special operations program, computer forensics, electronic surveillance, and technical services. 193 See Deeds, Office of the Prothonotary, Allegheny County Courthouse, Pittsburgh, vol. The litigation attorneys and legal support staff are located throughout the state in various regional offices. Boss of the Pittsburgh-area family. 115 See Philadelphia Evening Bulletin, November 15, 1966, and April 20 and 21, 1967; also, The 1968 Report to the People of Philadelphia from the Office of the District Attorney, Office of the District Attorney of Philadelphia County (Philadelphia: 1969), pp. The initializing form is entitled DAG-71 and every asset seized by the Federal Agency requires a completed form. Western Pennsylvania was known for its steel, iron and coal production, as well as for its reliance on immigrant labor. 208 Commonwealth vs. Illgas, sup. : U.S. Government Printing Office, 1954), p. 11. The federal Bureau of Narcotics termed him "one of the most ruthless and powerful leaders of the Mafia in the United States. From time to time, at the direction of the Attorney General, First Deputy Attorney General or the Director of the CLD, the Section undertakes special projects designed to air or inform Pennsylvanias prosecutors and others. [149], 4. In 1956 Anthony Benedetto was found bludgeoned and shot to death on the floor of his auto. District Court, Middle District of Pennsylvania), Criminal No. 108 J. Edgar Hoover, Director, Federal Bureau of Investigation, 1969 FBI Appropriation (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Justice, 1968), p. 85. A statute to convene regularly and automatically an investigative grand jury in each of the more populous counties, and to allow such grand juries (1) considerable independence in their operation and (2) the power to indict and to issue public reports on general crime conditions in their jurisdiction. [203], The Philadelphia numbers bank of William and Louis DiRugeris was raided by Internal Revenue agents in 1967. Two Local 107 organizers were netted in a raid conducted by the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office in August of 1967. The organization of which Willis was a part also operated in Washington, D.C., New York, and Massachusetts. seq.) For the first digit of the winning number, the winning prices for the first, second, and third races are used. [158], 2. In addition to netting Cosa Nostra Boss Angelo Bruno and his Chief Lieutenant Phillip Testa, they apprehended Robert Dick, manager of a gambling casino in London, and two lieutenants of New England Cosa Nostra Boss Raymond Patriarca. 19537. Such problems would presumably include . 3. manipulation of labor grievances and extension of infiltration into labor unions, with particular reference to the strike in the Pennsylvania women's apparel industry.[37]. 159 Final Report, U.S. Senate, Select Committee to Investigate Improper Activities in the Labor or Management Field (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1960), Pt. 22254. Agents in Erie, Pittsburgh, Wilkes-Barre and State College, participate in ATF Task Forces and assist local departments in comprehensively tracing firearms and investigating crime guns recovered in Pennsylvania and the surrounding states. When the District Attorneys Office litigates the case, this Section requests the District Attorneys Office send the equitable share to this office. It is an alliance composed of powerful La Cosa Nostra families and local crime czars, with the arrangement between the Cosa Nostra and local leaders varying from area to area. "It's an easy fast dollar.". . Previous congressional hearings, grand jury investigations, and law enforcement efforts centering upon organized crime in Pennsylvania have highlighted particular individuals or individual communities. Small-Town Mafia: Organized Crime in New Kensington, Pennsylvania. Indicted were Cosa Nostra boss John LaRocca of Pittsburgh, his underboss and former boss, Frank Amato, Sr., and three caporegimes in his family, Joseph Sica, Frank Rosa, and Gabriel Mannarino, Cosa Nostra leaders Salvatore Celembrino, Edward Lanziere, and James Plumeri of New York, and Peter Corrado of Detroit were also indicted. Pittsburgh. It was believed that he was prepared to cooperate with law enforcement authorities. It was established that a Reading City Councilman actually made arrangements for laying the sewer line. )[109] Whatever the reasons for their poor credit rating, ignorance and the inability of borrowers to obtain legitimate credit lead them into the clutches of a loan shark, The result is a major law-enforcement problem, caused in part by often violent methods of collection. SUPPORTING STAFF: Law enforcement and other criminal justice agencies are targets of corruption and political influence. 1. 205 U.S. vs. Heller (Philadelphia: U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania), Criminal No. William Medico. One example of such conspiracy involves Joseph Migliazza, a convicted bookmaker from Easton, Pennsylvania, who owned the Stage Coach Restaurant in that city. 15 Task Force Report: Organized Crime, p. 34. Francis Marino and Salvatore Rispo, who had earlier been charged with assaulting a member of the DeGeorge faction, were charged with making usurious loans. DeGeorge and some friends had been planning to take ever the union leadership. The monies derived from the forfeitures are, in turn, used by law enforcement to help fund future drug and other criminal investigations as well as assist community-based drug and crime-fighting programs throughout the state. Most Cosa Nostra and Independent racketeers have long records of violent crime. 