Sunday, October 11, 2009
The Story of Old Chicago Gangster Ma Barker
Kate "Ma" Barker (October 8, 1873 January 16, 1935) was an American criminal from the "public enemy era", when the exploits of gangs of criminals in the Midwest gripped the American people and press. Her notoriety has since subsided, trailing behind Bonnie and Clyde and John Dillinger.
Genovese Crime Boss & WWII Hero, Carlo Mastrototaro, Dies at 89
The man frequently identified as a kingpin of organized crime in the Worcester area for much of the latter half of the past century and a highly decorated World War II combat veteran died Monday at his home in Worcester.
Carlo Mastrototaro, 89, of 40 Hancock Hill Drive, died peacefully surrounded by family members, according to his obituary.
In an interview earlier this year, Mr. Mastrototaro would only describe himself as a “retired businessman,” determinedly steering clear of specifying what he did before retiring.
“Different things” was all he would say. Reminded that law enforcement officials and other sources had labeled him a powerful figure in the New England mob, he responded, “Not everything said about me is true.”
A Worcester native, Mr. Mastrototaro, for the most part, stayed out of local headlines. He owned several restaurants in the area over the years and occasional stories referred to arrests and convictions for, among other things, racketeering, wire fraud and gambling.
Thomas J. Foley, former superintendent of the Massachusetts state police, said that Mr. Mastrototaro answered in the 1980s and 1990s to the Genovese crime family in New York with the tacit approval of Raymond L.S. Patriarca of Providence, regarded as the head of the New England Mafia until his death in 1984.
One of his convictions was in 1971 in Baltimore federal court after he was tried for aiding and abetting in the transportation of three stolen U.S. Treasury bills. The man who stole the treasury bills, Boston and Providence mob figure Vincent “Big Vinnie” Teresa, testified against Mr. Mastrototaro in exchange for a reduced sentence.
Two years later, Mr. Teresa wrote a tell-all book called “My Life in the Mafia,” in which he described Mr. Mastrototaro as “the boss of Worcester” and “the fourth most powerful boss in the current New England hierarchy of crime.”
There are numerous references in the book to Mr. Mastrototaro, some linking him to Mafia-backed casinos that operated in Haiti and pre-Communist Cuba, as well as to Meyer Lansky, a notorious figure in mob annals who was regarded as a financial genius.
Despite his testimony that helped convict Mr. Mastrototaro, Mr. Teresa, who died in 1990 while in the federal witness protection program, had an obvious admiration for the Worcester resident. “He was as honest as they come in the mob when you dealt with him,” Mr. Teresa wrote. “If you had a cent and half coming from him, it didn't make a bit of difference if you didn't show up to collect for six months. When you got there, the money was there waiting for you.”
Far less well-known about Mr. Mastrototaro was his distinguished record as a Marine serving in the Pacific during WWII. That service earned him a Purple Heart and the Silver Star, the military's third highest award for valor in the face of the enemy.
In his later years, Mr. Mastrototaro spent time at the Leatherneck Lounge on Lake Avenue and on rare occasions, friends say, he would open up about his military service from 1939 to 1944.
The Silver Star, he confided, stemmed from fighting in the Mariana Islands in the fierce Battle of Saipan in June and July 1944. On watch late one night while others in his platoon were asleep in foxholes, he detected shadows from behind, yelled a warning to fellow Marines, then jumped up and opened fire. He killed eight or nine Japanese on the perimeter of the platoon's camp.
Mr. Mastrototaro and several others in his company were badly wounded by mortar fire a few weeks later in the Battle of Tinian, also in the Marianas. He was evacuated to a hospital ship and later sent home with a medical discharge. His wounds, he told friends, actually saved his life. Much of his company was wiped out when they moved on to the Battle of Iwo Jima.
Mr. Mastrototaro helped found the Marine Corps League chapter in Worcester and was a member of several veterans' organizations.
Thanks to Jay Whearley
Carlo Mastrototaro, 89, of 40 Hancock Hill Drive, died peacefully surrounded by family members, according to his obituary.
In an interview earlier this year, Mr. Mastrototaro would only describe himself as a “retired businessman,” determinedly steering clear of specifying what he did before retiring.
“Different things” was all he would say. Reminded that law enforcement officials and other sources had labeled him a powerful figure in the New England mob, he responded, “Not everything said about me is true.”
