Bufalino family

The Bufalino family (Pittston Crime Family , Scranton Wilkes-Barre Family) was an Italian-American mafia family of the American Cosa Nostra and active in the northeastern region of Pennsylvania , or the cities of Scranton , Wilkes-Barre and Pittston . The family has been considered inactive since 2008.

The Bufalino family has been linked to union corruption, counterfeiting, prostitution, credit usury and extortion, illegal gambling, and vehicle theft, among other things, raising hundreds of millions of dollars a year for the organization. In addition, the organization exercised control over a wide variety of legitimate businesses such as freight hauliers and plumbing and meat companies. Although the Bufalino family is one of the smaller organizations within the American Cosa Nostra, the extent of their influence and strength has been immensely underestimated by law enforcement and the media.

history

Stefano LaTorre , who first recognized boss of the criminal organization emigrated in 1903 as a leading figure of a secret organization called Men of Montedoro from Montedoro ( Sicily ) in the United States to a base of operations in the areas of Pittston, Scranton and Wilkes-Barre set up. LaTorre protected the interests and transatlantic passage of his brother-in-law and Montedoro underworld boss Santo Volpe on site .

In 1907 LaTorre was convicted of racketeering against mine workers together with Charles "Calogero" Bufalino , the uncle of the future head of the family "Russell" Bufalino , and in 1908 resigned as head. After Stefano LaTorre's resignation, Santo Volpe became the new boss of the organization until his death in 1933.

Starting in 1933, the former miner and later mafia enforcer and alcohol smuggler John "Giovanni" Sciandra , who also immigrated from Montedoro in the 1880s, is said to have become the leading head of the organization. Angelo Polizzi was appointed consigliere by Sciandra , which Polizzi remained until his death in 1957.

Underboss Joseph "Joe the Barber" Barbara placed himself at the head of the family from the 1940s, after he had already served the family as a so-called "hitman" for many years and was suspected of several murders; however, law enforcement had never gathered enough evidence to prosecute Barbara.

In 1956, Barbara suffered a heart attack and appointed Russell Bufalino as acting boss due to his health problems.

After the famous Apalachin meeting - a gathering of almost all the bosses of the American Cosa Nostra in November 1957, which took place in Barbara's house in the Apalachin parish in New York and was stormed by the local police, Barbara gained considerable national attention and should be in front of one Investigation Commission testify. However, in June 1959, before he should have appeared before the commission, Joseph Barbara died of another heart attack.

With Barbara's death, the Mafia Commission recognized Rosario "Russell" Alberto Bufalino as the new official family boss. Bufalino soon became the epitome of a respected, vile and intelligent mob boss who knew how to delegate authority and hide his true power and influence. He was liked by everyone and never showed his wealth and power.

In 1974, Bufalino began expanding his family's influence to upstate New York . The death of the notorious Buffalo chief Stefano Magaddino had divided the family there and reduced their power. Bufalino sent family members to the highland region to set up gambling operations and check for possible investments in the construction industry.

In 1977, Bufalino was charged with extortion and took steps to reduce the possibility of a greater sentence. He appointed his cousin and consigliere Edward Sciandra as acting boss and withdrew from the day-to-day business of the family. Four years later, after his release from prison in 1982, Bufalino became a high-profile target for federal investigators. Bufalino was charged again and sentenced to 10 years in prison by the Pentito Aladena "Jimmy the Weasel" Fratianno , who became a government witness in the late 1970s, for ordering Fratianno to assassinate the 1977 court witness.

In 1989, the same year Bufalino was released from prison, William D'Elia was named the new incumbent boss and official head in 1994 after Bufalino died of natural causes at the age of 90. D'Elia expanded the organization's legitimate areas of operation to include waste management and stock deals.

On May 31, 2006, D'Elia was charged with $ 600,000 in money laundering through illicit drug proceeds. When D'Elia learned that an accomplice might testify against him, he planned to kill him. In August 2006, D'Elia unwittingly explained to an informant that he would give him photos of a prosecutor and later signal him to kill the man. In November 2006, D'Elia was charged with conspiracy to murder and new charges for money laundering. He was arrested in 2008 and released in February 2013.