4: 108, 7: 168-181); Philadelphia (vol. Lombardo utilizes a triangulated methodology in his research, including: interviews with police officers, federal agents, federal prosecutors, college professors, racket subculture residents, associates of organized crime figures, as well as organized crime members. [5] He continually defaulted on payments, and DeCavalcante kept adding interest to the loan. Crime Associated with Legitimate Businesses. - History of Criminal Syndicates in Pennsylvania, - Treasury Balance Tickets, Betting Pools, and Punchboards, - Gambling's Relationship with Other Crimes, - I. Infiltration and Control of Legitimate Businesses, - Crime Associated with Legitimate Businesses, - Labor-Management Collusion: "Sweetheart" Contracts, - Violence Against Consumers of Organized Crime Services, - Violence Against Law Enforcement Officers, - Nullification of Criminal Justice Agencies, THE COMMISSION: Pittsburgh-area Family [39] Although the individual bettor never sees and probably does not know of the existence of layoff men, they nevertheless provide the cement which holds the numbers business together. ", The nation's most extensive and publicized example of organized crime and political corruption occurred in Pennsylvania. In addition to the above cases, other major federal enforcement actions in Pennsylvania included the following: 1. The OCS makes extensive use of cooperating witnesses, electronic surveillance and the Statewide Investigating Grand Jury in furthering the sections long-term investigations. 14601. He complained that his associate in numbers gambling in Bristol, Pennsylvania, James Goia, was cheating him out of profits. Bruno family associates Ignazio "Ray" Martorano, Frank Sindone, Frank Valli, and Frank Malfi also have narcotics convictions. 36 Senate Labor-Management Hearings, Pt. [78] Following this robbery, DeCavalcante was charged with extorting additional sums from the same victims. In 1968 the brothers were sentenced to terms of from six months to three years each. In 1951 the Kefauver Committee found that "Reading is a classic example of political strangulation af a police department at the behest, of gambling interests seeking to thwart any interference with their activities"[215] In 1957 the Pennsylvania Attorney General launched an investigation into vice and extortion in Reading, and reported that "One is led inescapably to the conclusion that, at best, the local law enforcement officials were less than diligent in the discharge of their duties. 213 Final Report of the Investigating Grand Jury, Court of Quarter Sessions of Northampton County, February, 1967. Cristina, et al. Marino is the brother-in-law of Philadelphia caporegime Peter Maggio. In addition to these five families, five more are presently conducting or in the immediate past have conducted operations in Pennsylvania although members do not permanently reside here. District Court, Mastern District of Pennsylvania), Criminal No. workers on the job (for gambling and loan sharking operations). Northeastern Pennsylvania Family In May of 1967, IRS agents arrested two principal bookmakers in the Pittsburgh area, Augustine Ferrone and William Mendicino, who were accused of laying off bets with a Las Vegas operator. Quality and sanitary deficiencies were later discovered and reported. If errors are found on any of these pages, please contact us. Last updated on: September 18, 2020, 08:38h. Philadelphia Evening Bulletin. In its final report in 1952 the Special Federal Grand Jury concluded: Soon after we convened we learned of the shocking conditions that existed in the City of Philadelphia with reference to the organized rackets in the numbers and bookmaking operations. Since the 1950-51 hearings of the Senate Special Committee to Investigate Organized Crime in Interstate Commerce[4] (The Kefauver Committee), a mass of data has been compiled describing in detail the workings of criminal syndicates in Pennsylvania. 46 U.S. vs. Ucciferri, et al., sup. 40 Final Report, U.S. Special Federal Grand Jury (Philadelphia: U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania), in Henry Massaros, "U.S. Rackets Jury Indicts 14 for Taxes," Philadelphia Evening Bulletin, March 14, 1952, p. 1. In that year State Police arrested over 40 numbers bankers, public officials, and political leaders for conspiring to commit acts of bribery to protect the Erie numbers racket. 3-5. [147], 2. Edward Heller. [210] At Jaskiewicz' tax evasion trial in 1969, an IRS intelligence agent quoted Jaskiewicz as stating to him that "you have to 'pay off' [authorities] in order to stay in business. 1:55 In 1955, a meat packaging delivery truck driver named Frank Sheeran was attending to his broken-down vehicle at a truck stop in Endicott, New York when he first crossed paths with. 14875. It provides facilities for "washing" illegal income for tax purposes and investments, and to create estates. Government Printing Office, 1958), Pt. The young easily detect the hypocrisy and corruption of public officials, and grow more alienated from the mainstream of American society. 9769. 166 US. In the last 5 years Pittsburgh has seen . 53, pp. [90] In July of 1969, Pennsylvania State Police raided the gambling establishment of Leonard "Spike" Carlucci, Steven Nesko of Dunmore was arrested for bookmaking. For these reasons syndicate interests in legitimate businesses are of acute concern to law enforcement agencies. His perforated body was found a few days later in a burlap sack. Partner in M. Maggio and Company and Michael's Dairies, Inc., one of the largest dairy companies in Philadelphia. Bethlehem. 836. Gerald Shur, Chief, Intelligence and Special Services Unit, Organized Crime and Racketeering Section, U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, D.C. Following is the text of selected portions (we have omitted the "Strategies Against Organized Crime" section) of the Pennsylvania Crime Commission's 1970 Report on Organized Crime. Other Families. 34 U.S. vs. Ciotti, et al. Philadelphia GVTF is a partnership dating back to 2007, between OAG agents, Philadelphia police officers and detectives and the Philadelphia District Attorneys Office. 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