A very plausible and nuanced analysis Stubbs..

Thanks, speaking of the West End is Allan “the Weasel” Ross still around? He would be in his 80s but he was one of the biggest traffickers in North America.

Kristian Gravenor, who runs the Coolopolis blog spot, tweeted back on October 13 that Ross was close to death -- see https://twitter.com/CoolopolisMTL/status/918956802355671040. As far as I know, Ross is still alive.

Last time I heard he got a life sentence serving time at Lewisburg jail in PA. I do not know if he is still alive.
Yes he was consider one of the top five trafficker in North America. The Irish mafia in Montreal control the port.He dealt with Italian mafia, Bikers and Colombians.
I have a book on, Montreal's Irish Mafia: The True Story of the Infamous West End Gang by D'Arcy O'Connor, it contains several passages of Allan Ross.

Thanks Anti and Ciment, I was a few years off he's 73.

ALLAN ROSS
Register Number: 52368-080
Age: 73
Race: White
Sex: Male
Located at: Butner FMC
Release Date: LIFE

@ Stubbs

+100

yes, Yes, and YESSS MY MAN, GREAT POST!!!


That thing up there is a VERY complicated situation, with multiple factions involved.

I'm open to dissenting opinions of course, but I really think the Montagna thing was like a " Tony Bananas" situation. He was gassed up to make a big move the REAL players didn't want their signature on....

Also, giving credit where it's due, I read this on the Blackhand.....
It was reported by an informant in Italy that Carlo Gambino was running an immigrant smuggling operation in the 70s, THROUGH Montreal, with the Cotronis headed up by Paolo Gambino. This is where all the Zips in NYC were coming from.

So the Gambinos had established ties with The Montreal Cotronis, the Toronto Calabrians, have a power base IN SICILY, connections to South America.
They are kinda CENTRAL to all of this. Speculation on My part.....

I awhile back, I asked the question on the boards.... Did Cali, replace Rizzuto as the top Italo-American narcotics trafficker.

He had the connections to Sicily, his relatives were accepted immediately as bosses. ( I know there was deadly tension from guys like Rotolo, but still, he might have been in the minority... Cause I think Nicchi was corleonsesi, but he was with Cali and them....) he's got authority in NYC, where the drugs end up.

He's got his import export company, and we know John Gambino had connections to South America, plus there are the meetings with the Cocaine laden Calabrese.....



It seriously used to baffle me, guys treating all this stuff like isolated incidents of drug trafficking. You can trace a straight line from today, all the way back to Rothsteins drug operation with Lansky and Luciano, and guys like Coppola.

The only time in history this shit has been interrupted were the Two world wars, and the two bombing campaigns in Sicily, that lead to the State crackdowns. Other than that, it's seamless.......




They are, I believe the missing link in all this......

Also @Stubbs



You are spot on, in that the TIMELINES for all this stuff has to be really considered, also understanding that all this stuff is connected, from South America, to Sicily, to NYC, to Canada.

Like you point out, Rinna had wiped out the Gambino Palermo faction by 83, Iron Tower happens in 84, Castellano gets hit in 85, I think John Gambino and Frank Gambino gets locked up in what, 88-89-90? Rosario was deported I think.... So they were really under siege from all sides for awhile there......


But once Riina finally was taken off the streets, how would Palermo and Sicily eat again? The drug trade. What do they need to make it work? Access To NYC. What family is connected at all point in between, Sicily, NYC, and South America? The Gambinos.

Another thing about Montagna I don't know if it's been considered....


If he had a Bronx based crew, like his own guys, why not take at least SOME of em with him?

It's weird he started using street gangs instead of his own associates, or THE MEMBERS OF THE BONNANOS IN CANADA LOYAL TO THE FAMILY!!!!

In my best Vito Corleone voice, " Montagnas a pimp, he never could have out fought Vito, but I didn't know to this very day, that it was Gambino, all along....."

One hypothetical.....

One of the factions that would have benefitted from the Rizzutos being gone WAS THE STREET GANGS.

