Santo Trafficante, Jr.

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Santo Trafficante, Jr.- Mugshot (1954)

Santo Trafficante, Jr. , also known as Louie Santos (born November 15, 1914 - March 17, 1987 ) was an Italian-American mobster of the American Cosa Nostra and the official head of the Trafficante family for over three decades ( Trafficante Crime Family) , also known as the Tampa Mafia .

Considered the most powerful organized crime figure in Florida during the 20th century, he was in total control of Miami , Miami Beach , Fort Lauderdale, and Palm Beach , yet never spent a single day in prison convicted.

Life

Early years

Santo Trafficante, Jr. was born in Tampa, Florida on November 15, 1914, to Santo Trafficante, Sr. and Maria Giuseppa Cacciatore . He was one of five sons and by that time Santo Sr. was an influential mobster in the Italian underworld of Tampa. Santo Junior was kicked out of high school before 10th grade and later followed in his father's footsteps. He grew up in the Florida underworld and worked in gambling businesses for his father and learned the "family business".

In 1938 he married his beloved Josephine Marchese , with whom he had two daughters.

Documents from the United States Treasury Department indicate that law enforcement assumed that Trafficante was also pursuing various legitimate business interests and that he also owned several legal casinos in Cuba . He held shares in Columbia Restaurant and several other Tampa restaurants and bars, and also owned a drive-in theater in Havana, Cuba.

As one of the most powerful mobsters in the country, he took part in December 1946, alongside various other high-ranking mafiosi, in the so-called Havana Conference , which is said to have taken place in Havana in the Hotel Nacional de Cuba and as the most important summit since the Atlantic City Conference of 1929 applies because important groundwork for the next decades was set here.

New boss

Trafficante Sr., who had been the head of the organization since 1940, remained the boss of Tampa until he died of natural causes in 1954. Trafficante Jr., who was named the underboss of the family by his father in 1950 , rose to be the new boss after his father's death and was soon considered one of the most powerful bosses of the American mafia. He had close working relationships with the Lucchese family and the Bonanno family from New York City . Santo Jr. worked closely with Lucchese boss Tommy Lucchese , who had been a good friend of his father's and supported him in a variety of matters during the 1940s. He kept better contact with Sam Giancana from Chicago Outfit .

In the 1950s, Trafficante was arrested on various bribery and illegal Bolita lottery charges in the Ybor borough of Tampa. He always escaped conviction, but was sentenced to five years' imprisonment in 1954 for bribery; however, this verdict was overturned before Trafficante's arrest in the Florida Supreme Court .

During the rule of the Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista , Trafficante operated various gambling establishments in Havana. It was assumed that he shares in the Habana Riviera hotel , the Tropicana Club , the Hotel Sevilla , the Capri Hotel-Casino , the Commodoro and the Havana Hilton -Hotel had in Cuba. At night, a so-called Bagman Batistas took shares in the profits of Trafficantes casinos.

On January 3, 1953, Santo Jr. survived an assassination attempt on him. It is said that the family suspected this was caused by former underworld boss Charlie Wall , who was murdered in 1955. To this day, his murder has remained unsolved.

Trafficante was one of around 100 Mafia members who took part in the legendary Apalachin meeting in 1957 ; a gathering of almost all bosses of the American Cosa Nostra in November 1957 which, in the municipality of Apalachin in New York took place and was raided by the local police. Trafficante himself was one of the 62 Mafiosi who were briefly arrested. In January 1958, Trafficante was also questioned by the Cuban National Police about the Apalachin meeting.

Castro plot

In 1959 the Cuban Revolution under Fidel Castro was successful and the dictator Fulgencio Batista had to flee the country. The new government soon began to nationalize the large hotels and casinos in Havana and the mobsters watched helplessly. When Trafficante was driven out of the country as an "undesirable foreigner" by Castro, Trafficante came into contact with various US intelligence agencies and is said to have been involved in several unsuccessful plans to assassinate Castro. Indications of these historical connections were confirmed by the CIA clearance of the so-called Family Jewels files.

In 1975 the CIA stated in a report that Trafficante had been persuaded to poison Castro. Trafficante himself denied the claim, stating that he was only a CIA interpreter.

JFK conspiracy

In 1976, Jose Aleman and FBI informant George Crile III told the Washington Post that Trafficante had requested a meeting in September 1962 to offer Aleman a $ 1.5 million loan to buy his dilapidated motel through a 12- to replace tiered glass wonder. He said that at the meeting, Trafficante complained about the Kennedy's honesty and their "attacks" on Jimmy Hoffa and other partners. When Aleman told him that Kennedy was likely to be re-elected, Trafficante replied, according to Aleman, "No, Jose, he will be hit." Crile wrote that Aleman said he reported this to his FBI contacts.