A Worcester native, Mr. Mastrototaro, for the most part, stayed out of local headlines. He owned several restaurants in the area over the years and occasional stories referred to arrests and convictions for, among other things, racketeering, wire fraud and gambling.
Thomas J. Foley, former superintendent of the Massachusetts state police, said that Mr. Mastrototaro answered in the 1980s and 1990s to the Genovese crime family in New York with the tacit approval of Raymond L.S. Patriarca of Providence, regarded as the head of the New England Mafia until his death in 1984.
One of his convictions was in 1971 in Baltimore federal court after he was tried for aiding and abetting in the transportation of three stolen U.S. Treasury bills. The man who stole the treasury bills, Boston and Providence mob figure Vincent “Big Vinnie” Teresa, testified against Mr. Mastrototaro in exchange for a reduced sentence.
Two years later, Mr. Teresa wrote a tell-all book called “My Life in the Mafia,” in which he described Mr. Mastrototaro as “the boss of Worcester” and “the fourth most powerful boss in the current New England hierarchy of crime.”
There are numerous references in the book to Mr. Mastrototaro, some linking him to Mafia-backed casinos that operated in Haiti and pre-Communist Cuba, as well as to Meyer Lansky, a notorious figure in mob annals who was regarded as a financial genius.
Despite his testimony that helped convict Mr. Mastrototaro, Mr. Teresa, who died in 1990 while in the federal witness protection program, had an obvious admiration for the Worcester resident. “He was as honest as they come in the mob when you dealt with him,” Mr. Teresa wrote. “If you had a cent and half coming from him, it didn't make a bit of difference if you didn't show up to collect for six months. When you got there, the money was there waiting for you.”
Far less well-known about Mr. Mastrototaro was his distinguished record as a Marine serving in the Pacific during WWII. That service earned him a Purple Heart and the Silver Star, the military's third highest award for valor in the face of the enemy.
In his later years, Mr. Mastrototaro spent time at the Leatherneck Lounge on Lake Avenue and on rare occasions, friends say, he would open up about his military service from 1939 to 1944.
The Silver Star, he confided, stemmed from fighting in the Mariana Islands in the fierce Battle of Saipan in June and July 1944. On watch late one night while others in his platoon were asleep in foxholes, he detected shadows from behind, yelled a warning to fellow Marines, then jumped up and opened fire. He killed eight or nine Japanese on the perimeter of the platoon's camp.
Mr. Mastrototaro and several others in his company were badly wounded by mortar fire a few weeks later in the Battle of Tinian, also in the Marianas. He was evacuated to a hospital ship and later sent home with a medical discharge. His wounds, he told friends, actually saved his life. Much of his company was wiped out when they moved on to the Battle of Iwo Jima.
Mr. Mastrototaro helped found the Marine Corps League chapter in Worcester and was a member of several veterans' organizations.
Thanks to Jay Whearley
Friday, October 09, 2009
Bonanno Organized Crime Family Ruling Panel Member, Captains, Soldiers, and Associates Indicted for Racketeering, Assault, and Other Offenses
A 33-count indictment was unsealed in Brooklyn federal court charging members and associates of the Bonanno organized crime family of La Cosa Nostra (the Bonanno family) variously with racketeering, racketeering conspiracy, assault in-aid-of racketeering, conspiracy to commit assault in-aid-of racketeering, threatening to commit a crime of violence in-aid-of racketeering, use and possession of a firearm in relation to a crime of violence, bank fraud, illegal gambling, extortion, extortion conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and perjury. Those defendants arrested earlier today in New York are scheduled to be arraigned this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Marilyn D. Go, at the U.S. Courthouse, 225 Cadman Plaza East, Brooklyn. The case has been assigned to U.S. Senior District Judge Charles P. Sifton.
The charges were announced by Benton J. Campbell, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Joseph M. Demarest, Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge, FBI, New York Field Office.