And what did we see? Montagna using them for pickups....


So they go from just street level drug dealers, to now actually knowing where the extortion payments go, WHO TO EXTORT AND WHAT COMPANIES.
Consider that Montagna doubled the tribute, likely cause he had to give the Gangs a piece. He certainly COULDNT guarantee a better coke price, not better than the Calabrians, or anyone from Rizzutos camp.

And it was the Frenchman who controlled the docks I think.

He probably had the Violis in his corner, so I think they play a major part in all this..... They might be the ones with the connections, not sure.......

The docks in Montreal have been controlled for as far as I can remember by the Irish mafia but they have always had close relations with the Italian mafia. In fact they also do business with other crime groups.
Montagna did recruit people that were loyal to the Bonanno's. He was also clever enough to first seek approval from the Calabrians in Ontario. Where his fatal mistake was betraying Raynald Desjardins the brother-in-law of Joe DiMaulo a Cotroni made man,who has been loyal to the Bonanno's for decades.Had Montagna not made this mistake he might of had a chance to succeed. He also needed the Cotroni's on his side for his plan to work. Montagna had also recruited the Arcuri's also loyal to the Bonanno's.
The question I ask myself is, was Montagna getting bad advice by the Arcuri's who may have had ambition plans of their own and did not want competition from the Cotroni clan.

Montreal organized crime at this present moment is fractured. You have several powerful drug lords/clans and street gangs dividing territories. Some are backed by what I call the big three Mafia, Ndrangheta and the bikers.Years ago it was the bikers that were feuding, now it's the Italians.

I believe that made the Rizzutos very powerful was the Consortium aka an alliance between italians,bikers,west end gang and haitians.

The italians controlled the ports using the street gangs to distibute the coke and splitting the $$$ was more lucrative and avoid turf wars but require a respected and feared boss.
Nick sr with the c aruana [BadWord] impored coke from the venezuela and nick sr was arrested here in the 1970s.
The bikers in canada was more powerful in canada so Vito made a strong alliance with the Hell's Angels but now Leonardo Rizzuto made bussiness with Salvatore Cazzetta dei Rock Machine.

Salvatore Cazzetta, one of the founders of Rock Machine is now a Hells Angel and not all Haitians are with the alliance. The two main Haitian gangs the Blues are with the bikers and the Reds are rivals.

Perhaps Sciascia wanted to kill Paul Cotroni on the sneak and didn't want the murder traced back to him hence why he hired the Rock Machine.

Massino's claim is remarkable and doesn't made a whole lot of sense based on contradictatory statements made by the killer, but I don't think it can be easily refuted either.

Leonardo Caruana was killed by the Corleonesi in '81 for opposing them so that may very well be indicative of their allegiance given the fact that the Rizzuto and Caruana-[BadWord] families were very close.

I'm now hypothesizing that the Rizzuto group was recognised as an independent group when Vito returned to Canada, but that the Bonannos were allowed to continue to operate in Montreal.

Agreed.

Forgive me but the Massino story does not resonate with me, firstly the Rock Machine were no longer allies with the Rizzuto's
Secondly, assuming that Sciascia did contract out the hit on Paul Cotroni why would Machine Johnny Plescio give Paul Cotroni a warning not to do business with the Hells. I personally think Massino will say anything to save his ass.
The following is what transpired after P.Cotroni got killed.

-Johnny Plescio (warns P.Cotroni not to frequent the Hells Angels)
-Paul Cotroni Killed Aug.23,1998
-Johnny Plescio killed Sept. 8, 1998
-Tony Plescio killed Oct. 1,1999 (brother of Johnny Plascio)

Does anyone have a copy or know the source of this document which Massino states that Sciacia ordered the hit on Paul Cotroni?

http://m.levittandkaizer.com/upload/DEFILIPPO%20BRIEF%20FINAL.pdf

Guys... I found a court document and took out some excerpts that may clarify as to the motive of Sciasca's murder.

