Chronicles of Events and Biographies Related to the American Mafia. However, by the late 1920s, facing little pressure, Sicilian gangsters began setting up lucrative gambling and narcotics rackets. Interestingly, Trafficante who was worth about $25 billion at his height in the 80s lived a fairly reserved, modest lifestyle. Josephine Marchese Trafficante In January 1963, he married Geraldine Valenti, the daughter. He dropped out of high school before the 10th grade. Consequently, while generally recognized as the most powerful organized crime figure in Florida throughout much of the 20th century, Trafficante was not believed to have total control over Miami, Miami Beach, Ft. Lauderdale, or Palm Beach. Trafficantes partnership with Batista was profitable for both parties and so the mobsters fate became inextricably tied to that of Cubas political climate. (November 15, 1914 - March 17, 1987 ). Trafficante was a ruthless mob boss, and quickly consolidated control over the criminal networks in Tampa. Are you sure that you want to remove this flower? Please enable JavaScript in your browser's settings to use this part of Geni. U.S. Treasury Department documents indicate that law enforcement believed Trafficante's legitimate business interests to include several legal casinos in Cuba; a Havana drive-in movie theater; and shares in several restaurants and bars in Trafficante's hometown of Tampa, Florida. ", Christopher Sabella elected as Hillsborough Countys next chief judge, Tampa man arrested in death of person found in apartment with unharmed infant, deputies say, Suspect in Hillsborough slaying of woman IDd, man known as Ya Dig, deputies say, After nearly a century of fixing Tampas flat tires, downtown Firestone closes, Under investigation, HART CEO proposes settlement, payout and exit, Dead body found in Hillsborough apartment with unharmed infant, deputies say, NAACP wants reparations for Tampas Black cemeteries that governments stole, Latin Kings gang leaders among 21 arrested in Hillsborough drug operation, sheriff says, Estimated 630,000 gallons of raw sewage spilled into the Hillsborough River, records show, Tampa man who was first to face trial for Florida voter fraud in 2020 election gets probation. Trafficante would be charged with bank fraud, perjury and disclosure of criminal investigation. I have thought of you and Santo many times over the past 50 years. Your Scrapbook is currently empty. In this episode, we will discuss the fascinating life of Tampa's most powerful mobster: Santo Trafficante Jr. Please check your email for further instructions. Santo Jr.'s daughters still owns 3610, where Santo spent time when he wasn't in Tampa or Miami.
2023, Tampa Mafia. Are you sure that you want to delete this photo? You've got to be a fool to marry wrong," he says.
Trafficante crime family - Wikipedia So, at his attorney Ralph Fernandez's urging, he has agreed to talk publicly, hoping to shore up his damaged reputation. TRAFFICANTE, Santo Jose, 72, of Tampa, passed away July 13, 2010, To Plant Memorial Trees in memory, please visit our, All my Love to the family Michael R. Tartaro. Afterwards, the son he had groomed to take his place, Santo Trafficante Jr., took the reins of the Trafficante crime family. Previously sponsored memorials or famous memorials will not have this option. Early in Trafficantes federal court case in 1986, the judge declared a mistrial. Geni requires JavaScript! Please enter your email and password to sign in. Or does he just look like one? We never paid cash. Santo Trafficante Jr. was a reserved, modest man married to the same woman for 49 years. Trafficante tried to win Castro over to his side, but that didnt work. Now he owns a 210-acre orange grove in southern Hillsborough. In 1954, Santo Sr. died of natural causes (at a time when some of his remaining rivals were still being violently dispatched), and his son took over leadership of the crime family. After a violent mob war left several of Trafficantes rivals dead or weakened, his gang rapidly rose to prominence in Tampa. Our heartfelt condolences go out to your family. Today, Santo Trafficantes criminal legacy lives on through his nephew and namesake, Santo Trafficante III, who was charged with organized fraud in 1992. You have chosen this person to be their own family member. TAMPA CRIME BOSS SANTO TRAFFICANTE JR PLAYS A CENTRAL ROLE IN THRILLER MAFIA SPIES. My heart goes out to the family. By the time Prohibition and the Era of Blood ended, he was the top man in the Florida Mafia, operating with the blessing of exiled Mob boss Charlie Lucky Luciano, Frank Costello of the Five Families, and Meyer Lansky of the national Syndicate. Our thoughts and prayers are with you Gerry and your family. She was the Matriarch of the Trafficante Family; and we will all miss her presence, guidance, love and affection. One small gang, led by Italian immigrant Santo Trafficante Senior, profited from the illegal lottery-style games they ran across Tampa.
