Trafficante tried to win Castro over to his side, but that didnt work. Frank Ragano and Santo Trafficante Jr. (right). Posts: 613. In Tampa, Trafficante enlisted Frank Diecidue as his underboss. And it was the favorite eating establishment of the enigmatic Santo Trafficante Sr, as well as his son and namesake, Santo Jr. Harold Holderith, 813-376-5516, floridahusky@yahoo.com. E-mail me when people leave their comments , Former Trafficante crime family mobster charged with pilfering $3.8 million in Medicare fraud, When the American government asked the Mafia for a favor, Inside the Montreal underworld: The Rizzuto Mob & the Hells Angels, On the trail of the Italian mafia's dirty money, The "secret" murder of Philly mob boss Joey Merlino's crew, Documentary | Millennials in Mexico - born into the world of drug cartels, How New York gangs use social media to recruit, intimidate and to glamorize their lifestyle, Narco-Propaganda is Fuelling Mexicos Drug War, Meeting With A Sinaloa Cartel Hitman Goes Wrong: Inside Los Chapitos vs Rafael Caro Quintero, How The Hells Angels Actually Works | How Crime Works | Insider. He stood back in the shadows, while men like Ignazio Antinori and Charlie Wall were well-known crime figures about town. LoScalzo denies having any connection to drug distribution. Scott lives in St. Petersburg, FL. "He just knows some people who are.". Mafia Books See more ideas about crime family, crime, mobster. But considering the fiercely anti-Soviet atmosphere of the Cold War, its not that hard to believe. As law enforcement pressure increased on the Mafia in the late 1940s, Santo, fearing. Santo Trafficante Jr. wounded during failed assassination attempt in Tampa. Scott is one of the few writers who has donated items to the Mafia Museum in Las Vegas, and is a regularly-featured guest speaker there. In the mid-2000s, he would say he was a legitimate businessman, citing his ownership of a car dealership, and employment at various restaurants and night clubs over the years. Like 70-year-old Delray Beach-area resident John Mamone, the 10 others who began appearing in federal court on Monday are accused of paying kickbacks and bribes to telemedicine companies to get them to order unnecessary tests and medical equipment for Medicare recipients. I live at 9205 Poes Rd., Odessa, FL. Trafficante is jailed by Fidel Castro after Castro takes control of Cuba and dismatles the island's gambling operations. Domestic Violence Assistance Program - Temporary Restraining Order Assistance Resource and Referral Counseling - (714)935-7956. The indictment includes charges of conspiring to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act; committing violent . The source said that the entire group and the barbers appeared highly nervous and one or the other of them were continually darting to the window or out the door looking up and down the street, says the report dated December 22, 1953. He has been featured on the History Channel, A&E, Discovery Channel, AHC, C-SPAN and . When you think of Florida and organized crime, it is difficult to avoid conjuring up images of Tony Montana in Scarface, or the heyday of Miami Vice. For Subscribers: 'Spine crime': Patients say Lake Worth-area back doctor did 'fake surgeries,' left them in pain, Sober homes: "I'm greedy": Ex-sober home operator remorseless in testifying against doctor, Patient brokering: 'Chillin' like a Villain': Medical lab owner caught off Bahamas pleads guilty to patient brokering. The most notable boss was Santo Trafficante, Jr. who ruled Tampa and the crime family with an iron fist. Trafficante enjoyed life in Cuba, developed a relationship with its strongman, the dictator Fulgencio Batista, and helped the Trafficante Crime family garner even more profits from its legitimate gambling operations there. Santo Trafficante Senior died in 1954. Released on bond, they are to be sentenced on July 8. Interestingly, Trafficante who was worth about $25 billion at his height in the 80s lived a fairly reserved, modest lifestyle. Among the very first mafiosi to ever set up shop in Tampa were members of the Antinori, Italiano, and Scaglione families, who were all mafiosi back in Sicily. What was left of the family was mostly broken up over the past decade. For nearly seven decades, Santo Trafficante, Sr. and his son, Santo, Jr. were prominent gangsters on the Tampa crime scene. Finally, in 1987, Trafficante died at the age of 72. Please enter your username or email address to reset your