1943 in organized crime
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Events
- January 11 - Carlo TrescaCarlo TrescaCarlo Tresca was an Italian-born American newspaper editor, orator, and labor organizer who was a leader of the Industrial Workers of the World during the decade of the 1910s. Tresca is remembered as a leading public opponent of fascism, stalinism, and Mafia infiltration of the trade union movement...
, editor of the Socialist Italian-language newspaper Il Martello, is murdered in ManhattanManhattanManhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
after seeking political asylum in the United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Tresca's assassination, supposedly carried out by mobster Carmine GalanteCarmine GalanteCarmine Galante, also known as "Lilo" and "Cigar" was a mobster and acting boss of the Bonanno crime family...
, was said to have been arranged by Italian dictator Benito MussoliniBenito MussoliniBenito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
's fascist government.
- January 25 - New York mobster Gaetano "Tommy" Lucchese becomes a naturalized US citizen despite efforts of the U.S. government to thwart it.
- February 2 - Chicago's "Queen of the Dice Girls" and OutfitChicago OutfitThe Chicago Outfit, also known as the Chicago Syndicate or Chicago Mob and sometimes shortened to simply the Outfit, is a crime syndicate based in Chicago, Illinois, USA...
-associate girlfriend, Estelle Carey, is found brutally murdered and burned, possibly in connection to The Outfit - Hollywood extortion scandal then under federal investigation.
- March 18 - Several high ranking members of the Chicago Outfit including Francesco "Frank 'The Enforcer' Nitti" NittoFrank NittiFrancesco Raffaele Nitto , also known as Frank "The Enforcer" Nitti, was an Italian American gangster. One of Al Capone's top henchmen, Nitti was in charge of all strong-arm and 'muscle' operations...
, Felice "Paul 'The Waiter' Ricca" DeLuciaPaul RiccaPaul Ricca, also known as "The Waiter" , was a Chicago mobster who served as the nominal or de facto leader of the Chicago Outfit for forty years.-Early life:...
, Phil D'Andrea, Charles "Cherry Nose" GioeCharles GioeCharles "Cherry Nose" Gioe was a lieutenant in the Chicago Outfit criminal organization and a partner in the Hollywood extortion scandals of the 1930s....
, Lou Kaufman, Louis "Little New York" CampagnaLouis CampagnaLouis "Little New York" Campagna was a New York mobster and a high ranking member of the Chicago Outfit for over three decades.-Early years:...
and Filippo "John 'Handsome Johnny' Roselli" SaccoJohn RoselliJohn "Handsome Johnny" Roselli , sometimes spelled John Rosselli, was an influential mobster for the Chicago Outfit who helped them control Hollywood and the Las Vegas Strip. Roselli was also involved with the Central Intelligence Agency plot to kill Cuban leader Fidel Castro in the early 1960s...
are indicted by a federal grand jury in connection to extortionExtortionExtortion is a criminal offence which occurs when a person unlawfully obtains either money, property or services from a person, entity, or institution, through coercion. Refraining from doing harm is sometimes euphemistically called protection. Extortion is commonly practiced by organized crime...
operations against Hollywood movie studios by Outfit turncoat William Morris "Willie" BioffWilliam Morris BioffWilliam Morris Bioff was an American organized crime figure who operated as a labor leader in the movie production business from the 1920s through the 1940s...
.
- March 19 - Shortly after being indicted for extortion, Outfit boss Francesco "Frank 'The Enforcer' Nitti" NittoFrank NittiFrancesco Raffaele Nitto , also known as Frank "The Enforcer" Nitti, was an Italian American gangster. One of Al Capone's top henchmen, Nitti was in charge of all strong-arm and 'muscle' operations...
commits suicide near a Riverside, IllinoisRiverside, IllinoisRiverside is an affluent suburban village in Cook County, Illinois. A significant portion of the village is in the Riverside Landscape Architecture District, designated a National Historic Landmark in 1970. The population was 8,895 at the 2000 census...
railroad yard. Nitti kills himself because Underboss Paul Ricca's insists that Nitti take responsibility for the Hollywood extortion operation and serve the prison term, because Nitti brought the likes of Outfit turncoat William Morris "Willie" BioffWilliam Morris BioffWilliam Morris Bioff was an American organized crime figure who operated as a labor leader in the movie production business from the 1920s through the 1940s...
into the Hollywood scheme. However, Nitti suffers from severe claustrophobia. Antonino "Tony," "Joe Batters" AccardoTony AccardoAntonino Joseph Accardo , also known as "Joe Batters" or "Big Tuna", rose from small-time hoodlum to the position of day-to-day boss of the Chicago Outfit in 1947, to ultimately become the final Outfit authority in 1972, until his death...
succeeds Nitti as the day-to-day boss of the organization, while Ricca gets a prison sentence.
- July 9–10 - The Allied invasion of SicilySicilySicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
(Operation Husky) ends August 17 in an AlliedAllies of World War IIThe Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
victory. Sicilian MafiaMafiaThe Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...
boss Calogero VizziniCalogero VizziniCalogero Don Calò Vizzini was a historical Mafia boss of Villalba in the Province of Caltanissetta, Sicily. Vizzini was considered to be one of the most influential and legendary Mafia bosses of Sicily after World War II until his death in 1954...
allegedly helps the American army during the invasion. In the US, the Office of Naval IntelligenceOffice of Naval IntelligenceThe Office of Naval Intelligence was established in the United States Navy in 1882. ONI was established to "seek out and report" on the advancements in other nations' navies. Its headquarters are at the National Maritime Intelligence Center in Suitland, Maryland...
