Gerlando Sciascia
Encyclopedia
Gerlando Sciascia (1934 – March 18, 1999), also known as "George from Canada", was a New York mobster and a caporegime
for the Bonanno crime family
, also the Sixth family's Rep for New York, who was a major narcotics trafficker in Canada.
in the province of Agrigento
, Sicily
, the same area as Montreal
Mafia
boss Vito Rizzuto
. In 1955, the 17 year-old Sciascia immigrated to the United States and moved to New York City.
Sciascia was a stylish dresser with thick gray worn in a pompadour
style. He had a wife from Scotland
and one daughter. His business headquarters was a small jewelry store in the Bronx. Gregarious and charming, Sciascia epitomized traditional Cosa Nostra values. However, Sciascia was very willing to give his opinion on anything, even to his superiors.
By the mid 1970's, Sciascia was established in New York with the Sicilian, or "zip" faction, of the Bonanno family. However, due to his Sicilian upbringing, Sciascia also had close ties to the Bonanno crew in Montreal, which included Rizzuto. At this time, the Bonanno leadership consided the Rizzutos and the Bonanno crew in Canada to be under their firm direction and control.
, Alphonse Indelicato, and Phillip Giaccone at a Gambino crime family
social club in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn
. Rizzuto came from Montreal with two Sicilian hitmen to join Massino, Salvatore Vitale, and Sciascia. Sciascia escorted the three rebellion capos into the club. Once the men were inside, Sciascia signalled the attack by slowly running his fingers through his hair. At that point, our men burst from a closet and started shooting. During the massacre, Salvatore Vitale
observed Sciascia shooting Indelicato in the head. When the three capos were dead, Sciascia and his Sicilians quickly left the building, leaving the cleanup to Vitale and the others.
and John Carneglia
. In 1986, Sciascia was arrested by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
(RCMP) based on the US trafficking charges.
In 1988, after two years in Canadian custody fighting the extradition
order, Sciascia was deported back to the United States. Wealthy from his heroin trafficking days, Sciascia moved back to New York and established a small construction company in the Bronx. On February 9, 1990, Sciascia was acquitted on the narcotics trafficking charges in New York. Government witness Sammy Gravano
later claimed that the Bonanno family paid a juror $10,000 to block Sciascia's conviction.
In July 1991, Sciascia applied to the Canadian government for readmission to Canada, basing his application it on his son Joseph's residence in Montreal. In 1997, after a long legal battle, Citizenship and Immigration Canada
dubbed Sciascia a "public menace" and denied him readmission to Canada
.
On April 30, 1992, Scascia's top lieutenant in Canada, Joseph LoPresti, was found shot to death in a Montreal lot. The Rizzutos murdered LoPresti, a Bonanno made man
, without any prior notification or approval from the New York Bonanno leadership. Scascia defended the killing to Salvatore Vitale as justified because LoPresti was selling drugs.
On a later occasion, When Rizzuto refused to send a hit team to New York to kill Bonanno target Robert Perino, Sciascia infuriated Massino by again supporting Rizzuto. When Bonanno capo Anthony Graziano
, a Massino loyalist, appeared high on drugs in a meeting, Sciascia started telling other Bonanno family members that Graziano was a substance abuser. When new family boss Joe Massino
heard about Sciascia's complaints, he felt Sciascia was attacking him also. Feeling that Sciascia was challenging his authority, Massino decided to kill him.
: "George has got to go". The plan was for fellow capo Patrick DeFilippo
to invite Sciascia to a meeting to resolve an ongoing disagreement with Graziano over a marijuana racket. It was crucial that the murder not be linked to the Bonanno family in any way to avoid a potential conflict with the Ruzzuto family in Montreal.
On March 18, 1999, Sciascia received a note at his jewelry store telling him to meet DeFilippo at a Manhattan dinner. At the dinner, DeFilippo told Sciascia that were driving to a different location and the three men entered mobster John Spirito's SUV. As Spirito drove the vehicle, DeFilippo shot Sciascia in head with a silenced gun. The gunmen then drove to a deserted Bronx street, where they unceremoniously dumped the body on the road. A passerby saw the dumping and immediately called the police.
, Massino immediately met with each of the Bonanno capos to tell them he did not know what happened to Sciascia and theorized it was a bad drug deal. However, in private, Massino reportedly remarked "It served him right for telling me how to run the family."
On July 30, 2004, Massino was convicted of seven murders, including the Sciascia murder. With prosecutors intent on asking for the death penalty, Massino quickly offered to become a government witness. On June 24, 2005, Massino confessed to ordering Sciascia's murder along with many other crimes. He was sentenced to life in prison.
On January 11, 2006, DeFilippo was indicted on several federal racketeering charges,including the Sciascia murder. However, on May 9th 2006, the jury exonerated him of the murder charge.