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The hit man and the mobster: Jack Ruby and Santos Trafficante I thought you might like to see a memorial for Santo Trafficante Jr. 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. He dressed nicely but not ostentatiously, and his choice of cars was never flashy. One bank filed suit in November against him and a business partner, alleging that they defaulted on an $85,000 loan for a piece of property. But Santo knew who was behind the killing a rival Mafia faction. Published: March 15th, 2017 - By Scott M. Deitche, Contributing Writer, Florida Mafia boss Santo Trafficante Jr. died 30 years ago March 17, El Chapos lawyers complain about strict rules at New York prison. prosecution, fled temporarily to Cuba. He is hardly the "Dapper Don."
Treasury Department History of Santo Trafficante Jr 1961 However, while the Latin American drug trade has figured prominently in the sunshine states less savory history, so has the Mafia. She is now living in Virginia. Santo Trafficante Jr. had long followed in his fathers footsteps, and proved to be an even more effective Mafia kingpin. Like Trafficante Jr. before him, had many close calls with law enforcement, but always escaped serious charges. His luck has not improved recently. He sought treatment for stomach cancer and was ready to hand power over to a trusted lieutenant. A year later they had their first son, Frank, born on April 16, 1910. Failed to remove flower. It may take up to 1 hour for your comment to appear on the website.
Santo Trafficante, Jr. - facebook.com When he applied to the state for a parimutuel license that would allow him to race his horses at Tampa Bay Downs, he was refused. With over 1,900 locations, Dignity Memorial providers proudly serve over 375,000 families a year. Rosselli testified in 1975 to the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence on the efforts to kill Castro. Trafficante enjoyed life in Cuba, developed a relationship with its strongman, the dictator Fulgencio Batista, and helped the Trafficante Crime family garner even more profits from its legitimate gambling operations there. As one of the most powerful mobsters in the US, Trafficante was invited to the Havana Conference in December 1946. Josephine Marchese Trafficante, 95, died peacefully in her sleep, Wednesday morning at her home. In his previous statements, Roselli also tied Lee Harvey Oswalds killer, Jack Ruby, to Santo Trafficante. Ed Giorandino/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images. wills o' nats last of the summer wine.
Episode 58: The Tampa Mafia- Santo Trafficante Jr - YouTube The gunmen drove off, unaware they had failed to kill Trafficante, merely grazing his arm. To view a photo in more detail or edit captions for photos you added, click the photo to open the photo viewer. A car registered to former state attorney and current state appellate judge E.J. Conspiracy theorists consider Giancana along with Mafia leaders Santo Trafficante Jr. and Carlos Marcello associated with the assassination of Kennedy. Wife : Josephine MARCHESE (Santo TRAFFICANTE Jr. married Josephine in Tampa, Florida on April 17, 1938). View Source Suggest Edits Memorial Photos Flowers Memorials Region North America USA Florida "Now when I walk in a bank," Trafficante says, "the president runs out the back door.".
