In the article Mafia Clans of New York: Genovese and Gambino
we began a story about five famous "families" who settled in this city. Now we will talk about the Bonanno, Lucchese and Colombo clans, and also finish the story about the Chicago Mafia Syndicate.
Shards of the Salvatore Maranzano clan
The Bonanno clan was formed after the death of Salvatore Maranzano, who lost in the "Castellamarian War" (see article Mafia in New York).
It was founded by people from the Sicilian city of Castellammare del Golfo. The Bonanno family was led by Joseph, nicknamed "Banana Joe" (his nickname passed on to the entire clan). Curiously, he moved to the United States during Mussolini's anti-mafia campaign (which was described in the article "Old" Sicilian Mafia) at the age of 19. But Vito Genovese, about whom we spoke in the previous article, as you remember, on the contrary, was hiding from American justice in fascist Italy.
Joseph's son, Salvatore, wrote of his family in Bound by Honor: A Mafioso's Story:
“The fame of the Bonanno family thundered in the Castellammare del Golfo region of Sicily for centuries and even from the middle of the last century to the present century.
My father's great-grandfather, Giuseppe Bonanno, was a supporter and military ally of the great Garibaldi, who led the movement for the reunification of Italy."
In this book, by the way, he calls the word "mafia"
"A fictitious definition that has become a household name, which was used by law enforcement agencies and the press."
The original, in his opinion, is the word "mafiosi", which expresses
“The character and values of the men and women who, day after day, created the history of Sicily …
A beautiful, proud woman can also be called a mafia.
You don't even have to be human to become a mafioso.
A thoroughbred horse, a wolf or a lion can have the character of a mafioso."
And here's another revelation of the consigliere (consigliere - "advisor", "mentor") of this family:
“For a long time, the mafia was part of the power structure in the country.
If this point is neglected, the history of the United States between 1930 and 1970 will be distorted and incomplete."
The legal cover for Joseph Bonanno's business was the garment industry, cheese dairies, as well as numerous funeral services bureaus. The main source of income is drug trafficking.
His ally was Joseph Profaci of the family that would later be called Colombo. In 1956, this union was strengthened by the son of the head of the Bonanno clan with his niece Profaci. In the 60s of the twentieth century, this clan survived the "Banana War", as a result of which Joseph was either kidnapped or staged a kidnapping in order to sit out in a secluded place. He was absent for almost two years: from October 1964 to May 1966.
His son Salvatore said about that time:
“In the 60s, I only had one goal - actually two goals.
When I got up in the morning, my goal was to live until sunset.
And when sunset came, my second goal was to live to see sunrise."
As a result, Joseph Bonanno "resigned."
In 1983, "Banana Joe" suddenly recalled himself, writing an autobiographical book "A Man of Honor", in which he praises the mafiosi of the past and criticizes the "new":
“They are too greedy to abide by our code of conduct.
They allow non-Sicilians to become full members of the family, they do not respect elders.
Slowly but steadily, our traditions have become nothing, the ideals to which we have given our lives are hopelessly perverted."
Later in an interview, he stated:
"What we were before does not exist anymore."
In this book, Bonanno claimed that the father of the future president, Joseph Kennedy (who was previously suspected of having connections with bootleggers and illegal enrichment during the Prohibition period), turned to him for help in organizing the election campaign of his son, John.
Wall Street Bootlegger
In the photo we see Joseph Patrick Kennedy with his sons John and Robert.
He was Chairman of the Securities Commission, Chairman of the US Maritime Commission, US Ambassador to the UK. He was also called the "Wall Street bootlegger."
Joseph Kennedy was well acquainted not only with Franklin Delano Roosevelt, but also with Frank Costello, Meyer Lansky and Dutch Schultz (Arthur Simon Flegenheimer, Dutch Schultz. His assassination by the "Murder Corporation" triggermen was described in the article Mafia in New York).
By the way, in 1957, while on vacation in Cuba, John F. Kennedy also met Lansky: the "mafia accountant" was Batista's friend and co-owner of many brothels and casinos, and could provide any help in having fun on this island.