password. In fact, Florida had the dubious distinction of being home to a decades-old Mafia criminal network: the Trafficante Family. The crimes range from loansharking and extortion to cocaine distribution and interfering with interstate commerce. And, in 1954, the committee helped the St. Petersburg police investigate whether Santo Trafficante Jr. and his brother Henry Trafficante offered a bribe to law enforcement in that city. You know what, guns actually do kill people | Letters, Seminole Heights serial killings case ends with guilty plea, 4 life sentences, Here is why the school zone speed camera bill should become law in Florida | Editorial. But on June 5, 1950, a Ford sedan pulled alongside Lumia's car, parked along Tampa's waterfront. Powered by. Now in his late 70s or early 80s, LoScalzo is reported to be retired. Rather, court records and testimony say, three men share control. Four months after a former soldier for the Trafficante crime family was indicted in connection with a $3.8 million health care fraud scheme, another 10 South Florida residents have been charged and the size of the alleged scam has swelled to $67 million. ", The informant, one of three who provided information to the FBI during the investigation, said LoScalzo gave him $24,000 worth of cocaine from a safe in the office at Brother's. Then, check out these photos of the aftermath from some of the bloodiest mob hits. Rape Crisis Hotline - (714)957-2737. Italian and Sicilian immigrants offer bolita games and slot machines throughout the city. Albano was charged with violating liquor laws in 1967, when federal agents claimed he and Trafficante's brother were substituting cheap liquor for expensive brands in a Tampa nightclub. To add further credence to this theory of JFKs assassination, famed prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi (who also wrote the infamous true crime novel on the Manson Family, Helter Skelter), who penned Reclaiming History: The Assassination of President John F. Kennedy, quoted a witness who said that New Orleans boss Marcello had quipped: The dog [JFK] will keep biting you if you only cut off its tail [RFK]., The final piece of evidence for the theory that Santo Trafficante was involved in JFKs assassination was a witness who reported that the mobster had once said himself that JFK not going to make it to the [1964] election. But those werent even their most ridiculous ideas. I grew up in Tampa. In 1983, in Tampa, he was indicted for racketeering in a scheme to control garbage pickup on the Suncoast. The Trafficantes, Godfathers from Tampa, Florida: The Mafia, the CIA Born in Tampa in 1915, Diecidue was identified by the FBI as early as 1957 as the "underboss" of Trafficante's crime family. An "informant" visited Joseph Puglisi's Ybor City . Mamone disappeared into the witness protection program almost two decades ago, after becoming a witness against his colleagues in the Mafia, a wide variety of them, including members of the Trafficante, Gambino, Colombo, and Bonanno families. Trafficante family used to own Florida, now there are others that have inherited the businesses. Though his prison sentence wasnt long and he returned to a strong position in Florida, Trafficante never forgave Castro. During that election, opponents tried and failed to connect him to organized crime via past legal business he conducted with alleged mafioso Jimmy Lumia, who was shot and killed in 1950 in a gangland slaying. In 1981, in Miami, he was indicted for skimming money from the health and welfare funds of the Labor International Union. Thanks for the reply. The Trafficante family was involved in gambling, prostitution, and numbers . He drove standard cars, lived in regular houses in quiet places, was married to the same woman, and generally described as a quiet man. The idea behind the assassination wasnt just to punish JFK but also to get his brother off the Mobs back. Tales from the Vice Squad | The Hillsborough County Crime Commission was formed in 1951 to root out organized crime and expose corrupt public officials. A year later, La Gaceta newspaper reported that the Vice Squad had stopped using the sheriff offices designated radio waves. He was right, and when Castro took power in 1959, Trafficantes burgeoning gambling-and-drugs empire went under siege. Palm Beach County residents who were charged in connection with the scheme are Thomas Dougherty, 39, of Royal Palm Beach; Louis Carver, 30, of Delray Beach; Timothy Richardson, 