Caporegime
A caporegime or capodecina, usually shortened to just a capo, is a term used in the Mafia for a high ranking made member of a crime family who heads a "crew" of soldiers and has major social status and influence in the organization...
for the Bonanno crime family
Bonanno crime family
The Bonanno crime family is one of the "Five Families" that dominates organized crime activities in New York City, United States, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the Mafia ....
, also the Sixth family's Rep for New York, who was a major narcotics trafficker in Canada.
Background
Sciascia was born in Cattolica EracleaCattolica Eraclea
Cattolica Eraclea is a comune in the Province of Agrigento in the Italian region Sicily, located about 80 km south of Palermo and about 20 km northwest of Agrigento nearby the Platani river valley....
in the province of Agrigento
Province of Agrigento
Agrigento is a province in the autonomous island region of Sicily in Italy. It has an area of 3,042 km², and a total population of 454,370...
, Sicily
Sicily
Sicily 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,...
, the same area as Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
Mafia
Mafia
The 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 Vito Rizzuto
Vito Rizzuto
Vito Rizzuto , known as Montreal's Teflon Don, was alleged to be the leading Mafia boss of the Sicilian Mafia in Canada and heads the Rizzuto crime family.-Family:...
. In 1955, the 17 year-old Sciascia immigrated to the United States and moved to New York City.
Sciascia was a stylish dresser with thick gray worn in a pompadour
Pompadour
Pompadour can refer to:* Arnac-Pompadour, a commune of the Corrèze département of France, former marquisate, famous for its Château and its National Stud...
style. He had a wife from Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
and one daughter. His business headquarters was a small jewelry store in the Bronx. Gregarious and charming, Sciascia epitomized traditional Cosa Nostra values. However, Sciascia was very willing to give his opinion on anything, even to his superiors.
By the mid 1970's, Sciascia was established in New York with the Sicilian, or "zip" faction, of the Bonanno family. However, due to his Sicilian upbringing, Sciascia also had close ties to the Bonanno crew in Montreal, which included Rizzuto. At this time, the Bonanno leadership consided the Rizzutos and the Bonanno crew in Canada to be under their firm direction and control.
Three Capos Murders
On May 5, 1981, Sciascia participated in the murders of dissident Bonanno capos Dominick TrincheraDominick Trinchera
Dominick "Big Trin" Trinchera was a Bonanno crime family capo who was murdered with Alphonse Indelicato and Phillip Giaccone for planning the overthrow of aspiring Bonanno boss Phillip Rastelli.-Biography:Born in Rockland, New York, Trinchera was the son of an immigrant from Rome, Italy and an...
, Alphonse Indelicato, and Phillip Giaccone at a Gambino crime family
Gambino crime family
The Gambino crime family is one of the "Five Families" that dominates organized crime activities in New York City, United States, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the Mafia . The group is named after Carlo Gambino, boss of the family at the time of the McClellan hearings in 1963...
social club in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn
Clinton Hill, Brooklyn
Clinton Hill is a neighborhood in the north-central portion of the borough of Brooklyn in New York City. It is bordered on the east by Bedford-Stuyvesant, on the west by Fort Greene, on the north by Wallabout Bay and on the south by Prospect Heights...
. Rizzuto came from Montreal with two Sicilian hitmen to join Massino, Salvatore Vitale, and Sciascia. Sciascia escorted the three rebellion capos into the club. Once the men were inside, Sciascia signalled the attack by slowly running his fingers through his hair. At that point, our men burst from a closet and started shooting. During the massacre, Salvatore Vitale
Salvatore Vitale
Salvatore "Good Looking Sal" Vitale was a New York City caterer and former underboss of the Bonanno crime family of La Cosa Nostra before becoming a government informant.-Biography:...
observed Sciascia shooting Indelicato in the head. When the three capos were dead, Sciascia and his Sicilians quickly left the building, leaving the cleanup to Vitale and the others.
Narcotics Indictment
In 1983, Sciascia was indicted for attempting to transport 46 kilograms of heroin from Canada to the United States. To avoid prosecution, Sciascia fled to Montreal. In the 1980s, while living in Montreal, Sciascia served as the liaison between the Rizzuto family and the Bonanno family in New York, managing drug trafficking between the two countries. On the New York side, he worked closely with Gambino mobsters Gene GottiGene Gotti
Eugene Gotti is a New York mobster with the Gambino crime family who was a major drug trafficker.-Background:Born to John and Fannie Gotti, Gene has four brothers: deceased Gambino boss John Gotti, Peter Gotti, capo Richard V. Gotti, and soldier Vincent Gotti...
and John Carneglia
John Carneglia
John 'Johnny Carnegs' Carneglia is a New York criminal with the Gambino crime family who was convicted of running a heroin distribution ring...
. In 1986, Sciascia was arrested by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
(RCMP) based on the US trafficking charges.