Notoriety comes with family name - Tampa Bay Times A Drive-By Historical Tour of Tampa's Notorious Wise Guys He wants Trafficante, whom he considers to have an authoritative palate, to sample a new pastry that Alessi plans to sell at his bakery. 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. And then there are the infinite conspiracy theories about the assassination of President Kennedy, many of them featuring Trafficante. It was also rumored that Santos was involved in a Mafia plot to kill President John F. Kennedy, though he denied there was any such conspiracy. [3] Trafficante moved to Cuba in 1955, where he came into contact with Batista and Meyer Lansky. Santos ran numerous legitimate businesses as well as illegal, including several legal casinos in Cuba, a Havana drive-in movie theater, and shares in restaurants and bars in Tampa. She lived an exciting life dividing her time between her multiple family members and friends in Tampa, Miami and Havana. They raided my apartment, they were looking for money, they tore up all the furniture, they used to come and get me at nighttime, take me out in the woods, trying to tell where I had my money, this and that, until I finally went into hiding.. "[12] He said that Trafficante complained about the honesty of the Kennedys and their "attacks" on Jimmy Hoffa and other associates. Trafficante was one of the last surviving members of the original Luciano mob era upon his death, and the truth behind the JFK assassination may have perhaps died with him. The international narcotics trade was also an important topic on the Apalachin agenda. Please try again later. He headed the . Zeng8r/Wikimedia Common A set of bolita balls.
Florida Mafia boss Santo Trafficante Jr. died 30 years ago March 17 [21], Trafficante was summoned to court in 1986 and questioned about his involvement with the King's Court Bottle Club operated by members of the Bonanno crime family, including undercover FBI agent Joseph D. "Joe" Pistone, a.k.a. Most mornings Trafficante spends a few hours at his modest wholesale automobile lot at the intersection of Dale Mabry Highway and W Broad Street. Associates: Sam Giancana, Charlie Lucky Luciano, Meyer Lansky, Cuba, Fidel Castro, Johnny Rosselli, Robert Maheu. And all this occurred throughout seven Sylvia at age 12 and her father Jimmy Velasco in California, June 1948 Jimmy Velasco was a political fixer. Trafficante was arrested on a bookmaking conspiracy charge. Try again later. U.S., Newspapers.com Obituary Index, 1800s-current, U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947, Florida, U.S., County Marriage Records, 1823-1982, Thank you for fulfilling this photo request.
REPUTED FLORIDA GODFATHER TRAFFICANTE, 72, DIES - Sun Sentinel or don't show this againI am good at figuring things out. Harris & Ewing/Library of Commons/Wikimedia CommonsCuban leader Fulgencio Batista in Washington, D.C. in 1938. In the mid-2000s, he would say he was a legitimate businessman, citing his ownership of a car dealership, and employment at various restaurants and night clubs over the years.
[18] According to Ragano, he met Hoffa at the Teamsters' headquarters in Washington, DC, then delivered the message to Trafficante and Marcello in a meeting at the Royal Orleans Hotel in New Orleans. She was predeceased in death, by other loving family members. Pallbearers are Augie Castellana, Sam Paniello, Christopher Paniello, Anthony B. Marchese, Peter Marchese Jr., Ian Cordell, Don Smith, Frank Pancho Trafficante, John Castellana, and Dr. Santo Paniello. Ex-FBI agent and later Howard Hughes aide Robert Maheu of Las Vegas was one of the primary go-betweens for Trafficante. You and Santo will always have a special place in my heart. Santo Jr. was indicted several times through the 1950s but was convicted only once, on state charges in 1954 for bribery, and that conviction was overturned by the Florida Supreme Court. 