Page 14:
Vitale, for his part, was jealous of anyone who got too close to Joe Massino
(5168-69), and Sciascia was on Massino’s ruling Committee, thereby posing
a threat to Vitale’s plan to some day ascend to the pinnacle of power in the Bonanno family.

page 15:
Vitale (3453). At the same time, Vitale would likely have seen Sciascia as a
potential threat not only to his standing with Joseph Massino, but also to his
life, as Sciascia – reputedly a large-scale drug dealer – was himself
responsible for numerous murders.
Additionally, Vitale was certainly in a position to falsely accuse Mr.
DeFilippo of the Sciascia murder and motivated to do so.

Page 16:
Vitale testified as follows: Massino had spoken to Vitale at a social
gathering and asked Vitale to supervise the murder of Sciascia, who Massino
supposedly wanted killed because Sciascia had accused Massino’s friend,
Anthony Graziano, aka “TG”, of having a drug problem (2796-97, 2799-2802).

By '98? I thought Rizzuto's agreement with the Hell's was made later.

Ciment thats a cool read but it was before massino flipped and testified at bascianos last trial. Alot of its wrong. Massino said george was a capo in charge of all the montreal guys he had a bonanno member in montreal whacked joe lopresti im guessing his father was also a older member who probaly kept asking controni what happend to his son. George didnt have ny permission to kill a made guy even in the montreal crew. I think lopresti was found in ny state on the boarder. Its weird to i read controni was the capo in montreal till he died but vito rizzuto and them guys were answering to george. Massino said it was a combination of things george did. Accusation of tg graziano doing drugs threating phil rusetellis brother over a unpaid debt and killing lopresti. Massino was a lil bitch he was in his power in 99 and was afraid to take blame in his family for killing george who must have been a threat to his ego. Allie boy persico killed wild bill cutolo his underboss and wasnt afraid to tell other family hay guess what bills gone hes not coming back. Ect.The

According to Mafic INC. book.
Yes, there were negotiations taking place in the year 2000 with the Hells to discuss cocaine distribution territories and set wholesale price for the drug on the Montreal Markets. The author goes on saying that that Vito and Arcadi repeatedly asked Paolo Gervasi to tell his son to stop dealing with the Rock Machine. But no dates are given as to when Gervasi was advised. It could very well be during negotiations or before. I will be honest with you it leaves it to interpretation. But nevertheless the Cotroni's were having problems with the Rock Machine prior to P.Cotroni murder. Two weeks later,the biker that threatened the Cotroni's, Johnny Plescio gets killed. This is not a coincidence. Furthermore, at that time the Cotroni's and the Rizzuto's were on the same side. There was no feud among them. So even if the meeting was later it does not change the facts.
The book does mention about this drug trafficker Cameron. In 1994 he was told to stop dealing with Hells Angels rivals, the Rock Machine. Cameron approached Vito Rizzuto to settle the situation. In 1997 they found Camerons hand book numbers 50,000 and the word Vito. Then they go on saying as the Hells had gained the upper hand, Vito aligned himself with the side set to emerge victorious.
Because of this Cameron incident, Vito was aware long before the Paul Cotroni murder,that the Hells were not happy about drug dealers dealing with their rivals.

Wtf those hells angels are so strong ?
And will the 5 families deal with a low level gangsters like them ?
I mean if they are a low level gangster (?)

Joe Massino turned informant in 2005. The court document is dated 2007. Apparently Massino also testified a few time thereafter.
I am aware that the document does not show Joe Massino testimony. That is why in an earlier thread I asked if anyone had a copy.
Furthermore, the court document illustrates that Vitale was jealous of Sciascia and most likely was bad mouthing him to Massino behind his back. You will also see in this court document Vitale giving a motive as to why Massino wanted to kill Sciascia and the motive given by Vitale had nothing to do with killing someone son in Canada. Joe Lopresti was the father and he was killed first. His son got killed later, he was one that had aligned himself with Sal Montagna.
I haven't seen Massino testimony or confession. All I know is that if it differs from Vitale then One of them is lying. It could be they are both lying. One thing I do know is that Massino will say anything to save his ass.

