Era in carcere dal 1992", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Papalia_crime_family&oldid=1133212737, Racketeering, loan sharking, money laundering, gambling, drug trafficking, extortion, fraud and prostitution, This page was last edited on 12 January 2023, at 18:41. [23] One who knew the gang stated, "They were a very tough bunch. [39], Johnny Papalia was shot dead on May 31, 1997, at the age of 73, in the parking lot outside his vending machine business, Galaxy Vending, on 20 Railway Street in Hamilton by hitman Kenneth Murdock claimed to be ordered by Angelo and Pat Musitano of the Musitano crime family who owed $250,000 to Papalia. [156] After Papalia refused to get involved, he turned his back, and Murdock pulled out his handgun and shot him. Pat and his baby-faced, 21-year-old brother, Angelo, were charged with the murder, but struck a deal, pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit murder in the death of Papalia's lieutenant, Carmen. [30] Frank did refuse, fined $150, his licence suspended for three months and his car taken to impound, where it was worked on by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. "[138], Several times, the police were able to pressure criminals to wear wires while visiting Papalia at his office on Railroad Street, but he never said anything that would had allowed the police to lay charges. They're taking me somewhere I don't want to go! [149] Another reason was his opposition to the Rizzuto family. [1] [155] The hitman Kenneth Murdock claimed that he had been ordered to kill Papalia by Angelo and Pat Musitano of the Musitano crime family who owed $250,000 in bookmaking debts to Papalia. Half. [36] In 1954, Papalia was running a taxi company in Hamilton, which attracted police attention when one of the cab drivers, Tony Coposodi, was killed execution-style. He later claimed that his reputation for violence dated back to the war years when he was the subject of anti-Italian bullying and insults, leading Papalia to engage in violence for self-defense. "[92], On June 4, 1970, a NDP MPP, Morton Shulman, gave a speech at Queen's Park, that detailed the close friendship between Papalia and a locally prominent Oakville businessman with a long criminal record, Clinton Duke as well as with the commissioner of the Ontario Provincial Police Eric Silk. [24], By the late 1950s, Johnny Papalia was a made man in the Buffalo family, and boss of the Papalia family Ontario faction. To John, it would have been the fact that he was taken for a fool, which he couldn't handle; that he had trusted somebody that he couldn't. [51] On July 15, 1977, Donald MacKay, a Griffith politician who had long been opposed to the activities of the 'ndrina in his hometown disappeared after going to meet a man who promised him information about the Papalia family. [64] While Bluestein kept control of the Toronto gambling market, he had paranoia and was later committed to a mental institution in 1973 after he had killed a friend, before later dying of a heart attack in 1984. [120], As a boss, Papalia was feared rather than loved; one of his associates stated, "We had to respect him because of his role. According to the investigations, Domenico is "one of the most authoritative figures, by far, of the entire 'Ndrangheta organization". [86] It was for this reason that Papalia never visited Italy. [21] The Papalia family were still angry with Perri for his refusal to support the Italiano family and made an alliance with Stefano Magaddino against him. [10] Antonio became associated with Calabrian compatriot and notorious bootlegger Rocco Perri, and later Guelph mobster Tony Sylvestro, working as a bootlegger who operated speakeasies. [37], Later in 1961, Papalia demolished the family home and built a warehouse for his vending machine business, an all-cash business, to serve as the front for his criminal operations. [75] Much to Papalia's annoyance, some of his interests in Toronto were handed over by the Magaddinos to Volpe. [70][71] On May 22, 1961, several people were indicted related to the "French Connection" from informants Salvatore Rinaldo and Matteo Palmeri. [14] Moon stated, "John was a bastard. According to his death notice, Papalia is survived by his daughter Rachael and two grandchildren. People who use our name pay. "[124], In January 1981, Papalia married Janetta Hayes in a private ceremony; they separated in 1983. "[129] In contrast to Simard, Papalia hated Eddie Melo, a boxer turned mob enforcer for the Cotroni family, who had replaced Simard as the Cotroni's family's supervisor for the Toronto area. "[121] The Gold Key Club