Joseph Kennedy's grandfather made barrels for whiskey, his father was the owner of a drinking establishment, and he was involved in the smuggling of alcoholic beverages. During the Prohibition period, several ships belonging to him delivered alcohol to the Canadian islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon, from where it was transported to the north of the United States - to the Great Lakes region.
Kennedy Sr. was a “wholesaler”, avoiding dealing with end consumers (but making an exception by providing alcohol to private parties of the establishment and bohemians). According to American historian Ronald Kessler, Kennedy sold a box of whiskey worth $ 45 for $ 85, while also diluting the contents of the bottles (which were then sealed again) with cheaper alcohol.
The continuation of the Bonanno clan story
But back to Joseph Bonanno, about whom the publisher of his book, Michael Corda, said:
"In a world where most gamblers were illiterate at best, Bonanno would read poetry, brag about his knowledge of the classics, and advise his comrades in the form of quotes from Thucydides or Machiavelli."
Bonanno's revelations cost him a year in prison: Attorney Rudolph Giuliani (future mayor of New York) brought him to trial for perjury in one of his previous trials.
After leaving prison, Bonanno lived for 16 years and now did not strive for fame. When asked about the mafia, he said nothing, claiming to be the namesake of the clan's boss.
In 1999, Joseph Bonanno became the hero of a four-part series produced by his son Salvatore:
Meanwhile, in 1976, FBI officer Donnie Brasco, who operated until 1981, was introduced to the clan. The "family" was losing influence and was even expelled from the mafia "Commission" (the "Council" of the heads of influential clans of Cosa Nostra, founded at the initiative of Lucky Luciano).
In the 90s of the twentieth century, when this clan was headed by Joseph Massina, the "family" again became a member of the "Commission" and returned the lost positions. In 1998, Massina was the only head of the mafia "family" to remain at large, which sharply strengthened both his position and the position of the clan. But, being arrested, in the early 2000s, Massina began to cooperate with the police - the first of the mafia bosses in New York (even earlier, the mafia boss of Philadelphia Ralph Natale went to such cooperation).
Currently, in addition to New York, this family has interests in New Jersey, Florida and Montreal, Canada (in this city, she collaborates with the local Risutto clan).
Albanians are now vying with the Bonanno clan for influence in the Bronx, ordered by an assassin from the African American group "Bloods" on October 4, 2018, in a parking lot near a McDonald's diner, shot the capo of the "family" Sylvester Zottola. The reason for the massacre was the competition for the right to install slot machines in bars and nightclubs.
The "family" of Lucchese
The "heirs" of Gaetano Reina united into the Luquezze family. It is believed that this clan operates in the Bronx, East Harlem, Northern New Jersey, and also in Florida.
Until 1953, this clan was headed by Gaetano Galliano, and Tommy Lucchese became his successor (remember, as a teenager, he was a member of the same street gang as Lucky Luciano). Tommy was on good terms with Carlo Gambino, whose eldest son, Thomas, married Lucchese's daughter Frances in 1962. Another ally was Vito Genovese. And the enemy of Lucchese and Carlo Gambino was Joseph Bonnano, who even tried to kill them, but lost, which resulted in a war within his clan.
Tommy Lucchese was very careful and in 44 years of his mafia career he did not spend a single day behind bars - the case is simply exceptional. It was he who gave his name to this "family".
In the 80s, the bosses of the Lucchese “family” were allies of the Genovese clan (then headed by Vincente Gigante, who was mentioned in the last article) and opponents of Carlo Gotti from the Gambino “family”.
They even tried to kill him: on April 13, 1986, a car explosion was arranged, during which Gotti's deputy Frank de Cicco died, but the Gambino clan boss himself was not injured.
Alfonso D'Arco ("Little Al") of the Lucchese family became the first top-level mafia boss to make a deal with American justice: in 1991 he testified against 50 mafiosi.
In the 90s, the Lucchese clan was headed by Victor Amyuso and Anthony Casso, famous for their cruelty. On their orders, even members of the New Jersey branch of their “family” who refused to pay the increased “dues” were killed, and (contrary to tradition) the wives of the rioters also became targets of attacks.
