In a letter dated 7 February 1911, James V. Ortelero asks for a favor from the superintendent of the federal prison in Atlanta, Georgia: obtain a murder confession from Giuseppe Morello.
The detective’s private stenographer
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The bosses of Springfield, Massachusetts
The Springfield Crew is led by Amedeo’s son, Ralph Santaniello, with his father’s backing. However Ralph, charged last year in a federal extortion case, is expected to plead guilty on 6 November 2017.
Los Angeles, 1915: Jack Dragna and Sam Streva
Jack Dragna, the first boss of Los Angeles under Luciano's Commission, was convicted of extortion with ringleader Sam Streva, a gangster whose life story has been conflated with another man's.
The Piranio brothers of Dallas
Along with Giuseppe Morello, Leoluca “Mr. Luke” Trumbatore, and Ignacio “Jack” Dragna, Carlo and Joe Piranio are among the first Mafia bosses in the United States.
Springfield, Massachusetts, and the Genovese connection
The Genovese crime family has had a presence in Springfield, MA, since the 1920s.
Giuseppe Morello’s counterfeiting gang
In the summer of 1909, detective William Flynn sought the source of counterfeit bills flooding banks and businesses in several cities across the United States. He tied the counterfeiting operation to Giuseppe Morello’s gang by following one of the passers of bad bills, Giuseppe Boscarino.
The Mangano brothers and Joe Profaci
Sources claim Vincent Mangano emigrated in 1921 with fellow future Mafia boss, Joe Profaci.
The olive oil business
My father’s paternal grandparents, Louis Cascio and Lucia Soldano, immigrated as teenagers with their families and settled in East Harlem, on 106th Street. After they married, Lucia and her youngest brother, Tony, sold olive oil to their neighbors, produced and exported by Louis’ brother-in-law.
Capitano’s Lucchese connection
Some of the most telling of "Capitano" Angelo di Carlo’s associations are those who signed affidavits in support of his release from internment at Fort Missoula in the summer of 1943.
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