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. Resend Activation Email, Please check the I'm not a robot checkbox, If you want to be a Photo Volunteer you must enter a ZIP Code or select your location on the map. Please check your email and click on the link to activate your account. In 1957 he was suspected of involvement in the barbershop slaying of Albert Anastasia, the . My thoughts and prayers are with you all! Alongside Chicago boss Sam Giancana, Roselli and Trafficante came up with some truly insane plots to kill Fidel Castro. Santo Trafficante grew up in the Florida underworld, working his father's gambling rackets and getting experience in the business. based on information from your browser. Visitation will take place on Saturday, May 16th, from 9:30 to 11:30 AM, with service to follow at Gonzalez Funeral Home, 7209 N. Dale Mabry Highway, Tampa, FL. This is a carousel with slides. "I don't go to the bank and make all these billion-dollar deposits," he says. F. Kennedy not only failed to deliver on his promise to the mob but also actually put the Mafia under increasing pressure. After a lifetime in organized crime, Trafficante Jr. died of national causes in 1987. Santo met and married Maria Giuseppe Cacciatore on April 20, 1909. Help tell the story of your loved ones unique life. He died on March 17, 1987. He is just a businessman, he says, his money tied up in wholesale automobiles, an orange grove and real estate. "Sam Gold" was Sam Giancana; "Joe" was Trafficante. After the Kennedy hubbub, Trafficante kept a low profile or, lower that is. "I'm a freak for that kind of stuff," he says. He headed the Trafficante crime family and controlled organized criminal operations in Florida and Cuba, which had previously been consolidated from several rival gangs by his father, Santo Trafficante Sr. Trafficante maintained links to the Bonanno crime family in New York City, but was more closely allied with Sam Giancana in Chicago. Please check your entries and try again. Undercover detectives ran a gambling sting operation there, hoping to nab a circle of Tampa men they said were making illegal sports bets. And the Trafficante Crime family found out that it had an unusual ally in their concerns about Castro: the Central Intelligence Agency. After his father died in 1954, he became the head in Tampa and took over his fathers interests in Cuba. [1] In 1997, further declassified documents indicated that some mafiosi worked with the agency on assassination attempts against Castro. [2] Trafficante Jr. would frequently meet with Lucchese in New York City for dinner.[2]. Thanks for your help! Santo Trafficante was wanted in 48 states by the time he was 43. [1] Trafficante maintained several residences in New York City and Florida. At age 16, he boarded the S.S. Lombardia and set sail for American in search of a better life. In a final disappointment, he sold a filly named "Run Marisa Run" (after his daughter) for $7,500. And as for the rest of the Trafficante Crime family? Dr. Dennis Pupello was looking for heart disease, brought on by his overweight and diabetic patient's "voracious eating.". There are few indicators that the family is still an active crime network.
Santo Trafficante Jr. Learns About Sonny Franzese Batista let Trafficante and other mobsters build as many casinos and hotels as they wanted in exchange for a cash kickback. Born: November 15, 1914, Tampa, Florida At 7:25 p.m. on January 3, 1953, Florida Mafia boss Santo Trafficante Jr. had just finished dinner with his wife and children at his father-in-laws house in the Ybor City section of Tampa, Florida. Try again later. THE CHARLIE WALL STORY Kingpin Charlie Wall (center holding bottle, right of child) and his notorious gang. Finally, in 1987, Trafficante died at the age of 72. cemeteries found within miles of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list. More importantly, Castro imprisoned Trafficante and then had him exiled from Cuba. Afterwards, the son he had groomed to take his place, Santo Trafficante Jr., took the reins of the Trafficante crime family. Trafficante was arrested again in 1957 for attending the famous Apalachin summit of Mob leaders in New York, but those charges were dropped. Seven people were murdered. He died of natural causes, at the age of 72, in Houston, Texas. The next son was Luigi Santo Trafficante Jr. (his namesake and future Mafia boss), born on November 15, 1914. A A. The "Family Jewels" confirmed that in September 1960, the CIA recruited ex-FBI agent Robert Maheu to approach the West Coast representative of the Chicago mob, Johnny Roselli. Learn more about merges. Buy the time LoScalzo took over in 1987, the Trafficante Crime Family was far past its heyday. Trafficante was jailed and deported when Fidel Castro rose to power, leading him to spend a good portion of his adult life hatching a plan of revenge. In January 1963, he married Geraldine Valenti, the daughter of J.C. Valenti, who owned a thriving produce business.
Santo Trafficante Jr - Mafia Facts But those werent even their most ridiculous ideas. You can customize the cemeteries you volunteer for by selecting or deselecting below. Now in his late 70s or early 80s, LoScalzo is reported to be retired. The guy really tried to do it right.".