According to James F. Kanavy, a former investigator for the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency , the Bufalino family is now non-existent.

Historical tour

Head of the family

The head of a family can not always be identified so clearly; especially if another family member comes to the fore due to a prison sentence. The external view does not always make it easy to recognize a new head as such or to determine his exact term of office. In addition, a presidential system seems to be establishing itself to a certain extent; d. H. the head shifts his power more to a so-called “acting boss” and / or “street boss”, who in turn continue to recognize the head as such, even if he is, for example, in custody.

Period	Surname	Nickname	Lifetime	Cause of death	annotation
1905-1908	Stefano LaTorre	Steve	1886-1984	natural death
1908-1933	Santo Volpe	King of the Knights	1880-1933	natural death
1933-1940	John "Giovanni" Sciandra	Johnny	1899-1949
1940-1959	Joseph Barbara	Joe the Barber	1905-1959	Heart attack
1959-1994	Rosario "Russell" Alberto Bufalino	McGee	1903-1994	natural death	Imprisoned 1978–1982
1994-2008	William D'Elia	Big Billy	1946 – today		Imprisoned 2008-2013

Acting boss

• 1956–1959: Rosario Alberto "McGee" Bufalino; became boss in 1959
• 1977–1989: Edward "Eddie The Conductor" Sciandra ; Imprisoned 1981–1982
• 1989–1994: William "Big Billy" D'Elia; became boss in 1994

Underboss of the family

The underboss is number two in the criminal family, he is the deputy director of the syndicate. He gathers information for the boss, gives orders and instructions to the subordinates. In the absence of the boss, he leads the organization.

Period	Surname	Nickname	Lifetime	Cause of death	annotation
1933-1940	Joseph Barbara	Joe the Barber	1905-1959	Heart attack	became boss in 1940
1940-1959	Rosario Alberto Bufalino	McGee	1903-1994	natural death	became acting boss in 1956
1960-1990	James David Osticco		1913-1990	natural death	Imprisoned 1983–1988

Consigliere of the family

At the same level as the underboss is the consigliere , the advisor to the criminal family. It is usually an older member of the family who has not reached the position of boss in his criminal career and has now partially withdrawn from active criminal activity. He advises the boss and the underboss, giving him considerable influence and power.

Period	Surname	Nickname	Lifetime	Cause of death	annotation
1933-1957	Angelo Polizzi		???? - 1957	natural death
1957-1977	Edward Sciandra	Eddie The Conductor	1912-2003		became acting boss in 1977

Individual evidence

1. ^ Organized Crime in Pennsylvania: Traditional and Non-Traditional . Pennsylvania Crime Concession. April 15, 1988. ( The Nevada Observer . August 16, 2006) ( Memento of the original from November 27, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
2. ^ ^{A b} Devico, Peter J. The Mafia Made Easy: The Anatomy and Culture of La Cosa Nostra pp. 188-189
3. ↑ The American Mafia.com "Scranton crime Bosses" ( Memento of the original from January 4, 2013 in the web archive archive.today ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
4. ↑ 26 Family Cities "Northeast PA"
5. ↑ ^{a b} Dave Janoski: The rise and fall of a mob power , Citizenvoice.com. July 17, 2011. Retrieved July 31, 2012. 
6. ↑ ^{a b c d e} Geocities - Organized Crime Syndicates ( Memento of the original from December 18, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
7. ^ ^{A b} Joseph Barbara Sr. History of the Mafia in the US
8. ↑ Crime Inquiry Still Checking on Apalachin Meeting . In: Toledo Blade , Associated Press, July 2, 1958, p. Two. Retrieved May 27, 2012. 
9. ↑ Apalachin Meeting Ruled Against Gang Killing Of Tough, Probe Told . In: Schenectady Gazette , Associated Press, February 13, 1959, pp. 1, 3. Retrieved May 27, 2012. 
10. ↑ "Reputed mobster gets 9 years in prison" The Daily Item November 24, 2008
11. ^ Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator