Messina Brothers
Encyclopedia
The Messina Brothers were a Maltese-based criminal organization which dominated London's underworld during the inter-war and post-WWII years.
during the early 1900s.Their father Giuseppe was born in Sicily before moving to Malta to set up a brothel. He married a Maltese woman and gained Maltese citizenship. He had four sons, one was born in Valletta, while the other three were born in Alexandria, Egypt. As far back as 1908, Egyptian authorities reported the Messinas as known traffickers of women who, convincing local women with promises of marriage, eventually forced them into prostitution upon arriving in London's West End.
, Bond
and Stafford Streets. Prosecution of the Messinas proved difficult as many of the girls working for them had legitimate passports and this made deportation difficult. Attilio Messina reportedly stated to the press "We Messinas are more powerful than the British Government. We do as we like in England."
newspaper began accusations regarding information from Scotland Yard
being leaked to Alfred Messina. In 1950, Webb wrote a front page expose appearing in the September 3rd issue of People on prostitution in the West End and compiled a large list including interviews with over 100 prostitutes which revealed names, dates, photographs and other information crucial for a police investigation.
However, their activities soon gained the attention of Scotland Yard
who formed a special investigative task force under Superintendent Guy Mahon to engage in an aggressive campaign against them and, by the end of the 1950s, the Messina clan had been forced to flee the country (with Alfredo Messina being imprisoned on bribery and prostitution charges, as well as Attilio Messina who was sentenced to four years imprisonment after being caught attempting to illegally reenter the country in April 1959).
, where the two were imprisoned after their conviction on prostitution and pimping charges (including testimony from Scotland Yard detectives). Eugene would be sentenced to six years imprisonment while Carmelo would be banned by the Belgian government from entering the country and deported to Italy where he died in 1959. The remaining brother, Salvatore Messina, who went into hiding, was the sole brother never to be apprehended by authorities.
Early life
Born to a Sicilian father and Maltese mother in Valletta, Malta, the Messinas were involved with their father in white slaverySexual slavery
Sexual slavery is when unwilling people are coerced into slavery for sexual exploitation. The incidence of sexual slavery by country has been studied and tabulated by UNESCO, with the cooperation of various international agencies...
during the early 1900s.Their father Giuseppe was born in Sicily before moving to Malta to set up a brothel. He married a Maltese woman and gained Maltese citizenship. He had four sons, one was born in Valletta, while the other three were born in Alexandria, Egypt. As far back as 1908, Egyptian authorities reported the Messinas as known traffickers of women who, convincing local women with promises of marriage, eventually forced them into prostitution upon arriving in London's West End.
The Messina Clan & London's Underworld
Eventually relocating to London in 1930s (taking the name of the Sicilian province of Messina in preference to their surname Debono prior to their arrival), the Messina brothers Salvatore, Carmelo, Alfredo, Attilio and Eugene Messina quickly became involved in their father’s former trade and, during the years following the Second World War, the Messinas were importing women from Belgium, France and Spain. With a steady and highly profitable prostitution operation and adequate protection from the Metropolitan Police officials, the Messinas ran unchecked in the city and, by the late 1940s, were operating thirty houses of prostitution along QueenQueen Street, London
Queen Street is a street in the City of London, which runs from Upper Thames Street north to Cheapside. The thoroughfares of Queen Street and King Street were newly laid out, cutting across more ancient thoroughfares in the City, following the Great Fire of London of 1666; they were the only...
, Bond
Bond Street
Bond Street is a major shopping street in the West End of London that runs north-south through Mayfair between Oxford Street and Piccadilly. It has been a fashionable shopping street since the 18th century and is currently the home of many high price fashion shops...
and Stafford Streets. Prosecution of the Messinas proved difficult as many of the girls working for them had legitimate passports and this made deportation difficult. Attilio Messina reportedly stated to the press "We Messinas are more powerful than the British Government. We do as we like in England."
Downfall
During the time, crime journalist Duncan Webb of The PeopleThe People
The People, previously known as the Sunday People, is a British tabloid Sunday-only newspaper. The paper was founded on 16 October 1881.It is published by the Trinity Mirror Group.In July 2011 it had an average daily circulation of 806,544....
newspaper began accusations regarding information from Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard is a metonym for the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service of London, UK. It derives from the location of the original Metropolitan Police headquarters at 4 Whitehall Place, which had a rear entrance on a street called Great Scotland Yard. The Scotland Yard entrance became...
being leaked to Alfred Messina. In 1950, Webb wrote a front page expose appearing in the September 3rd issue of People on prostitution in the West End and compiled a large list including interviews with over 100 prostitutes which revealed names, dates, photographs and other information crucial for a police investigation.
However, their activities soon gained the attention of Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard is a metonym for the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service of London, UK. It derives from the location of the original Metropolitan Police headquarters at 4 Whitehall Place, which had a rear entrance on a street called Great Scotland Yard. The Scotland Yard entrance became...
who formed a special investigative task force under Superintendent Guy Mahon to engage in an aggressive campaign against them and, by the end of the 1950s, the Messina clan had been forced to flee the country (with Alfredo Messina being imprisoned on bribery and prostitution charges, as well as Attilio Messina who was sentenced to four years imprisonment after being caught attempting to illegally reenter the country in April 1959).
Final years
Eugene and Carmelo Messina eventually resurfaced in BelgiumBelgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, where the two were imprisoned after their conviction on prostitution and pimping charges (including testimony from Scotland Yard detectives). Eugene would be sentenced to six years imprisonment while Carmelo would be banned by the Belgian government from entering the country and deported to Italy where he died in 1959. The remaining brother, Salvatore Messina, who went into hiding, was the sole brother never to be apprehended by authorities.
See also
- Charles SabiniCharles SabiniCharles Sabini commonly known as Darby Sabini, was a British criminal of mixed Italian and English parentage who, as leader of the Sabinis and 'king of the racecourse gangs', dominated the London underworld and racecourses throughout the south of England for much of the early twentieth century...
(leader of the Sabini gang once operating in LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
's district of ClerkenwellClerkenwellClerkenwell is an area of central London in the London Borough of Islington. From 1900 to 1965 it was part of the Metropolitan Borough of Finsbury. The well after which it was named was rediscovered in 1924. The watchmaking and watch repairing trades were once of great importance...
, that was once known as London's Little Italy.)
Further reading
- Briggs, John, Angus McInnes and Christopher Harrison. Crime and Punishment in England: An Introductory History. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1996. ISBN 0-312-16331-2
- Humphreys, Rob and Judith Bamber. The Rough Guide to London. London: Rough Guides Ltd., 2003. ISBN 1-84353-093-7
- Wilson, Colin. The World's Greatest True Crime. Barnes & Noble Publishing, 2004. ISBN 0-7607-5467-5