Jimmy Inendino aka Jimmy I,...Thoughts? I think he is the most interesting and enigmatic character in today's Chicago Outfit. VERY low-profile. He came up on Taylor Street, was probably made into the 26th St Crew and has to be the #1 in the Cicero faction nowadays. Has done long stretches of time and is respected by everyone including Elmwood Park. I would love to be a fly on the wall during a private conversation between Jimmy I and Johnny DiFronzo discussing today's Outfit...

Him and Solly D are definitely the top guys in Cicero today.

Most definitely, Nicky...They have been for sometime regardless of what the FBI and the media said about Sarno in that bombing trial.

I wouldn't be surprised if Jimmy I is DiFronzos #2 guy and like you said he's probably on top of Cicero

So I guess jimmy I and solly d is the top 2 outfit bosses today, but can jimmy I make people if he wanted to? And who appointed them to thier positions johny or jimmy?

I would say No Nose and The Builder are the only ones able to open the books. But maybe Jimmy I too, but I don't think so

Here's the thing, either johny and his pals are retired or thier not, if thier retired how can they tell elmwood not to make anyone, when marcello was on the streets he had the power to make guys and I was wondering if jimmy I had the same power if he was chosen to take his place

You might actually be right. With Jimmy I's current status and clout these days in the Outfit he may just have the power to make somebody. If he does, I'm sure he still has to get a yes vote from John and Andriarcchi.

No, He does not need a vote from DiFronzo or Andriacchi to make anybody. DiFronzo and Andriacchi rereated from the Outfit's street rackets years ago.

The Big Fella, You've now got the right idea. DiFronzo and Andriacchi are retired from the street rackets. Jimmy I can make who he feels is worthy. Solly D is a high level Advisor.

DiFronzo doesn't care who they make as long as they don't involve him or his few high level guys that retreated with him several years ago.

So the powerbase is 26th st and cicero

I would say it in this way:

Cicero is the Dominant Crew.
26th St. is partnered with Cicero.

Chicago, I'd like you to break down Jimmy I's story for everyone. Where he began, where he ended up after he did his stint (13 years was it?), how he ended up in Cicero, street boss of the entire Outfit, and how people STILL don't know his name, despite all of this. He's still, even with where he's at right now, an unknown name to most casuals. How has he maintained such a low profile, managed to stay out of the headlines & public eye (minus the hired truck & Loren Maltese fiascos), & risen to the top so quietly. Did he take advantage of all the heat Jimmy Light was getting, and use it to quietly get the street rackets back on track? Why does Elmwood still take all of the heat for him & Cicero in the press?

Definitely the most fascinating Outfit figure of modern times. Interested to hear your take & what you know about the man himself.

Also, break down the Melrose Park situation: a lot of people drop the "Melrose Park crew" as if it's one of the crews. Was there ever a Melrose park crew & what does it Melrose park mean today?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82kHZwONXGU

From 6:50 you can hear Jimmy I make a threatening phone call to a victim of loansharking. Pretty brutal.

Years ago, Melrose Park and most of the West Suburbs were controlled by the Taylor St Crew.
The Capo within the extended Taylor St Crew that handled the West Suburbs was Sam Battaglia.
Battaglia was headquartered in Melrose Park. He would hold Court there with delinquent juice victims and show them the errors in their ways of not paying their juice loans on time.
This is where it started.
Over the last 25 years, Melrose Park Street rackets have been controlled by the Cicero Crew.
Sometimes they have been referred to as the Cicero/Melrose Park Crew. It's the same thing.

So I take it you're not willing to talk about JI? Not a big deal, by the way

The Outfit generally rewards loyalty.

Jimmy I & Solly D. are very capable Outfit men who have done a lot of time in prison and remained loyal.

Jimmy Inendino, Solly DeLaurentis, Sal Cataudella and Frank Caruso (26th St.) are your 4 top men in the Dominent (Cicero) and Sub Dominent (26Th St) Crews in the Outfit. They are the Southern Groups.

There has been a lot of attrition based upon prison.
Jimmy Marcello would have been the Top Boss in the Outfit, but he is never coming back.

Elmwood Park & Grand Ave get mentioned because of John DiFronzo and Joey Lombardo (who is now gone in prison and will never return).

Those two guys retreated from the Outfit years ago. It is their reputation that gets Elmwood Park and Grand Ave mentioned, nothing more.

HuronSocialAthletic, I talked a little about Jimmy Inendino. I can talk about him more, but I actually have a couple of questions myself that I want to check out first.

I read a story that jimmy I and his buddies was washing money for accardo, and accardo had so much money stashed in his home that he had money going back to the capone days

Jimmy I was not 26th Street originally. He was a Taylor Street guy who grew up with Harry Aleman, Lenny Foresta and others. He came up under Turk Torello and worked for Butch Petrocelli. Jimmy I worked for the Spano's and Rocky Infelise in Cicero in the 1990s. He lives in Darien and is also very close to Caruso brothers.

how are the Caruso's viewed on the southside?

they're is a lot of crooked bullshit you can get into on the southside/nw indiana

I do not know a ton about The Outfit, but this thread has been more revealing and educational than any other Chicago-oriented thread I have read on here in a couple of years.

If my understanding is correct, it seems as though DiFronzo genuinely has no role anymore in Outfit affairs. Clearly, he holds the clout to insert himself in what is going on if he wants based upon his power, wealth and history. My question is this: Do you guys think that the true Outfit players (those actually involved in illegal activity) pay DiFronzo any tribute at all? If not, then it seems as though the Cicero crew is really what we all understand as the Outfit. If this is the case, who is at the top of the Outfit. Which of those people mentioned (in prison or out) is the actual boss?

I don't have a great answer for you, but one result of virtually zero Outfit related arrests let alone large scale prosecutions in recent years is a cloak of anonymity descending over the Outfit.

It's been about five years since Family Secrets now. No one really learned that much at the Sarno trial.

With each year that passes and we move further away from any big arrests or prosecutions that reveal substantial revelatory information, people have to speculate more and more.

Difronzo is retired from day to day operations, u can say jimmy I is acting boss in the same manner marcello was, with that being said difronzo is semi retired keeping the title of actual boss, and as long as he got that title the outfit have to kickup, unless he dies then jimmy I will become the real boss

I would assume the DiFronzo brothers are still taking tribute from all active Outfit crews--from Grand Ave which they control to Cicero and 26th Street. They certainly get tribute from video poker rackets that the Caruso's own via Casey S and that is perhaps the largest racket in Chicago.

Szaflarski is in the joint.

I have serious doubts as to how lucrative the whole video poker thing is these days.

As I noted before, people familiar with such rackets on this site have seen the takes on those taken all the way back from Family Secrets and said they were on the very low end.

Jimmy I indeed started as a Taylor Street guy along with Harry Aleman. Allegedly it was the LaPietra brothers who made him into the 26th St Crew after one of his many stints in the joint...My guess is DiFronzo doesn't give a shit what the Cicero/26th Street guys do and it wouldn't surprise me if he didn't get much of anything from them- Part of the reason Johnny is still around after all these years is that he never stands in their way from making money. Why would they want him out?? ( Apart from those dry snitch rumors )

I agree with you, The Big Fella. When Johnny is gone, that's it for his brother, also. Andriacchi wouldn't stand in the way because he probably doesn't care. He's rich enough and in ill health.

When johny pass where do u see d'amico?