became Papalia's principal base for entertaining visitors as the large, illuminated neon yellow key on the front of the club became a symbol of his power in Hamilton. [129] Cotroni's right-hand man, Claude Faber, told Simard, "If he makes any trouble, kill the fucker he's old enough to die. I tell you, this guy was like a fox. I'm your new partner. [76] The "French Connection" case was described by Robert F. Kennedy, the attorney-general of the United States, as "the deepest penetration ever made in the illegal international trafficking of drugs. [11] However, Papalia was suspected in playing a role in the murder of Perri's wife Bessie Starkman in 1930. [16][5] On 23 April 1944, Perri vanished after going out for a walk and it is believed Papalia along with his father was involved in "the mysterious affair" of Perri's disappearance. [133] When Longo died, Iannuzzeli disappeared three days later. [4] One news report stated that the events of 1997 "decapitated the Papalia family". Born in 1930 to bootlegger Antonio and wife Maria, Papalia came of age in the 1950s and '60s, when the Calabrian mafia dominated the Hamilton underworld. Once you became their friend and earned their respect and you were loyal to them, you didn't have to worryThere was no limit on what they spent. [153] Musitano was unhappy with the way that his family was subordinate to the Papalia family, which in turn was the Canadian branch of the Magaddino family. [15], Nazzareno "Ned" Italiano, the first cousin to Maria Rosa Italiano, was imprisoned in 1929 for trafficking in heroin while he refused a plea bargain offer from the Crown to testify against his employers Perri and his common-law wife and business partner Bessie Starkman in exchange for a lighter sentence. "[24] On January 27, 1944, Papalia was arrested for failing to register for conscription for the defense of Canada as he was legally obliged to do in 1942 when he turned 18. [88], On January 25, 1968, after serving less than half the sentence, he was released from a United States penitentiary in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania and sent back to Canada. [66] As a loan shark, Papalia forced those who took loans from him to pay back $6 for every $5 they had borrowed with the interest compounding on a weekly basis, amounting to an annual 1,040 percent interest on the loans. He got where he is through fear. The Papalia crime family is a 'Ndrangheta organized crime family based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, as well as Plat in Southern Italy and Buccinasco in N. Joseph Todaro Sr. took control of the family in the mid-1980s and began to pull the somewhat weakened family together including strengthening its Canadian ties to longtime crime family crew in Hamiton, Ontario also known as the Papalia crime family. [110] In 1974, Montreal mobsters Vincenzo Cotroni and Paolo Violi were overheard on a police wiretap threatening to kill Papalia and demanding $150,000 after he used their names in the $300,000 extortion of Toronto business man Stanley Bader without notifying or cutting them in on the score. [32] Through the wiretap planted in his car, Frank was heard procuring a woman, Shirley Ryce, for the Papalias' lawyer Clive Bynoe to have sex with her on September 5, 1979. Amusements, a pin-ball machine company and Beer Magic, which had a virtual monopoly on supplying beer dispensers for bars in Ontario for decades to come. [170] Langton noted Papalia had a marked distaste for outlaw bikers and, in a sign of his power, Walter Stadnick, the former president of Hells Angels Canada, had trouble establishing the Angels in Ontario while Papalia was alive. [104] Papalia took this duty seriously, attempting to serve as a surrogate father to Domenic Racco and tried to discourage him, albeit unsuccessfully, from abusing drugs. [137] Sandelli stated, "You can't infiltrate Johnny Papalia. When Michelle Castillo was found hanging from a showerhead in her Ashburn, Virginia, home with an electrical cord around her neck, her family was dumbfounded. [19] In 1940, Antonio Papalia was sent to internment at Camp Petawawa as part of the Italian Canadian internment, as potentially dangerous enemy aliens with alleged fascist connections to Benito Mussolini's regime. [59], The 100 some witnesses to the beating were reluctant to come forward, but in May of that year Papalia turned himself in to police to take some heat off of the crime family, and he was sentenced in June to 18 months in prison for the assault. "[37] However, Synowich focused on Papalia's sex addiction, calling him "a compulsive womanizer. The Papalia crime family ( Italian: [papalia]) also known as Papalia 'ndrina, is a 'Ndrangheta organized crime family [2] based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, as well as Plat in Southern Italy and Buccinasco in Northern Italy. Police. [171] One police officer, Shawn Clarkson, of the Niagara Falls Police Department, stated: "There was nobody to stand up to the Hells Angels the way Barillaro or Papalia would have. [27] In 1972, Ryce became the mistress of Frank Papalia, who also used her, having her "entertain" other mafiosi via dinners, drinks and sex, through she was informed she that she must never engage in oral sex, which was forbidden to mafiosi. [37] However, at the trial, the defence questioned the validity of the wiretap evidence. "[123] A police officer said, "John Papalia would like nothing better than to walk into a bar and have everyone in the room bow their head in respect. The Musitano crime family (Italian: [muzitano]) is a 'Ndrangheta organized crime family based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, as well as Plat in Southern Italy and Buccinasco and Bareggio in Northern Italy. The Papalia clan that operate in Italy have alliances with the Barbaro 'ndrina, while the Papalia clan in Canada is one of three centralized Mafia organizations in Hamilton the other two being the Musitano crime family and the Luppino . Police. [63] Addison noted that the witnesses had all taken oaths on the Bible to tell the truth before testifying, which led him to sourly note that the fear of Papalia seemed greater than the fear of God with the witnesses at this trial. "Mafia hitman reveals his code for killings", "His brother was Ontario's pre-eminent Mafia boss, but long-suffering Frank Papalia was still his keeper", "Bawdy houses, biker clubs and Mafia joints: Should we give gang landmarks historical status? J. Parker, the former British Empire and Canadian heavyweight champion. [83], Due to the indictment, Magaddino promoted Santo Scibetta to leader of the Buffalo family's Ontario branch, replacing Papalia. [62] The trial ended with Papalia being found guilty of assault and Judge Addison sentenced Papalia to 18 months in prison. The Papalia crime . McGowan; McGurk; Papalia. [1] [4] From the ten children of Francesco Barbaro and Marianna Carbone descended five branches of the family and eight 'ndrine that dominate the 'Ndrangheta of Plat: Barbaro Castanu, Rosi, Nigru, Pillaru, Perre Maistru, Papalia Carciutu, Sergi 'Mbilli (now in the background) and Trimboli Piseja. [108] On August 26, 1973, Swartz told Bader that the defrauded investors were from the Cotroni family who were planning to "maim" him, but that Papalia had stepped in to save him by agreeing to take $300,000 to Montreal. [122] He listed jazz as his favourite genre of music. He is a cop-hater, a primitive. [47], In the 1970s, the Papalia siblings relocated their operations from Plat to Buccinasco near Milan. "[57] Several of the witnesses to the Bluestein beating received threatening phone calls in the days after, warning them that it would be "healthier" for them to forget what they had just seen. [47] Papalia especially liked to target stockbrokers who worked on Toronto's Bay Street, usually demanding that they pay him about $1,000 per week as "protection", supposedly against their enemies, but in fact for protection against being beaten by Papalia's crew. Papalia. [122] Papalia told Moon that he had stopped taking vacations in Mexico because there was "too much crime" in that nation, and now preferred the West Indies. [97] The plans turned out to be moot when the Quebec premier, Robert Bourassa, later dropped his plans to legalize casinos as his government took a tough law-and-order stance in response to the FLQ. You know you didn't have to give them anything back. [68] Monarch Vending was a profitable concern, making a daily profit of $12,000. [11] Papalia later described himself as a "wild kid" who was known for his womanizing, and who had contracted syphilis by the age of 19. [151], In the 1990s, Mora borrowed $7.2 million from Montreal mob boss Vito Rizzuto and gave the bulk of the money to Papalia to open an upscale restaurant and nightclub in Toronto. [152], In April 1997, Pasquale "Fat Pat" Musitano, the boss of the Musitano family, met with Gaetano "Guy" Panepinto, the Toronto agent of Montreal's Rizzuto family, in Niagara Falls. After the Rizzuto crime family were not re-paid, in September 1996, Mora was shot in the head four times at a Vaughan farm; Giacinto Arcuri was arrested and charged with Mora's murder, but was acquitted for lack of evidence. The branch was founded and headed