Luppino crime family

The Luppino crime family, (Italian: [lupˈpiːno]) also known as the Luppino-Violi crime family,[1] is a 'Ndrangheta organized crime family[2][3][4] based and founded in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, in the 1950s by Giacomo Luppino. The Luppino family is one of three centralized Mafia organizations in Hamilton, with the other two being the Musitano crime family and the Papalia crime family.[5] The Luppinos have had strong connections with the Buffalo crime family of Buffalo, New York.[6]

Luppino crime family
Founded1950s
Founded byGiacomo Luppino
Founding locationHamilton, Ontario, Canada
Years active1950s–present
TerritoryVarious neighborhoods over Hamilton and Toronto
EthnicityPeople of Italian descent as "made men", and other ethnicities as "associates"
Criminal activitiesRacketeering, loan sharking, money laundering, fraud, murder, gambling, drug trafficking, extortion and corruption
AlliesBuffalo crime family
RivalsVarious gangs in Hamilton

By 2018, the Violis had an increased role in the organization, particularly Domenico and Giuseppe Violi, the sons of Montreal mob boss Paolo Violi who had married into the Luppino family through Giacomo's daughter. Domenico had reportedly been made the underboss of the Buffalo crime family and one of his duties was to "assume control over the operations of the Luppino-Violi crime family". By late 2018, however, both brothers were imprisoned for drug trafficking offenses. Brothers Natale and Rocco Luppino were believed to be the leaders of the Hamilton-based crime family.[6]

Luppino, Hamilton and Buffalo

Giacomo Luppino was born in 1900 in the village of Oppido Mamertina, Calabria, Italy.[3] Already involved in organized crime in Calabria,[3] Luppino, his wife Domenica (née Todaro)[7] and their 10 children immigrated to Hamilton, in 1955, from Castellace, a subdivision of Oppido Mamertina.[8]

By the time Luppino arrived in Canada, the "Three Dons" had already been established, consisting of Santo Scibetta, Anthony Sylvestro and Calogero Bordonaro, who answered to Stefano Magaddino of the Buffalo crime family.[9][10] Before Scibetta moved to Hamilton, he was already a made member of the Magaddino family.[9] By the early 1960s, Magaddino promoted Santo Scibetta to leader of the Buffalo family's Ontario branch replacing Johnny Papalia who was under indictments in the United States.[10][11] Throughout the 1950s and 60s, Luppino and Scibetta jointly controlled Hamilton.[10][11]

In the early 1960s, Luppino was the capodecina of the Hamilton faction of Magaddino's Buffalo crime family, giving Luppino control over all of his branches in Ontario.[3] As boss of all bosses in the region, he was a founding member of the Camera di Controllo in Canada in 1962.[12] Luppino had been seen meeting with powerful mob figures, including 'Ndrangheta member Rocco Zito and Siderno Group member Michele Racco.[13][14] Luppino and Santo Scibetta also answered to Magaddino while Johnny Papalia was imprisoned in the early 1960s.[3] The Luppinos also became associated with local bootlegger Paolo Violi, but left for Montreal in 1963 on Giacomo's orders to avoid clashes with Papalia. In Montreal, Violi developed connections with the Cotroni crime family, while maintaining ties with the Luppino family; he married Giacomo's daughter, Grazia in 1965.[2] Giacomo had five sons who were involved in organized crime: Vincenzo (Jimmy), Natale (Nat), Rocco, Antonio (Tony) and John Luppino.[15] In 1967, police began a five-year surveillance operation of Giacomo Luppino, which included wiretapping his Hamilton home.[16]

In the early 1970s, Natale Luppino, worked with Toronto mobster Paul Volpe on extortion schemes where they would be paid kickbacks from both the union and the developers for negotiating construction contracts.[17][18] Giacomo Luppino later sponsored Paul Volpe into the Buffalo crime family.[11] In the mid-1970s, Scibetta died, shifting the leadership entirely to Luppino.[11]

In 1978, Rocco Luppino, Dominic Musitano, owner of a Hamilton haulage company, and Angelo Natale, president of the Ontario Haulers Association, were charged with conspiracy to commit extortion after police uncovered a protection racket on Ontario's independent trucking industry; after a five-year legal battle, they were acquitted in 1983.[19][15]

In 1981, Tony and John Luppino, and Gerry Fumo were convicted of fraud, receiving 15 month, 12 month and 18 month sentences respectively.[15] Giacomo Luppino died of natural causes at the age of 87 in March 1987, whereby Jimmy Luppino took over the family.[8]

Statements made during the 2018 trial of mobster Domenico Violi indicated that, several decades earlier, Giaccomo Luppino had been responsible for working out arrangements for the alliance between the Hamilton mob and "the Mafia of Buffalo".[20] In a report on the murder of Cece Luppino in early 2019, CBC News made this statement: "Court documents filed by the RCMP [during the Violi trial] show the Luppino family is connected to a web of organized crime stretching from Hamilton to Buffalo, N.Y." The news item added that the "Luppino-Violi family is a faction of the Todaro crime family" that is based in Buffalo and that Rocco and Natale Luppino were members of the latter.[21]

In a 1999 interview with Musitano family hitman Kenneth Murdock, he revealed he was ordered to kill Jimmy Luppino, but did not go through with the order.[22] Murdock also claimed that he was waiting for Pat Musitano to approve the murders of Natale Luppino and Vincenzo Luppino, as well as Domenic Violi and Giuseppe Violi.[23]