This clan is also known for cooperation with Greek and "Russian" criminal gangs. But this “family” has very tense relations with the Albanians.
Colombo clan
This clan is considered the weakest and smallest of the five mafia families in New York.
Traces of the activities of this "family" are also found in Los Angeles and Florida.
The first leader of this clan was Joseph Profaci, who came to the United States in 1921. He originally settled in Chicago, but moved to New York in 1925.
It was he who began to control Brooklyn after the October 1928 assassination of Salvatore D'Aquila.
The main legal business of Profaci was the production of olive oil, and the clan's criminal specialization was traditional - drug trafficking and racketeering. At the same time, Profaci was a devout Catholic (in his estate he built a chapel with an exact copy of the altar of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome) and a member of the Knights of Columbus society, which has existed since 1882, to which he made generous donations.
And in 1952, his people found and returned relics stolen from one of Brooklyn's cathedrals. At the same time, in relation to the privates of his clan, Profaci was distinguished by rare stinginess. It was even said that he embezzled most of the money collected to help the mafiosi in prison and their families. Another trait of Profaci was cruelty: he did not hesitate to order the killing of anyone who criticized him or expressed displeasure.
The upshot was that disgruntled mafiosi, led by Joe Gallo, abducted four people, including Profaci's deputy, his brother and one of the clan's capos.
They were released, but Profaci violated the terms of the contract. And an intra-family war began, which ended only with the death of Profaci in 1962.
The "successor" deputy Magliocco, together with Joseph Bonanno, tried to organize the assassination of Tommy Lucchese and Carlo Gambino, for which in 1963 he was removed from his post by the "Commission" of the clans. This "family" was headed by Joseph Colombo, who gave it its modern name. It was Columbo who became the first head of the New York mafia clan born in the United States.
He became famous, among other things, for being one of the founders of the "Italian-American League for Civil Rights" (created in April 1970).
One of the successes of this organization was the ban on the use of the word "mafia" in press releases and official documents of the US Department of Justice.
On June 28, 1971, at a rally organized by this league, Colombo was seriously wounded in front of a crowd of 150,000 by a black pimp Jerome Johnson, who was immediately killed by the bodyguards of the "boss" in a fit of rage.
This assassination attempt was an episode of Scorsese's 2019 film The Irishman.
Joe Gallo, recently released from prison, and also Carlo Gambino were suspected of organizing the assassination attempt, but in the end it was recognized that Johnson acted alone. Colombo survived, but was paralyzed and unable to fulfill the duties of the head of the clan.
After the arrest in 1986 of the boss of the Colombo clan (Carmaina Persico), one of the capos Victor Orena in 1991 tried to seize power and unleashed a new war that lasted two years. The clan suffered heavy losses and was significantly weakened.
Chicago Syndicate
From the very beginning, the Chicago syndicate differed from the mafia families of New York in its internationalism.
Its founder - Sicilian Jim Colosimo (who was described in the article Mafia in the USA. "Black Hand" in New Orleans and Chicago) began with the organization of a network of brothels. He even married a "madam" of one of these establishments. Later he engaged in usury and extortion.
His successor, John Torrio, was a broader-minded man. First, he was eager to expand his "business" and made the right decision with a bet on bootlegging. Secondly, he came up with the idea of close cooperation with non-Sicilians. It was he who invited the Neapolitan Al Capone to Chicago and, retiring, recommended him for the post of head of the clan.
Capone continued and developed the ideas of his boss: by cracking down on competitors, he sought not to completely destroy them, but to absorb the remnants of these gangs. As a result, the leading positions in the Chicago syndicate were occupied by Murray Humphries, who came from Wales, the Greek Gus Alex and two Jews - J Guzik and Leni Patrick. The second (after Capone) leader of the Campanian syndicate was Paul Ricca.
Even the ceremony of accepting newcomers, widespread in other families (pricking a finger and burning an image of a saint with a ritual oath), appeared in Chicago only in the 70s of the twentieth century. Prior to this, the neophyte was invited to dinner at a restaurant, where, in the presence of clan members, he was declared one of them.