by the children of Giuseppe Papalia and Serafina Barbaro. The Musitano family was founded by Angelo Musitano in Canada in the 1940s, and was one of three centralized Mafia organizations in Hamilton, with the other two being the Luppino crime . Antonio Papalia founded the Papalia family in Canada in the 1940s, and is one of three centralized Mafia organizations in Hamilton, with the other two being the Musitano crime family and the Luppino crime family. On May 10, 1987, Domenico Papalia was murdered outside of his house in Melbourne and on September 3, 1989, Filippo Papalia was also murdered outside of his house in Sydney. When Bluestein dropped to the floor, he was kicked in the face. [47], On July 10, 2008, in the Cerberus operation of the Guardia di Finanza, several people were arrested including Barbaro 'ndrina members and Antonio Papalia's son Pasquale, who received orders from the bosses in prison, Domenico, Rocco and Antonio Papalia who were said to have controlled the construction sector in Buccinasco, Corsico and Pogliano Milanese. [18] Johnny, the oldest brother to Frank, Rocco and Dominic Papalia, half-brothers Joseph and Angelo Papalia, brother-in-law Tony Pugliese, and associates, all worked in running his clubs and gambling operations. I loved it. [29] In the summer of 1979, police pulled Frank over to ask questions about possible drinking and driving in hopes he would refuse a breathalyzer test, charge him, and impound his car to install wiretaps. [8] He was suspected in playing a role in the murder of Perri's wife Bessie Starkman in 1930. They are always looking to compromise people who might help them, even if it's years and years down the road". [166] The journalists Andr Cdilot and Andr Nol described the Musitano brothers as merely proxies for Vito Rizzuto, the boss of the Rizzuto family, who saw Papalia, who was loyal to the Magaddino family, as an obstacle for his plans to dominate Ontario. [27] When visiting Toronto, Papalia was known to joke that the particular branch of the Toronto-Dominion bank that he robbed in 1944 was "our bank. Langton stated, "It's hard for people to understand now just how powerful Johnny Pops was. [133] Papalia read Deadly Silence and later briefly met Nicaso; the latter found it significant that Papalia did not actually deny the accusation about Volpe's murder. Everywhere I went I was treated as somebody special. Papalia behaved with characteristic insolence when interviewed by two police officers, giving flippant answers to questions about his relationship with Duke. [15] It is also believed that Antonio and his son Johnny Papalia, along with Stefano Magaddino of the Buffalo crime family played a role in Perri's disappearance in 1944 after Perri left members of his Mafia crew "slighted", though both cases remain unsolved. He owned an entire city block among his vast real estate holdings. Killed. comments sorted by Best Top New Controversial Q&A Add a Comment . [102] In August 1971, Papalia assaulted a court employee, Len Joy, who arrived at the Monarch Vending office to give him a summons. " Valachi who were all associated with the " Papalia - Agueci Network " of the Magaddino crime family of Buffalo and led by members , John " Johnny . [12], Antonio's wife Maria Rosa Italiano had a first cousin, Nazzareno "Ned" Italiano, who worked as a heroin dealer for Perri and Starkman. If a guy needed a few bucks, John would give him a job taking the garbage out, or painting something, or whatever needed to be done. [122] In the 1980s, Papalia tried to seize control of the illegal gambling houses in Toronto's Greektown on the Danforth, sending his right-hand man Carmen Barillaro to lead a crew to beat up patrons and rob the gambling houses that refused to pay the extortion. He many never have pulled the trigger himself, but for him to say he never killed anybody when he directed other people to do it, I find hard to believe. "[81] Papalia later sought to reverse his conviction, claiming that he was of unsound mind when he made the guilty plea due to the anti-tuberculosis drugs he was taking and wanted a new trial, taking his case all the way to the Supreme Court of the United States, which refused to hear his appeal on October 12, 1964. [84] Papalia's homecoming to Hamilton was a lavish affair as Railway Street was filled up with a vast assortment of parked Lincolns and Cadillacs as a number of the underworld figures of southern Ontario arrived to pay their respects. [153][169], Crime expert Jerry Langton called Papalia the most important Ontario Mafioso of his generation. 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