29, of Lantana; and Jose Goyos, 35, of West Palm Beach. Trafficante Jr. was nonetheless a ruthless and old-school mob boss. Button Guys of The New York Mafia. The Trafficante family was involved in gambling, prostitution, and numbers rackets in both Florida and Cuba, although its Cuban operations would be shut down after Fidel Castro's communist takeover of Cuba in 1959. Letsgetstarted. Its still there today. "I guess that we (the Trafficantes) are just like the Kennedys. It's still a great chart on the Tampa Mob. A Pinellas school regains its name, and Black history, after 55 years, Bolita, Tampas illegal lottery, was deadly and lucrative, Velasco used illegal gambling money to fund candidates who would ignore the mafias crimes, I tried to spend the night in Tampas most haunted building. The senior Mamone spent years in a federal witness protection program after snitching on federal mobsters to try to reduce his sentences on racketeering and other charges. Born in Tampa, Florida in 1914, Trafficante hailed from a family already deeply involved in organized crime. Trafficante Jr. controlled his Tampa-based crime network for over three decades. TAMPA A business connected by family to a prominent local politician was investigated for links to organized crime in November 1953. They are among the most powerful men in Tampa, but few people know their names. Santo Trafficante Jr. had long followed in his fathers footsteps, and proved to be an even more effective Mafia kingpin. Scams in genetic testing and durable medical equipment, or DME, have become a popular focus for federal prosecutors intent on cracking down on health care fraud. Steve Raffa was one of the handful of mobsters that actually committed suicide I think. Thanks. Law enforcement tracked his every move. You need to be a member of Gangsters Inc. - www.gangstersinc.org to add comments! The oversight committee had members ranging from residents to churches, unions and civic clubs that funded the endeavors private staff of investigators led by Ralph Mills, a former FBI agent. The Trafficante Family - American Mafia History I played there in the 70's and many wrestlers use to hang out there. "It indicates perhaps that they are not as well-connected as they once were.". Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. 0 registered members (), The crimes are punishable by a maximum 20-year prison sentence. I dont know why theyd investigate my uncle, said Mariette Rushing, 88, of Puglisi. He's charged with arranging the murder of his predecessor as head of the Gambino family and three other people. Once, flying from Miami to Tampa, Trafficante purchased an airline ticket in the name of an agent who was supposed to be trailing him undercover. Trafficante LCN Family Membership. In the 1960 presidential election, Kennedy family patriarch Joe Kennedy Sr. used his ties to organized crime to secure votes for his son, John F. Kennedy. Want more of our free, weekly newslettersinyourinbox? Copyright 2019-2022. As we all know, he was right, and Kennedy was assassinated by a sniper in November 1963. CSP Dispute Resolution Services. He sought treatment for stomach cancer and was ready to hand power over to a trusted lieutenant. With Velasco dispatched, Lumia had the run of the waterfront. Wikimedia CommonsPresident John F. Kennedy, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, and Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy. A former soldier in Florida's Trafficante Mafia family was charged with conspiracy to commit health care fraud and paying kickbacks in connection with a federal health care program. Medicare fraud charges filed against John Mamone, former mob soldier His positioning in Florida was prime for drug shipping as the product often passed through these ports en route to elsewhere in America. Everyone in Ybor knew each other, and that included the Trafficantes and my father and uncle. Cuban leader Fulgencio Batista in Washington, D.C. in 1938. That arrest also led Cuban authorities to become warier of the mobster, especially as the political tides seemed to be turning there. Even though there's always a few people who try to ruin it. Copyright 2019-2023, Button Guys of The New York Mafia. Local political corruption by then was a norm, former Tampa mayor Pam Iorio wrote for the Sunland Tribune in 2000. And the Trafficante Crime family found out that it had an unusual ally in their concerns about Castro: the Central, Trafficante Jr. controlled his Tampa-based