As alleged in the indictment and detention memorandum filed today, Joseph Sammartino, aka “Sammy,” is a Bonanno captain and member of the Bonanno ruling panel; Anthony Sclafani, aka “Scal,” is a Bonanno captain; Joseph Loiacono, aka “Joe Lefty,” and Anthony Pipitone, aka “Little Anthony,” are Bonanno family acting captains; Frank Pastore, aka “Big Frank,” and Paul Spina, aka “Fat Paulie,” are Bonanno family soldiers; and Manny Bana, Peter DeFilippo, Frank DeRosa, Vito Pipitone, Joseph Spatola, and Natale Terzo are Bonanno family associates. The indictment is the result of a lengthy investigation by the FBI, which involved numerous law enforcement techniques, including consensual recordings, cooperating witnesses, confidential sources, and surveillances. The indictment and detention memorandum detail a pattern of alleged mafia violence and intimidation, including threats to murder victims of Bonanno family extortion schemes. For example, on one occasion when a loanshark victim fell behind in payments, Bonanno family captain Sclafani allegedly told him, “you’re lucky we don’t saw you in half and leave you in the woods.” The recordings also captured Bonanno family members and associates discussing their participation in a violent stabbing assault of two individuals in 2004 in Whitestone, Queens.
The indictment announced today is the latest in an ongoing investigation that has resulted in the prosecution of more than 125 members and associates of the Bonanno family in the Eastern District of New York. Since March 2002, four Bonanno family bosses or acting bosses—Joseph Massino, Anthony Urso, Vincent Basciano, and Michael Mancuso—have been convicted on racketeering and racketeering-related charges, which included murder or murder conspiracy as a racketeering act.
“Members of organized crime continue to victimize our communities with their brand of violence and other criminal activity,” stated U. Attorney Campbell. “We will not rest until we dismantle the entire Bonanno crime family and each of the other families of La Cosa Nostra.” Mr. Campbell praised the Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, who led the government’s investigation.
FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Demarest stated, “The charges unsealed today are the culmination of another in a series of recent FBI investigations that put to lie the notion that violence is a thing of the past in organized crime. Today, as always, mob families are criminal enterprises bent on making money any way they can. As often as not, violence goes hand-in-hand with mobsters’ illegal schemes.”
If convicted, Bana, Frank DeRosa, Sebastian DeRosa, Loiacono, Lotito, Pastore, Anthony Pipitone, Vito Pipitone, Sammartino, Sclafani, Spatola, Frank Terzo, and Natale Terzo each face a maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment; DeFilippo faces a maximum sentence of 30 years’ imprisonment; and, based upon a prior felony information filed this morning, Spina faces mandatory life imprisonment.
The government’s case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Nicole M. Argentieri, Gina M. Parlovecchio, and Duncan Levin.
The Defendants:
MANNY BANA
Age: 42
PETER DEFILIPPO
Age: 47
FRANK DEROSA
Age: 45
SEBASTIAN DEROSA
Age: 66
JOSEPH LOIACONO
Age: 64
RICHARD LOTITO
Age: 46
FRANK PASTORE
Age: 39
ANTHONY PIPITONE
Age: 37
VITO PIPITONE
Age: 28
JOSEPH SAMMARTINO
Age: 55
ANTHONY SCLAFANI
Age: 63
JOSEPH SPATOLA
Age: 33
PAUL SPINA
Age: 54
FRANK TERZO
Age: 24
NATALE TERZO
Age: 52
The charges were announced by Benton J. Campbell, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Joseph M. Demarest, Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge, FBI, New York Field Office.
As alleged in the indictment and detention memorandum filed today, Joseph Sammartino, aka “Sammy,” is a Bonanno captain and member of the Bonanno ruling panel; Anthony Sclafani, aka “Scal,” is a Bonanno captain; Joseph Loiacono, aka “Joe Lefty,” and Anthony Pipitone, aka “Little Anthony,” are Bonanno family acting captains; Frank Pastore, aka “Big Frank,” and Paul Spina, aka “Fat Paulie,” are Bonanno family soldiers; and Manny Bana, Peter DeFilippo, Frank DeRosa, Vito Pipitone, Joseph Spatola, and Natale Terzo are Bonanno family associates. The indictment is the result of a lengthy investigation by the FBI, which involved numerous law enforcement techniques, including consensual recordings, cooperating witnesses, confidential sources, and surveillances. The indictment and detention memorandum detail a pattern of alleged mafia violence and intimidation, including threats to murder victims of Bonanno family extortion schemes. For example, on one occasion when a loanshark victim fell behind in payments, Bonanno family captain Sclafani allegedly told him, “you’re lucky we don’t saw you in half and leave you in the woods.” The recordings also captured Bonanno family members and associates discussing their participation in a violent stabbing assault of two individuals in 2004 in Whitestone, Queens.
The indictment announced today is the latest in an ongoing investigation that has resulted in the prosecution of more than 125 members and associates of the Bonanno family in the Eastern District of New York. Since March 2002, four Bonanno family bosses or acting bosses—Joseph Massino, Anthony Urso, Vincent Basciano, and Michael Mancuso—have been convicted on racketeering and racketeering-related charges, which included murder or murder conspiracy as a racketeering act.
“Members of organized crime continue to victimize our communities with their brand of violence and other criminal activity,” stated U. Attorney Campbell. “We will not rest until we dismantle the entire Bonanno crime family and each of the other families of La Cosa Nostra.” Mr. Campbell praised the Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, who led the government’s investigation.
FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Demarest stated, “The charges unsealed today are the culmination of another in a series of recent FBI investigations that put to lie the notion that violence is a thing of the past in organized crime. Today, as always, mob families are criminal enterprises bent on making money any way they can. As often as not, violence goes hand-in-hand with mobsters’ illegal schemes.”
If convicted, Bana, Frank DeRosa, Sebastian DeRosa, Loiacono, Lotito, Pastore, Anthony Pipitone, Vito Pipitone, Sammartino, Sclafani, Spatola, Frank Terzo, and Natale Terzo each face a maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment; DeFilippo faces a maximum sentence of 30 years’ imprisonment; and, based upon a prior felony information filed this morning, Spina faces mandatory life imprisonment.
The government’s case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Nicole M. Argentieri, Gina M. Parlovecchio, and Duncan Levin.
The Defendants:
MANNY BANA
Age: 42
PETER DEFILIPPO
Age: 47
FRANK DEROSA
Age: 45
SEBASTIAN DEROSA
Age: 66
JOSEPH LOIACONO
Age: 64
RICHARD LOTITO
Age: 46
FRANK PASTORE
Age: 39
ANTHONY PIPITONE
Age: 37
VITO PIPITONE
Age: 28
JOSEPH SAMMARTINO
Age: 55
ANTHONY SCLAFANI
Age: 63
JOSEPH SPATOLA
Age: 33
PAUL SPINA
Age: 54
FRANK TERZO
Age: 24
NATALE TERZO
Age: 52
Thursday, October 08, 2009
Al Capone Reputed Hideout Purchased by Wisconsin Bank
The reputed hideout of infamous mobster Al Capone sold to Chippewa Valley Bank of Wisconsin for $2.6 million, according to CNN affiliate KBJR affiliate in Duluth, Minnesota.
Locals say mobster Al Capone used his family's Wisconsin property as a hideout.
The bank was the only bidder at the auction Thursday at the Sawyer County Courthouse in Wisconsin. The previous owners, Guy and Jean Houston, purchased it for $4.25 million in 1959, KBJR said.
The two-story stone lodge, tucked away on 407 acres in Couderay, Wisconsin, was owned by the Capone family in the 1920s.
The Houston family purchased the property in the 1950s and transformed it into a tourist spot. Visitors paid a few dollars for a walking tour of Capone's reputed hideout.
The property includes a 37-acre lake and eight-car garage.
There is no indication of what will happen to the property.
It holds enormous nostalgic value, bank Vice President Joe Kinnear said. After all, he noted, Al Capone's name is closely associated with Chicago, Illinois.
"This guy really has incredible fame power," said John Russick, senior curator at the Chicago History Museum. "He became this icon for a whole profession of underworld figures, and people are fascinated with that."
With his expensive suits, wide-brimmed fedora and cigar, the gangster who relished the media spotlight became the face of lawlessness during the Prohibition era.
From 1925 to 1931, Capone was Chicago's most notorious organized-crime boss. He ruthlessly relied on intimidation, bribes and violence, according to gangster lore.
Even some state and local law enforcement officers turned a blind eye when Capone's gang committed crimes, leaving the feds to chase him, historians say. But life as a crime kingpin brought a growing list of enemies, said Arthur J. Lurigio, a professor of criminology at Loyola University Chicago, who is also working on a documentary and book about organized crime in Chicago.
"He wanted to get away from his enemies," Lurigio explained. "He had already escaped death several times."
No one can say for certain whether Capone ever stayed in the Wisconsin lodge. Because he operated an illegal business, there are few written documents with clues on where he spent his time, historians say.
State University of New York at Oswego professor emeritus Luciano Iorizzo, who wrote "Al Capone: A Biography (Greenwood Biographies)" in 2003, said he has never come across evidence that Capone visited the Wisconsin hideout
Henry Binford, a professor of history at Northwestern University, theorizes that the hideout was a stopover in the transportation of liquor to Chicago during Prohibition. It's rumored among locals that planes from Canada that were filled with alcohol docked on the small lake on the property.
"Being an ostensible businessman, he had a lot of channels of supply," Binford said, pointing out that the lodge is located close to the Canadian border.
Capone's illegal activities caught up with him in the 1930s. His most infamous mob war, the 1929 St. Valentine's Day Massacre in Chicago that killed seven rivals, further enticed federal agents to catch him. In 1931, he was convicted of tax evasion and sent to Alcatraz prison in California.
This summer, when the hideout tours were shut down, Leslie Strapon, assistant executive director of the Hayward Chamber of Commerce, said her office received hundreds of calls from disappointed tourists.
"Everyone is patiently waiting to see what's going to happen with the place," she said. "It would be nice if it fell into the hands of someone who was wiling to reopen and carry on the tradition."
Thanks to Stephanie Chen
Locals say mobster Al Capone used his family's Wisconsin property as a hideout.
The bank was the only bidder at the auction Thursday at the Sawyer County Courthouse in Wisconsin. The previous owners, Guy and Jean Houston, purchased it for $4.25 million in 1959, KBJR said.
The two-story stone lodge, tucked away on 407 acres in Couderay, Wisconsin, was owned by the Capone family in the 1920s.The Houston family purchased the property in the 1950s and transformed it into a tourist spot. Visitors paid a few dollars for a walking tour of Capone's reputed hideout.
The property includes a 37-acre lake and eight-car garage.
There is no indication of what will happen to the property.
It holds enormous nostalgic value, bank Vice President Joe Kinnear said. After all, he noted, Al Capone's name is closely associated with Chicago, Illinois.
"This guy really has incredible fame power," said John Russick, senior curator at the Chicago History Museum. "He became this icon for a whole profession of underworld figures, and people are fascinated with that."
With his expensive suits, wide-brimmed fedora and cigar, the gangster who relished the media spotlight became the face of lawlessness during the Prohibition era.
From 1925 to 1931, Capone was Chicago's most notorious organized-crime boss. He ruthlessly relied on intimidation, bribes and violence, according to gangster lore.
Even some state and local law enforcement officers turned a blind eye when Capone's gang committed crimes, leaving the feds to chase him, historians say. But life as a crime kingpin brought a growing list of enemies, said Arthur J. Lurigio, a professor of criminology at Loyola University Chicago, who is also working on a documentary and book about organized crime in Chicago.
"He wanted to get away from his enemies," Lurigio explained. "He had already escaped death several times."
No one can say for certain whether Capone ever stayed in the Wisconsin lodge. Because he operated an illegal business, there are few written documents with clues on where he spent his time, historians say.
State University of New York at Oswego professor emeritus Luciano Iorizzo, who wrote "Al Capone: A Biography (Greenwood Biographies)" in 2003, said he has never come across evidence that Capone visited the Wisconsin hideout
Henry Binford, a professor of history at Northwestern University, theorizes that the hideout was a stopover in the transportation of liquor to Chicago during Prohibition. It's rumored among locals that planes from Canada that were filled with alcohol docked on the small lake on the property.
"Being an ostensible businessman, he had a lot of channels of supply," Binford said, pointing out that the lodge is located close to the Canadian border.
Capone's illegal activities caught up with him in the 1930s. His most infamous mob war, the 1929 St. Valentine's Day Massacre in Chicago that killed seven rivals, further enticed federal agents to catch him. In 1931, he was convicted of tax evasion and sent to Alcatraz prison in California.
This summer, when the hideout tours were shut down, Leslie Strapon, assistant executive director of the Hayward Chamber of Commerce, said her office received hundreds of calls from disappointed tourists.
"Everyone is patiently waiting to see what's going to happen with the place," she said. "It would be nice if it fell into the hands of someone who was wiling to reopen and carry on the tradition."
Thanks to Stephanie Chen
Wednesday, October 07, 2009
Betty Loren-Maltese is Ready to Spill the Beans
After being released from prison and living in Las Vegas, former Illinois politician Betty Loren-Maltese is ready to spill the beans.
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