Instead of Italian suits, he wears horizontally striped golf shirts. Make sure that the file is a photo. According to Scott M. Deitche in The Silent Don, the family was profiting not only from its offshore casinos but from narcotics trafficking. His wife also was named in the fraud charges. And despite relatively small time beginnings, Trafficante proved to be a shrewd mobster. When you think of Florida and organized crime, it is difficult to avoid conjuring up images of Tony Montana in Scarface, or the heyday of Miami Vice. So, who was this so-called Silent Don who wielded enough power to allegedly kill the President? Oops, something didn't work. 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. Trafficante proceeded to open casinos in Cuba at his fathers behest and facilitated heroin smuggling by working together with famous mobsters Charles Lucky Luciano and Meyer Lansky. [8] Allusions to these historic connections were confirmed by the CIA's 2007 declassification of the "Family Jewels" documents. He returned to Tampa for the last time for internment in the LUnione Italiana Cemetery. The Museum is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with a mission to advance the public understanding of organized crime's history and impact on American society. The Trafficante Family Under Santo Junior . There was a problem getting your location. Sign up for service and obituary updates. The chairman cited a confession from Roselli that Trafficantes allies organized a sharpshooter, Lee Harvey Oswald, to take out the President. He attended the University of Florida for a year, then transferred to the University of Tampa and left without completing his degree. Santo Jr., who had inherited the leadership of the Tampa Mafia around 1950 when his father, Santo Sr., fell ill, had now completed his consolidation of power in Tampa and beyond. The Trafficante Family Under Santo Junior. [13], On January 14, 1992, Trafficante's former attorney, Frank Ragano, told Jack Newfield of the New York Post that he relayed a request from Hoffa to Trafficante and New Orleans boss Carlos Marcello to have Kennedy killed. Getty ImagesSanto Trafficante was wanted in 48 states by the time he was 43. A native and lifelong resident of Tampa, Mr. Traffi-cante is survived by his loving family, wife, Geraldine "Gerry" L. Trafficante; sons, Dino Jose and Joseph Frank Trafficante; daughters,. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santo_Trafficante_Jr. Email blog@themobmuseum.org. Bankruptcy court documents show that Trafficante is owed $500,000 by a business partner. Husband of Private But the mobster tag has outlasted the case itself. The glamorous casino in the Hotel Nacional De Cuba in Havana in 1958. In 1963, the Mob allegedly had enough of Kennedy. Pupello determined that his diabetic patient's arteries were healthy. Santo was known to have been deeply involved in the CIA efforts to involve the underworld in assassination attempts on Fidel Castro. You may not upload any more photos to this memorial, This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has 20 photos, This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded 5 photos to this memorial, This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has 30 photos, This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded 15 photos to this memorial. Peter Moruzzi/Wikimedia Commons The glamorous casino in the Hotel Nacional De Cuba in Havana in 1958. "The Mob? In the early 1980s Trafficante was ensnared in two major cases that could have sent the aging don to prison for the first time in his life, apart from his time in the Triscornia detention camp in Cuba following Castros takeover in 1959. Scott M. Deitche is the author of six books on organized crime, including a biography of Santo Trafficante Jr., and has written dozens of articles on organized crime for magazines and newspapers. The Unbelievable Story Of Richard Lee McNair The Man Who Mailed Himself Out Of Prison, What JFK's Mob-Affiliated Mistress May Have Known About His Assassination, What Stephen Hawking Thinks Threatens Humankind The Most, 27 Raw Images Of When Punk Ruled New York, Join The All That's Interesting Weekly Dispatch. Santo Trafficante 5 10 (1.78 m) Born November 15, 1914 Tampa, Florida, USA Died March 17, 1987 Spouse Josephine Marchese April 17, 1938 - March 17, 1987 (his death, 2 children) Publicity listings 2 Portrayals Did you know Edit Trivia Represented by Frank Ragano. We are one of them! [20], In 2005, Lamar Waldron and Thom Hartmann's book Ultimate Sacrifice said that Trafficante was behind an aborted plot to kill Kennedy in Tampa on November 18, 1963. Valenti hired his son-in-law at the produce company and allowed him to name his own salary. When Fidel Castro began his ascent to power in the 1950s, Santo Trafficante feared the radical Marxist revolutionary wouldnt cooperate with him. "They wouldn't even let me go to the track. Mobster Johnny Rosselli, who worked for both Trafficante and the Chicago Outfit, was another associate involved in the unsuccessful efforts to kill Castro and, according to some biographies, was the man who put Trafficante and Giancana together with Maheu. Wikimedia CommonsPresident John F. Kennedy, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, and Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy. The men started to drive away when another sedan drove past the Mercury, the occupants unloading a blast of buckshot as they passed. They used to be my greatest friend," Trafficante says. When the CIA decided to recruit the Mob in their efforts to assassinate Fidel Castro, they went to see Trafficante. Getting in bed with Trafficante and other leading members of Americas organized crime seems like a strange thing to do for the CIA.