crime network for over three decades. Does it still claim him? His new attorney general his beloved brother, Robert F. Kennedy went after organized crime with a vengeance. The local mob once was known for its assassinations. WTF does that mean? Their plans ranged from simply shooting him to having him smoke poisoned cigars or drinking a tainted milkshake. He's retired now. He was among a group of mob leaders in attendance when police raided a 1957 summit conference at Apalachin, N.Y. Diecidue is listed in state records as the owner of Dixie Amusement Co., a now-defunct vending and pinball machine company in Tampa. Other Mafia leaders, as well as newer organized crime networks, took over many of the rackets the family ran throughout the 20th Century. I grew up with some people who I know did bad things, but I also grew up with people who became judges and doctors and lawyers. Albano is married to the former Lucille Trafficante, the daughter of Santo Trafficante Jr. Albano, who once owned Majestic Cleaners in Tampa and the Claiborne Restaurant on South Howard Avenue, recently managed the Mercedes Cafe and is now working in sales for a vending company. Whether or not a Mafia conspiracy was behind the assassination of Kennedy is still up for debate. was supposedly built by Santo Traficante. Late in life, LoScalzo denied any connections to organized crime. Their self-charged duties included vetting candidates for law enforcement positions, scrutinizing trials and investigations and forging their own probes. Florida lawmakers OK $1.85 million for Tampa mans wrongful conviction. The case ends in a mistrial. Scott M. Deitche is the author of 5 books and on organized crime, including Cigar City Mafia: A Complete History of the Tampa Underworld, and The Silent Don: The World of Santo Trafficante Jr. In January 2004, Mamone and 7 other people were indicted in Florida on charges of racketeering, conspiracy, kidnapping, attempted murder, obstruction of justice, money laundering, and trafficking in $80 million worth of marijuana from Mexico to the U.S. since 1991. Ignazio Antinori - (boss 1920-1940) Santo Trafficante Sr. - (boss 1940-1954) Santo Trafficante Jr. - (boss 1954-1987) Vincent LoScalzo - (boss 1987-present) Associate. Aging Out - The LoScalzo Era. Her father was Nick Nuccio. Heres why. Mamone pleaded not guilty last week and was released on bond, the Palm Beach Post reports. It is unclear if the Vice Squad investigated him. The CIA came to Trafficante, and asked for his help in enlisting the Mafia to assassinate the Cuban leader. From city to city and state to state, Button Guys of The New York Mafia breaks down the history of organized crime in America. Zeng8r/Wikimedia Common A set of bolita balls. Since 1980, LoScalzo has increased his property holdings in West Tampa and Ybor City; at various times he has owned property valued at more than $365,000 in Hillsborough County, according to property appraiser's records. "But because I go into business for myself they put this horrible stigma on me.". But according to declassified documents released in 1992, Santo Trafficante Jr. made a deathbed confession of his involvement in the Presidents murder. "What the hell is the matter with you people?" Jan 23, 2019 - Explore Al Lanzilotti's board "Trafficante Crime family" on Pinterest. The same informant returned the following month to find Henry Trafficante there with three unidentified associates. He was among a group of mob leaders in attendance when police raided a . The chairman cited a confession from Roselli that Trafficantes allies organized a sharpshooter, Lee Harvey Oswald, to take out the President. Santo Trafficante Jr.: The Florida Godfather Who Tried To Kill Castro prosecution, fled temporarily to Cuba. "This is all bulls---," he said. And as for the rest of the Trafficante Crime family? Napoli, who is serving a 6{-year federal prison sentence, declined an earlier request for an interview. They own bars, restaurants and other businesses but aren't likely to be found at Chamber of Commerce meetings. Following his death, Mobster Vincent LoScalvo took over the Trafficante family's criminal network in Florida. Trafficante Sr. passed away four years later, leaving Jr. his Tampa and Cuba-based criminal empire. List of Italian American mobsters; Trafficante is indicted in Tampa on charges he tried to illegally take control of garbage collection on the Suncoast. One investigator said Albano holds great power, but others say that has