Mafia Camorra War

The Mafia Camorra War was an underworld war between various Italian-American gangs that was fought in New York City between 1914 and 1918. The war ended with the defeat of the Camorra and the victory of the American Cosa Nostra , which thus prevailed in the USA .

history

At the beginning of the 20th century, a number of impoverished Italians emigrated to the United States. With you also came the culture of organized crime in the form of the Neapolitan Camorra and the Sicilian Cosa Nostra . Within the Italian community of New York City , East Harlem was essentially Sicilian, while Brooklyn was predominantly Neapolitan . The Navy Street Gang with Alessandro Vollero and the Coney Island Gang with Pellegrino Morano as head formed in Brooklyn, and the important Morello family resided in East Harlem , which is now considered the forerunner of what was later to be classified as the " Genovese family ".

In essence, the Morellos' policy of expansion was decisive for the beginning of the conflict. The Morellos wanted to participate in the gambling business in Manhattan (New York) and murdered some Cammoristi like Nicolo Del Gaudio , who were led by Morano. When the Camorrista Giosue "King of Little Italy" Gallucci and his son were murdered on May 17, 1915, the conflict between the various groups finally escalated.

The then Morello boss , Nicholas (Morello) Terranova , arranged a meeting for September 7, 1916 in Vollero's Café on Navy Street , the headquarters of Alessandro Vollero. In addition to the Morello family, the Coney Island gang was also invited. Before the actual meeting, Nicholas Morello and his bodyguard Charles Ubriaco had a few drinks with the Camorrista Ralph Daniello to bridge the time until the arrival of Camorrista Tom Pagano , who was supposed to lead the men to the café, where the Camorristi Leopoldo Lauritano and Peter Morano allegedly should wait. The group then walked down Myrtle Avenue together ; At the intersection of Johnson St. and Hudson Avenue , Morello and Ubriaco were attacked by five men, including their companion Tom Pagano, who shot Nicholas Morello. Ubriaco was murdered by Thomas Carillo and Lefty Esposito .

After three years of mutual murders with constantly changing coalitions, the Camorra finally lost the war due to criminal trials. The main leaders such as B. Morano were convicted and expelled or, like Antonio "Tony" Parretti, later executed because they were held responsible for the murder of Morello chief Nicholas (Morello) Terranova. Vollero was also convicted and, after serving 14 years of life imprisonment, deported to Italy. The Sicilian mafia took control and the "Neapolitans" submitted to the new bosses. The remaining Cammoristi finally came under the leadership of the Sicilian Salvatore D'Aquila . This grouping is now considered the forerunner of the clan that was later classified as the “ Gambino family ”.

Participants of the conflicting parties

Cosa Nostra

• Vincenzo "Vincent" Terranova ; became the new boss after the death of Nicholas (Morello) Terranova.
• Ciro Terranova ; became the new underboss after the death of Nicholas (Morello) Terranova.
• Nicholas (Morello) Terranova ; was murdered by Tom Pagano on September 7, 1916.
• Joe Masseria
• Thomas LoMonte
• Fortunato LoMonte

Cosa Nostra Associate

• Charles Ubriaco ; was murdered on September 7, 1916 by Thomas Carillo and Lefty Esposito.

Camorra

• Pellegrino Morano ; was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment on May 15, 1918 and expelled to Italy in 1919.
• Alessandro Vollero ; was sentenced to death on June 20, 1918. Later conversion to life imprisonment, expelled to Italy in 1933 after 14 years imprisonment.
• Ralph Daniello ; was imprisoned in 1917 and later became an informant.
• Leopoldo Lauritano
• Alphonso Sgroia ; was imprisoned 1917–1929 and was then expelled to Italy.
• Frank Fevrola ; was sentenced to death in 1917.
• Antonio Parretti ; first fled to Italy, returned in 1926 and was executed on February 17, 1927.
• Aniello Parretti ; was initially sentenced to death in 1921, but acquitted and released in 1923 after an appeal.
• Umberto "Rocco" Valenti ; was imprisoned for 10 months in 1918 and shot by Lucky Luciano on August 11, 1922 .
• Silva Tagliagamba ; died in June 1922 after a failed attack on Joe Masseria.
• Johnny Esposito

Camorra Associate

• Joseph DeMarco

Web links

• Morello family on gangrule.com (English)
• Camorra: The Navy Street Gang on gangrule.com (English)

literature

• Humbert S Nelli: The Business of Crime. Italians and Syndicate Crime in the United States ; 1981 (Originally published in 1976); ISBN 0-226-57132-7

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Giosue Gallucci , GangRule.com
2. ^ Nelli, The Business of Crime , pp. 129-131
3. ^ Father and Son Shot , The New York Times, May 18, 1915
4. ↑ 2 The In Pistol Fight in Brooklyn Street , The New York Times, September 8, 1916
5. ^ ^{A b} Camorra Secrets Revealed at Trial , The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, May 15, 1918
6. ↑ ^{a b} Gunman Gets 20 Years; Pellegrino Morano Sentenced for Killing 2 Brooklyn Men , New York Tribune, May 21, 1918
7. ↑ ^{a b} Dash, The First Family , p. 262
8. ^ ^{A b} Critchley, The Origin of Organized Crime in America , p. 128
9. ^ The Struggle for Control , GangRule.com
10. ↑ Confession May Clear 23 Feud Murders , The New York Times, Nov. 28, 1917
11. ↑ Jon Black: Antonio Parretti. GangRule.com, accessed July 6, 2019 . 
12. ↑ Jon Black: Aniellio Parretti. GangRule.com, accessed July 6, 2019 . 
13. ↑ History of the Mafia on archived copy ( Memento of the original from March 3, 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.