Anthony Accardo & Santo Trafficante Jr - Labor Union Kickbacks After Cuban revolution, the Mafia saw Castro as a threat to their business. [15] He repeated the claim two days later on ABC's Good Morning America,[16] in Newfield's Frontline report entitled JFK, Hoffa and Mob broadcast in November 1992,[17] and again in his 1994 autobiography Mob Lawyer. He was again called to testify in April 1976 on the alleged conspiracy to kill Kennedy, but Rosselli never made it: His body was found in a barrel floating in Biscayne Bay off the coast of Florida. Trafficante scrambled out the passenger-side door. Are you sure that you want to delete this memorial? He maintained all of the lucrative casinos in Cuba, further cemented ties with powerful Mafia families he had established as a young man in New York, and ruthlessly put down any attempts to usurp his territory or power. In 1959, the Cuban Revolution toppled the corrupt Batista government and the rebel leader, Fidel Castro, nationalized foreign-owned properties and shuttered the casinos, a huge financial blow to Trafficante, who was second only to Meyer Lansky in the depth of his investments in Havana. We guarantee you'll never look at Ybor City the same way again.
Home - Boxer Cycle Works [13] Trafficante also stated that he had no recollection of meeting Oswald or Oswald's assassin, Jack Ruby. They had three daughters, Antoinette born . Daughters: Mary Josephine Sarah Ann Brothers: Frank, Salvatore (Sam), Epifanio and Enrico (Henry) Uncle: Joseph M. CACCIATORE (convicted narcotic trafficker) CRIMINAL HISTORY: "I'm in the I.O.U. Failed to delete memorial. 12 talking about this. Weve updated the security on the site. [13] Trafficante said that he introduced the trio to Cuban exiles in Florida. We send our most sincere sympathies to the Trafficante family. Ed Giorandino/NY Daily News Archive via Getty ImagesSanto Trafficante arrives at Queens Supreme Court in Kew Gardens. One of the last surviving mobsters from the Luciano era, he died of heart disease in a Houston, Texas, hospital in 1987. Whether or not a Mafia conspiracy was behind the assassination of Kennedy is still up for debate. Reclaiming History: The Assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Try again later. Daughters: Mary Josephine Sarah Ann Brothers: Frank, Salvatore (Sam), Epifanio and Enrico (Henry) Uncle: Joseph M. CACCIATORE (convicted narcotic trafficker) CRIMINAL HISTORY: "But then you get into alias this and alias that and when they get you in court, you probably just create more problems," he says. His son was turned away from a date's house and his daughter has been refused jobs. Please enter your email address and we will send you an email with a reset password code. He owned and operated some of the most lavish casinos in pre-Castro Cuba. At this point in our collective history, we're not sure anyone would be surprised to learn that there is, in fact, something called The Mafia. What you might be surprised to learn, however, is how prevalent-even rampantorganized crime in Tampa was in the early and mid-20th century. Then, check out these photos of the aftermath from some of the bloodiest mob hits.
James Traficant - Wikipedia