In 1978, both Trafficante and Aleman were cited before the United States House Committee investigating possible links between Lee Harvey Oswald and the Cuban dissident movement , including the theory that Cuban leader Fidel Castro received President John F. Kennedy in retaliation killed for attempted murder by the CIA. Aleman later denied before the committee that he believed Kennedy would be murdered, saying that Trafficante believed that Kennedy would be "hit" politically in the next election. Trafficante refuted claims the following day, September 28, that he said "Kennedy will be hit". He also said that he was positive and that he always spoke to Aleman in Spanish and that there was no way to say that phrase in Spanish. During his testimony, Trafficante also first admitted that he worked with the CIA from 1960 to 1961 in an attempt to poison Castro, but also said that his role was only that of an interpreter between CIA officials and Cuban exiles . He said that he received no payment for his involvement and that he acted out of patriotism.

Last years

Trafficante was tried in 1986 and questioned about his involvement in the King's Court nightclub operated by members of the Bonanno family from New York City; among others by undercover agent Joseph Pistone alias Donnie Brasco . Trafficante again escaped conviction in this case.

Santo Jr. never spent a single day in prison by conviction, and he died of natural causes on May 17, 1987. His underboss Vincent Salvatore LoScalzo became Trafficante's successor. Florida later became open territory to all families of the American Cosa Nostra.

In the movie

literature

  • AJ Bliss: Making a Sunbelt place: Tampa, Florida. 2010, OCLC 688486644 .
  • Scott M. Deitche: The Silent Don: The Criminal Underworld of Santo Trafficante, Jr. Barricade Books, 2007, ISBN 978-1-56980-322-6 .
  • Scott M. Deitche: Cigar City Mafia: A Complete History of The Tampa Underworld ; 2004, ISBN 1-56980-266-1 .
  • Joseph Pistone: Donnie Brasco: My Undercover Life in the Mafia. New American Library, New York 1987, ISBN 0-453-00557-8 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Find a Grave - Santo Trafficante, Jr (1914-1987)
  2. ↑ a b With Santo Trafficante, an era is ending . In: St. Petersburg Independent . St. Petersburg, Florida August 1, 1983, p. 5-A ( google.com [accessed September 23, 2017]).
  3. ↑ a b c Bio.com - Santo Trafficante
  4. ↑ HAVANA CONFERENCE: DECEMBER 20, 1946. Mob Museum , accessed October 8, 2016 .
  5. ↑ Hotel Nacional de Cuba, Havana: Where America's Underworld went in and out. In: Conbook magazine.
  6. ↑ Scott Deitche: The Mob. April 26, 2001.
  7. ↑ Scott Deitche: The Silent Don: The Criminal Underworld of Santo Trafficante Jr. Barricade Books, New York 2008.
  8. ↑ Selwyn Raab: Five families: the rise, decline, and resurgence of America's most powerful mafia empires. St Martin's Griffin, New York 2016, ISBN 978-1-4299-0798-9 , p. 105.
  9. ↑ Crime Inquiry Still Checking on Apalachin Meeting. In: Toledo Blade. Associated Press, July 2, 1958, p. Two , accessed May 27, 2012 .
  10. ↑ Apalachin Meeting Ruled Against Gang Killing Of Tough, Probe Told. In: Schenectady Gazette. Associated Press, February 13, 1959, pp. 1, 3 , accessed May 27, 2012 .
  11. ^ Memorandum for the Director of Central Intelligence, Subject: Roselli, Johnny. November 19, 1970.
  12. ^ A b George Crile III: The Mafia, The CIA, And Castro . In: The Washington Post . Washington, DC May 16, 1976, p. C4 ( latinamericanstudies.org [accessed September 23, 2017]).
  13. ↑ a b UPI: Witness denies assassination, Cuba tied . In: Eugene Register-Guard . Eugene, Oregon September 28, 1978 p. 8A ( google.com [accessed September 23, 2017]).
  14. ↑ AP: Mafia Linked In JFK Probe; By Cuban Exile . In: Observer-Reporter . Washington, Pennsylvania September 28, 1978, pp. A-10 ( google.com [accessed September 23, 2017]).
  15. ↑ Scott Deitche: The Everything Mafia Book. 2nd Edition. Barricade Books, New York 2007.
predecessor Office successor
Santo Trafficante, Sr. Head of the " Trafficante family " of the Mafia
1954 - 1987 		Vincent LoScalzo
personal data
SURNAME Trafficante, Santo junior
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Loui Santos (nickname)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Italian-American mobster
DATE OF BIRTH November 15, 1914
DATE OF DEATH March 17, 1987