It was during one of these ceremonies that Capone arranged a reprisal against two traitors and the "torpedos" (killer) of Aiello's gang, which was described in the article "With a kind word and a pistol." Alphonse (Al) Capone in Chicago.
At a famous mafia "conference" in Atlantic City, Capone called for the reform of American families along the lines of Chicago. In this he was supported by Charlie Luciano, who, after the arrest of Capone, in close cooperation with Meyer Lansky, carried out what he himself called
"Americanization of the mafia."
Perhaps the most famous head of the Chicago Syndicate after Capone was Sam Giancana, nicknamed Mooney Sam.
He was born in the USA in 1908 into a family of Sicilian immigrants.
As a teenager, Giancano created Gang 42 in Chicago. This name was inspired by the tale of Ali Baba and 40 robbers. The number 42 appeared as a hint that the Djankana gang is cooler than the Arab fairy tale (those robbers, along with the chieftain, were only 41).
He came to power in the syndicate in 1957 and headed it until 1966.
In cooperation with Giancana (in terms of organizing the election campaign), US presidential candidate John F. Kennedy was suspected. Recall that the same suspicions were expressed in relation to Joseph Bonanno. Giancana later worked with the CIA, which through him smuggled weapons into the Middle East. Some of these "cargo" ended up in the Mossad.
In addition, in 1960, the CIA tried to negotiate with him about an attempt on the life of Fidel Castro, but six attempts to poison the Cuban leader, undertaken by Giancana's man, Juan Orte, were unsuccessful.
And then, according to some researchers, Giancana took part in the assassination of John F. Kennedy. The reason was the failure of the president to fulfill his obligations to overthrow Fidel Castro (many mafiosi lost property and money in Cuba) and the removal of his brother Robert, who was the worst enemy of the American Cosa Nostra, who said after being appointed to the post of Attorney General of the country:
"If we do not start a war on organized crime not in words, but with the help of weapons, the mafiosi will destroy us."
The allies of the bosses of Cosa Nostra were the Texas oil industrialists, dissatisfied with Kennedy's policy, who relied on Vice President Lyndon Johnson (Johnson was quite happy with the American mobsters).
The son of "Banana Joe" Salvatore (Bill), consigliere of this "family", who claimed that the real killer of the president was Johnny Roselli, who worked for Giancana, also announced the participation of the mafiosi in the assassination attempt on the president.
Bill Bonanno met with Roselli in prison, where he allegedly told him that he had shot at Kennedy from a drain hatch (this does not contradict the results of a ballistic examination). After leaving prison (in 1976) Roselli was killed, his disfigured body was found in a tank of oil.
Roselli's involvement in the Kennedy assassination was confirmed by CIA sabotage camp instructor James Files, who claimed to have also shot Kennedy, but the killer was probably another Chicago mob, Chuck Nicoletti, a former member of Gang 42, described above:
“Apparently, Mr. Nicoletti and I fired at the same time, but his bullet hit a thousandth of a second earlier.
Kennedy's head jerked forward a bit, and I missed.
Instead of an eye, he hit the forehead above the eyebrow, just above the temple."
(Excerpt from an interview with Bob Vernon, 1994).
It is curious that Giancana's "friend", actress Judith Exner, in 1975 declared to the US Senate Commission to investigate the involvement of the CIA in the attempts to overthrow F. Castro that she was also the mistress of Frank Sinatra and John F. Kennedy, while Johnny Roselli was only her friend. She wrote about this in her memoirs, published in the fall of 1991.
Americans still cannot understand this tangle of mafiosi, pop singers, Hollywood actors and presidents.
In 1965, Giancana was sentenced to a year in prison for contempt of court (refusing to testify). In 1966, he left for Mexico, where he was first arrested and deported to the United States in 1974. On the night of June 19, 1975, on the eve of another hearing in court, Giancana was killed at his home in Chicago.
Currently, the Chicago Syndicate controls mafia families in Milwaukee, Rochester, St. Louis and partly in Detroit. In addition, he owns casinos in the Caribbean.
Like many mafia families in the United States, the Chicago Syndicate does not seek to continue the tradition of gangster shootings and tries once again not to attract the attention of authorities and journalists to its affairs.