In 1988, after two years in Canadian custody fighting the extradition
Extradition
Extradition is the official process whereby one nation or state surrenders a suspected or convicted criminal to another nation or state. Between nation states, extradition is regulated by treaties...
order, Sciascia was deported back to the United States. Wealthy from his heroin trafficking days, Sciascia moved back to New York and established a small construction company in the Bronx. On February 9, 1990, Sciascia was acquitted on the narcotics trafficking charges in New York. Government witness Sammy Gravano
Sammy Gravano
Salvatore "Sammy the Bull" Gravano is a former underboss of the Gambino crime family. He is known as the man who helped bring down John Gotti, the family's boss, by agreeing to become a Federal Bureau of Investigation informant and turn state's evidence.Originally a mobster for the Colombo crime...
later claimed that the Bonanno family paid a juror $10,000 to block Sciascia's conviction.
In July 1991, Sciascia applied to the Canadian government for readmission to Canada, basing his application it on his son Joseph's residence in Montreal. In 1997, after a long legal battle, Citizenship and Immigration Canada
Citizenship and Immigration Canada
Citizenship and Immigration Canada is the department of the government of Canada with responsibility for issues dealing with immigration and citizenship...
dubbed Sciascia a "public menace" and denied him readmission to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
Friction between criminal partners
In the 1990s, relations between Massino and Sciascia had started to sour. As capo of the Bonanno crew in Montreal, Scascia was becoming more independent of Massino and more aligned with Vito Rizzuto. Growing richer and stronger, Rizzuto became less willing to defer all decisions to the Bonannos.On April 30, 1992, Scascia's top lieutenant in Canada, Joseph LoPresti, was found shot to death in a Montreal lot. The Rizzutos murdered LoPresti, a Bonanno made man
Made man
A made man, also known as a Mafioso , made guy, man of honor, or uomo d'onore , is someone who has been officially inducted into the Sicilian or American Mafia . They may also be referred to by some as a goodfella or wiseguy...
, without any prior notification or approval from the New York Bonanno leadership. Scascia defended the killing to Salvatore Vitale as justified because LoPresti was selling drugs.
On a later occasion, When Rizzuto refused to send a hit team to New York to kill Bonanno target Robert Perino, Sciascia infuriated Massino by again supporting Rizzuto. When Bonanno capo Anthony Graziano
Anthony Graziano
Anthony "T.G." Graziano is a New York mobster and former consigliere of the Bonanno crime family.- Bonanno captain :...
, a Massino loyalist, appeared high on drugs in a meeting, Sciascia started telling other Bonanno family members that Graziano was a substance abuser. When new family boss Joe Massino
Joe Massino
Joseph Charles Massino , also known as "Big Joey" or "The Ear". Massino was the boss of the Bonanno crime family before he became a government witness in 2004. The media nicknamed him the "The Last Don" or "The Horatio Alger of the Mob"...
heard about Sciascia's complaints, he felt Sciascia was attacking him also. Feeling that Sciascia was challenging his authority, Massino decided to kill him.
Assassination
In early 1999, at a wedding anniversary party, Massino gave the following message to Salvatore VitaleSalvatore Vitale
Salvatore "Good Looking Sal" Vitale was a New York City caterer and former underboss of the Bonanno crime family of La Cosa Nostra before becoming a government informant.-Biography:...
: "George has got to go". The plan was for fellow capo Patrick DeFilippo
Patrick DeFilippo
Patrick "Patty From the Bronx" DeFilippo is a reputed high-ranking member of the Bonanno crime family.-Bonanno member:A longtime member of the Bonanno family, DeFilippo became a made man sometime in the 1970s, though his involvement with the family dates back much farther...
to invite Sciascia to a meeting to resolve an ongoing disagreement with Graziano over a marijuana racket. It was crucial that the murder not be linked to the Bonanno family in any way to avoid a potential conflict with the Ruzzuto family in Montreal.
On March 18, 1999, Sciascia received a note at his jewelry store telling him to meet DeFilippo at a Manhattan dinner. At the dinner, DeFilippo told Sciascia that were driving to a different location and the three men entered mobster John Spirito's SUV. As Spirito drove the vehicle, DeFilippo shot Sciascia in head with a silenced gun. The gunmen then drove to a deserted Bronx street, where they unceremoniously dumped the body on the road. A passerby saw the dumping and immediately called the police.
Aftermath
Vacationing in MexicoMexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, Massino immediately met with each of the Bonanno capos to tell them he did not know what happened to Sciascia and theorized it was a bad drug deal. However, in private, Massino reportedly remarked "It served him right for telling me how to run the family."
On July 30, 2004, Massino was convicted of seven murders, including the Sciascia murder. With prosecutors intent on asking for the death penalty, Massino quickly offered to become a government witness. On June 24, 2005, Massino confessed to ordering Sciascia's murder along with many other crimes. He was sentenced to life in prison.
On January 11, 2006, DeFilippo was indicted on several federal racketeering charges,including the Sciascia murder. However, on May 9th 2006, the jury exonerated him of the murder charge.
Additional Reading
- Sifakis, Carl. The Mafia Encyclopedia. New York: Da Capo Press, 2005. ISBN 0-8160-5694-3