(ONI) had recruited Mafia support to protect the New YorkNew YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
waterfront from Axis PowersAxis PowersThe Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
sabotage since the US had entered the war in December 1941. The ONI collaborated with Charles "Lucky" LucianoLucky LucianoCharlie "Lucky" Luciano was an Italian mobster born in Sicily. Luciano is considered the father of modern organized crime in the United States for splitting New York City into five different Mafia crime families and the establishment of the first commission...
and his partner Meyer LanskyMeyer LanskyMeyer Lansky , known as the "Mob's Accountant", was a Polish-born American organized crime figure who, along with his associate Charles "Lucky" Luciano, was instrumental in the development of the "National Crime Syndicate" in the United States...
, a Jewish mobster, in what was called Operation UnderworldOperation UnderworldOperation Underworld was the United States government's code name for the cooperation of organized crime figures from 1942 to 1945 to counter Axis spies and saboteurs along the U.S...
. The resulting Mafia contacts were also used by the US Office of Strategic ServicesOffice of Strategic ServicesThe Office of Strategic Services was a United States intelligence agency formed during World War II. It was the wartime intelligence agency, and it was a predecessor of the Central Intelligence Agency...
(OSS) – the wartime predecessor of the Central Intelligence AgencyCentral Intelligence AgencyThe Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
(CIA) – during the invasion of Sicily. Popular myth has it that a US Army airplane had flown over Vizzini’s home town VillalbaVillalba-Places:Italy*Villalba, Sicily, a comune in the Province of CaltanissettaPuerto Rico*Villalba, Puerto Rico, a municipio in the Commonwealth of Puerto RicoSpain*Collado Villalba, a municipio in the Community of Madrid...
on the day of the invasion and dropped a yellow silk handkerchief marked with a black L (indicating Luciano). Two days later, three American tanks rolled into Villalba after driving thirty miles through enemy territory. Vizzini climbed aboard and spent the next six days traveling through western Sicily organizing support for the advancing American troops. As General PattonGeorge S. PattonGeorge Smith Patton, Jr. was a United States Army officer best known for his leadership while commanding corps and armies as a general during World War II. He was also well known for his eccentricity and controversial outspokenness.Patton was commissioned in the U.S. Army after his graduation from...
's Third Division moved onward the signs of its dependence on Mafia support were obvious to the local population. The Mafia protected the roads from snipers, arranged enthusiastic welcomes for the advancing troops, and provided guides through the confusing mountain terrain. Many historians are inclined to dismiss this legend nowadays. The American Military Government of Occupied Territories (AMGOT) looking for anti-fascist notables to replace fascist authorities made Don Calogero Vizzini mayor of Villalba, as well as an Honorary Colonel of the US Army. Because of his excellent connections, Vizzini also became the ‘king’ of the rampant post-war black market. AMGOT relied on mafiosi who were considered staunch anti-fascists because of the repression under Benito MussoliniBenito MussoliniBenito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
. Many other mafiosi, such as Calogero VizziniCalogero VizziniCalogero Don Calò Vizzini was a historical Mafia boss of Villalba in the Province of Caltanissetta, Sicily. Vizzini was considered to be one of the most influential and legendary Mafia bosses of Sicily after World War II until his death in 1954...
and Giuseppe Genco RussoGiuseppe Genco RussoGiuseppe Genco Russo was an Italian mafioso, the boss of Mussomeli in the Province of Caltanissetta, Sicily....
, were appointed as mayors of their own home towns. Coordinating the AMGOT effort was the former lieutenant-governor of New York, Colonel Charles PolettiCharles PolettiCharles Poletti was an American lawyer and politician. He was the 46th Governor of New York in 1942, and was the first Italian-American governor in the United States.-Early life and education:...
, whom Luciano once described as "one of our good friends." The US Military grants Michele NavarraMichele NavarraMichele Navarra was a powerful member of the Sicilian Mafia. He was a qualified physician and headed the Mafia Family from the town of Corleone...
, the Mafia boss of Corleone, permission to collect abandoned military vehicles left by the Italian army during the allied invasion of Sicily.
- October 28 - Former leader of the New Orleans crime family Carlo Matranga dies in Los AngelesLos ÁngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, CaliforniaCaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
of natural causes.
- December 22 - Paul Ricca, Louis Campagna, John Roselli and four other defendants are convicted of extortion with each fined $10,000 and received prison sentences ranging from seven-to-10 years. They "walk" after three years, because of some dubious, behind-the-scenes mischief between The Outfit and the U.S. Justice Department, during the Truman Administration.
Deaths
- March 19 - Frank NittiFrank NittiFrancesco Raffaele Nitto , also known as Frank "The Enforcer" Nitti, was an Italian American gangster. One of Al Capone's top henchmen, Nitti was in charge of all strong-arm and 'muscle' operations...
, Chicago Outfit leader - October 28 - Carlo Matranga, New Orleans crime family leader