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. Like many of the most prominent mobsters of the 20th century, his father, Santo Trafficante Sr., grew up in Sicily, Italy but became a major player in the criminal world after migrating to America. Born in Tampa in 1915, Diecidue was identified by the FBI as early as 1957 as the "underboss" of Trafficante's crime family. The idea behind the assassination wasnt just to punish JFK but also to get his brother off the Mobs back. It is unclear if the Vice Squad investigated him. lucianos partner port of tampa ditaliano salvatore the red, All The most notable boss was Santo Trafficante, Jr. who ruled Tampa and the crime family with an iron fist. Do you know why he was never charged? Born in Tampa in 1915, Diecidue was identified by the FBI as early as 1957 as the "underboss" of Trafficante's crime family. CRIME FAMILY SOLDIER SENTENCED TO PRISON - Sun Sentinel Youll get a remembrance of Tampa Bay residents weve lost, including heartwarming and amusing details about their lives, every Tuesday. Trafficante LCN Family Membership. "There's no truth to it whatsoever. In Tampa, Trafficante enlisted Frank Diecidue as his underboss. * made in 1978. Ed Giorandino/NY Daily News Archive via Getty ImagesSanto Trafficante arrives at Queens Supreme Court in Kew Gardens. Broward County organized crime investigators name restauranteur Vincent LoScalzo as the power behind Tampa's mob. The CIA came to Trafficante, and asked for his help in enlisting the Mafia to assassinate the Cuban leader. Ed Giorandino/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images. Mons Venus was the little bar. While the senior Trafficante had been a major mobster in his own right, nobody could have expected the heights that were going to be reached by his son. When you think of Florida and organized crime, it is difficult to avoid conjuring up images of Tony Montana in. But he was also the most powerful crime boss in pre-Castro Cuba, with influence that extended into Florida and the rest of the United States. Purchase an annual subscription for unlimited access to the full Button Guys library! Many big Nashville stars played there. Santo Sr. was leaving more of the day-to-day operations to his son, Santo Jr. . Domestic Violence Assistance Program - Temporary Restraining Order Assistance Resource and Referral Counseling - (714)935-7956. Interesting. 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. Rape Crisis Hotline - (714)957-2737. With the death of Santo Trafficante Jr. four years ago, the big question was: Who would take over as the local crime boss? But an FBI affidavit in a cocaine case provides a peek into a new type of local mob _ one that is more pedestrian and more likely to be involved in local drug dealing than international intrigue. The outcome of the case couldn't be determined from court records. WTF does that mean? After Cuban revolution, the Mafia saw Castro as a threat to their business. Medicare fraud charges filed against John Mamone, former mob soldier Whatever happened to the Imperial Room Lounge that was owned by Doc Castellano in Tampa?? 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. Despite his arrest, Trafficante managed to escape charges and continue to fly under the laws radar. Since the late 1800s, she said, crime syndicates had used gambling profits to buy votes. It's been 15 years since the most recent arrest of any of the three men investigators say share the power in Tampa now. Trafficantes partnership with Batista was profitable for both parties and so the mobsters fate became inextricably tied to that of Cubas political climate. Santo Trafficante Jr. (November 15, 1914 March 17, 1987) was among the most powerful Mafia bosses in the United States. 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. Trafficante returns to Tampa and enlists in a CIA plot to poison Castro. Terms of Service, 2023Gangsters Inc. - www.gangstersinc.org Medicare also paid millions for a variety of knee, back and wrist braces, walkers and other medical equipment that patients didnt need, they said. The mobster would later testify: I got news that Cuban officials were looking for to put me in jail because one of the things was that I was a Batista collaborator. And, back then, barbershops were hangouts.. Buy the time LoScalzo took over in 1987, the Trafficante Crime Family was far past its heyday. 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. He quoted LoScalzo: "Daddy Frank said to give you anything you want.". Frank Ragano - Wikipedia From city to city and state to state, Button Guys of The New York Mafia breaks down the history of organized crime in America. Trafficante tried to win Castro over to his side, but that didnt work. Remember the odessey and the bar across the street used to go in when I was 15 and make friends with all the working girls. The Trafficante crime family is a family of the American Mafia from the city of Tampa, Florida, founded in 1925 by Ignacio Antinori. According to Iorio, Tampa witnesses produced a list of 105 officially protected outlets that law enforcement officials were not allowed to tamper with., The moral of the Tampa story is this, Estes Kefauver, the senator who led the nationwide investigation, wrote in his final report, if good citizens of a community shut their eyes to wholesale violation of a law law enforcement and honesty in public office will go to hell in a handcart., Subscribe to our free How They Lived newsletter. For the U.S. government, it was a classic case of the enemy of my enemy is my friend.. A grand jury did. Mafia Locations As such, Trafficante Sr. controlled gambling rackets for bolita, a lottery game popular in Florida and Cuba, until 1940 when the murder of Tampa boss Ignacio Antinori pushed the Trafficantes to assume ultimate power in the Florida underworld. He has also written dozens of articles for local and national magazines and newspapers, including the regular column Scott Deitche's Libation Lounge for Cigar City Magazine, a column devoted to spirits and unusual cocktails. But on June 5, 1950, a Ford sedan pulled alongside Lumia's car, parked along Tampa's waterfront. However the meeting came to be, the mob nonetheless brought influential states like Illinois into the Kennedy fold in exchange for the White House going easy on organized crime. Santos first gained power as a mobster in Tampa as an associate, and later as a high ranking member, of the Trafficante crime family, helping run illegal bolita numbers rackets during the 1920s. Santo Trafficante then categorically denied every allegation about stating he wanted RFK or JFK dead and got off scot-free. No one was ever charged with Lazzara murder. However, by the late 1920s, facing little pressure, Sicilian gangsters began setting up lucrative gambling and narcotics rackets. ", 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. But those werent even their most ridiculous ideas. The Trafficante Family - American Mafia History Immigrating right along with these hard-working early Sicilian immigrants came a band of shadowy criminal figures from their homeland. Health care fraud case swells to $67M, prosecutors allege; another 10 In 1963, the Mob allegedly had enough of Kennedy. Trafficante Jr. controlled his Tampa-based crime network for over three decades. 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. Heres why. REPUTED FLORIDA GODFATHER TRAFFICANTE, 72, DIES - Sun Sentinel This is the full chart of the Trafficante Mafia Family of Tampa, FL. Meet Santo Trafficante: The Silent Don Who Tried To Kill Fidel Castro And May Have Ordered JFKs Assassination. Steve Raffa was one of the handful of mobsters that actually committed suicide I think. George Defeis was tied to the Trafficante crime family based in Tampa, as reported by NBC Miami. Last year, Gotti was found innocent of conspiring with other mob leaders to kill the leader of New York's carpenter's union. However, by the 1950s, upheaval arose for the Trafficante family. american mafia,,,if your in organized crime , you should be ex-communicated from the Catholic Church. Originally Posted By: Mickey_MeatBalls_DeMonica. There are few indicators that the family is still an active crime network. 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. Trafficante's leadership was marked by his reported efforts to help the CIA kill Fidel Castro; he was questioned about whether he had a role in the assassination of President John Kennedy. In 1950, the aging Trafficante Sr. began to slow down. The Trafficante Family Leadership Chart - The New York Mafia 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. Santo Trafficante Sr., a 'Sicilian of the old school,' ruled Tampa's
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