In Canada they are strong. Over the years they have learned from the Italians and have become a force to be reckoned with. I know what you mean by low level gangster but there are too many of them now. I find the laws in Canada to be lenient. Many get charged and with good behavior they are out with minimum sentences that do not reflect the crime.

Yaeh joe lopresti was killed by george and crew in 1992 his son was probaly very young he was also killed after he aligned with sal the iron worker im thinking joe lopresti killed in 92 was only in his early 40tys they found him in some small town on train tracks in some ny montreal boarder town. His father was also a made guy in the controni crew before the rizzutos wrestle the power from controni by killing violi. Also the controni violi guys made rustelli the official boss in 1973 galante gives rizzuto sr the ok to kill violi not rusty whose locked up for 7 yrs starting in 1975. Yaeh the stuff i read from massino testimony was i think vinny bascianos last trial 2010ish. Massino talked alot about georges murder how he killed a guy withou

Ohh so i that case they dealing with ndrangheta in canda ?
They call the sidreno group right ?

I very much doubt Massino can afford to make things up. The deal he made involves his full cooperation and if he's caught lying about anything he will lose his privileges. Furthermore, he already admitted to having ordered Sciascia's murder, so why lie about his reasons? He has been put into the witness protection program and will live the rest of his life in relative comfort. He has everything to lose by deceiving the feds.

The FBI file I mentioned in an earlier post seems to contain the background as to why Massino said what he said when he testified in April 2011 at Vinny Basciano's murder trial. I wish I had the copy of the FBI file but I don't.

From NYT article:

"Ex-Mob Boss Joseph Massino Details a Few Murders"
By LIZ ROBBINS
APRIL 14, 2011

The cross-examination of a Mafia turncoat started quietly and predictably enough on Thursday. Joseph C. Massino, the former boss of the Bonanno crime family, spoke matter-of-factly about having to kill one of his closest associates, simply because he had disobeyed protocol.

“As much as I didn’t want to kill him,” Mr. Massino said of the 1999 murder of Gerlando Sciascia, “I had to kill him.”
______________

Article I've quoted from below was originally found at http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/th...rticle-1.111623 and published on April 22, 2011, 4:00 am. This story by John Marzulli is no longer available on the newspaper's site; however, you'll be able to find the whole article in two threads on this forum, as well as be able to find excerpts in two other threads.

"Tape in Vinny Gorgeous trial reveals mob king Dominick (Quiet Dom) Cirillo OKed his son's murder"

Investigators have previously theorized that the elder Cirillo, who was estranged from his son, approved the murder because assaulting a made member of the Mafia carries the penalty of death. Cicale was already a wiseguy and Basciano's son was up for induction into the mob at the time.

But killing the son of a Mafioso would also be a death sentence. Massino acknowledged that he gave the order to kill Bonanno capo Gerlando (George from Canada) Sciascia - despite his fondness for the gangster - because Sciascia had murdered the son of a made man in Canada.
______________

Years ago, someone had uploaded on YouTube this testimony by Massino. The individual who posted seemed to have pointed the camera down toward the courtroom floor so that they wouldn't get caught filming. You were able to hear the audio. I remember that there were quite a number of hours of Massino's testimony uploaded over a number of video clips. While I recall being able to determine which clip contained the specific testimony by Massino about Sciascia's murder, I also recall not looking forward to listening to a YouTube clip for a few hours--I never listened to it and ever since I've regretted this instance of laziness.

I wonder why massino the boss of 125+made guy would try to lie to vito and the rest of the montreal guys. I remeber vitale testified how he took baldo amato, georges only guy or soldier in nyc to a dinner in nyc and tried to tell him it wasnt joe it was a sneak. Could you imagine chin gotti persico or any of them old bosses trying to hide the fact they killed one of there own. Chin would have killed for any rule break.gotti wouldnt give to shits to order a murder . That they tried to cover there tracks was cowardly for a boss.