shifted to LoScalzo. he said when a reporter asked about the FBI's claim that he heads the local mob. State officials list him as the owner of Brother's Lounge in Tampa, although law enforcement officials say that he has a hidden interest in several other bars. With that act, Santo Trafficante now reigned supreme in Tampa. They are the new local leaders of La Cosa Nostra, the Mafia in the United States. U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon rejected his request to travel to Las Vegas for business and to attend a wedding. An affidavit by FBI Special Agent Richard Holland said that an informant infiltrated Napoli's organization and began making regular purchases of cocaine at the Tampa bars. Through the decades illicit rackets primarily consisted of unlicensed alcohol, narcotics smuggling and wholesale distribution, the Cuban numbers game known as Bolita, slot machines, and other forms of gambling like horse and sports bookmaking. One small gang, led by Italian immigrant Santo Trafficante Senior, profited from the illegal lottery-style games they ran across Tampa. People are always putting bulls--- about them in the paper, too. The authorities continued to charge him with participating in illegal activities, but the aging mob boss escaped conviction each time. The real mafia played dominoes at the casino and never disclosed themselves. Diecidue, Albano and LoScalzo all surfaced in the investigation of Napoli and his bars: Mike's Lounge, the Journey's End, the South End and Levi's Saloon. The family was taken over by Santo Trafficante Sr. after Antinori was murdered by rival gangster Charlie Wall in 1940, and Wall would himself be killed in 1955 by the Trafficante family. The American governments close ties to Santo Trafficante Jr. and the rest of the Mafia didnt end with their attempts to kill Castro. In May 1987, the informant told agents that Diecidue had asked him to "watch Vincent LoScalzo, Michael Napoli and Frank Albano as he (Diecidue) does not think he is receiving his fair share of the cocaine profits. Largo lawyers death part of uncommon trend. But, in December 1950, during a local hearing that questioned politicians, law enforcement and alleged gangsters, the federal Kefauver Commission charged with exposing organized crime throughout the nation used the Velasco story as evidence of Tampas corruption. While he had several close calls with law enforcement including the famed FBI Donnie Brasco investigation he never spent a single day of his life in jail. Nobody emerged with Trafficante's stature and unquestioned authority. The Trafficante Family Leadership Chart. After Cuban revolution, the Mafia saw Castro as a threat to their business. As part of their plea agreements, they agreed to help prosecutors and law enforcement identify others involved in the scheme. Tampa politician and gambler Jimmy Velosco murdered in a war over control of the city's gambling. One small gang, led by Italian immigrant Santo Trafficante Senior, profited from the illegal lottery-style games they ran across Tampa. In addition, mobsters such as Florida mobster Santo Trafficante Sr. soon set up rival smuggling rings. Nearly three years after opening it's door, the SA FJC serves as a national best practice model of community trust building and victim . "I have never used drugs, or dealt drugs or had anything to do with drugs," he said in an interview. In this page-turning narrative, noted true crime writer Ron Chepesiuk chronicles the story of one of history's lesser known but most important mob dynasties. So, as the popular theory goes, the mob bosses that lent a helping hand in getting Kennedy into office wanted revenge. And despite relatively small time beginnings, Trafficante proved to be a shrewd mobster. Dino's drew many wrestlers including a bass player who became to be known as Hulk Hogan (his name was Terry Bollea). Like Trafficante Jr. before him, had many close calls with law enforcement, but always escaped serious charges. Many of the familys gangsters were in prison, or too old to be effective. In a cocaine conspiracy case, an FBI agent recently identified Diecidue as the new "boss" of the Trafficante family. Antinori was eventually eclipsed by Trafficante, who held his own strong connections to Mangano crime family boss Vincent Mangano and Profaci crime family boss Joseph Profaci . Santo Traficante. Santo Trafficante then categorically denied every allegation about stating he wanted RFK or JFK dead and got off scot-free.