The Violis and Luppinos

A 2002 Halton Police report suggested the Violi brothers, Domenico (Dom) and Giuseppe (Joe) Violi, grandsons to Giacomo Luppino, who moved back to Hamilton with their mother after their father Paolo Violi was killed in Montreal in 1978 by the Sicilian Rizzuto crime family, became affiliated with the Luppino family.[24] Domenico was became a made member in the Buffalo family in January 2015.[25] In November 2017, the brothers were charged with 75 offenses, such as conspiracy to import a controlled substance, possession for the purpose of trafficking a controlled substance, trafficking a controlled substance, trafficking contraband tobacco, trafficking firearms, and participating in a criminal organization.[26] Nine people in total were arrested and charged, including Massimiliano Carfagna of Burlington, Ontario and Adriano Scolieri of Vaughan, Ontario, while warrants went out for additional suspects.[27][28][29] During the multi-city bust, police seized large quantities of fentanyl and carfentanil, heroin, cocaine and over 250,000 tablets of controlled substances, some three million cigarettes and several gaming machines.[26] During the same week in November, the FBI arrested several people in New York on related offences;[26] the charges included narcotics trafficking, loansharking and firearms.[30]

In March 2018, Carfagna was sentenced to 10 and a half years in prison for drug trafficking and weapons offenses, and also stated between March and October 2016, he and Joe Violi agreed to import 200 to 300 kilograms of cocaine into Canada.[31] On June 1, 2018, Joe Violi was sentenced to 16 years in prison after pleading guilty on drug trafficking charges.[32] On December 3, 2018, Domenico Violi was sentenced to eight years in prison after pleading guilty to trafficking drugs to a paid undercover police agent for more than US$416,000, as part of a three-year RCMP-led police Project OTremens, during which the agent was officially inducted as a "made" member of the Bonanno crime family in Canada, according to an agreed statement of facts.[33] Criminologist Anna Sergi of the University of Essex stated that "A new alliance between Bonanno associates and the Violi family ... is significant, as it suggests a growing prominence for Calabrian mafia — the 'Ndrangheta — within the New York families and in Canada".[34] Domenico Violi admitted to trafficking approximately 260,000 pills, including PCP, ecstasy and methamphetamine to the undercover agent.[33][35][36]

Wiretaps recorded from 2015 to 2017 also indicated Domenico Violi was made the underboss of the Buffalo crime family[37] by boss Joseph Todaro Jr. in October 2017 in a meeting in Florida; the first Canadian to hold the second-highest position in the American Mafia.[25] After being promoted to underboss, Violi is heard on wiretaps boasting that "he had beaten out 30 other people for the position," indicating the Buffalo family had at least 30 made men which included Canadian members such as the Violi brothers' uncles Natale and Rocco Luppino.[1] The wiretaps also revealed the activity of The Commission (the governing body of the American Mafia) as Violi's promotion was so unusual that Joe Todaro Jr. consulted with The Commission for permission to promote Violi as the Buffalo family's new underboss.[25]

According to wiretaps from the Violi brothers case, Giuseppe Violi told the undercover agent back in February 2015 that Cece had been approached about becoming a made member, but Cece had told his father that he believed there was not enough money to be made and "that there are too many headaches".[38] Court documents filed by the RCMP in spring 2019 confirmed a connection between the Luppino family and the mob in Buffalo.[39]

On 30 January 2019, Cece Luppino, son of Rocco Luppino, was shot and killed at a home that was owned by his father at 56 Mountain Brow Blvd in Hamilton. Hamilton Police Service called it a "targeted" hit and suggested that the murder might be related to organized crime. Cece Luppino had no criminal record, however. Detective Sergeant Peter Thom provided only this information to the news media: "I've been told he works for a family business down in Stoney Creek", apparently related to a cafe and real estate.[21][38][40]

A subsequent report in January 2020 by The Hamilton Spectator stated that the business was a "realty training centre with an attached café". No charges had been laid as of that time but the news item added that the Cece Luppino murder might have been committed to "send a message to more powerful family members". The report also referenced a 2015 conversation that had been accessed by police; Cece was heard to say that he did not want to be a "made man" in the organized crime aspect of the family but might become involved if he could be sure of a financial benefit.[41]

The Cece Luppino hit may have been related to a home invasion on April 19, 2018, in Hamilton, when three men forced their way into a house at 19 Como Place, owned by Natale Luppino. and stabbed one individual. A police source told CBC News that both of the people in the home at the time were related to Cece Luppino "and are members of the Luppino crime family". In late April 2019, police arrested and charged two of the four suspects in Montreal with attempted murder, while the other two, also from Montreal, were already in custody; none were considered to be Mafia members.[6][42] At that time of the arrests, there was some speculation as to whether the target of the 2018 incident had actually been Natale Luppino because he was the owner of the house that was targeted.[6]

A 2019 CBC News report later quoted a Mafia expert as stating that "Rizzuto's death paved the way for upheaval in the underworld. There's a power struggle left from the vacuum from Rizzuto".[39] Also in spring 2019, one report stated that the Luppinos and the Musitano crime family seemed to be involved in the city's "mafia war". A report by The Hamilton Spectator discussed a "resurgence of Mafia violence in Hamilton and surrounding areas that has most recently included the shooting of Hamilton mob boss Pat Musitano" but made no connection to the Luppino family.[6] Sources contacted by CBC News led the site to state that "some sort of underworld power struggle is tearing through the region, as old scores are settled and players jockey for power in a time of unrest".[39] The wiretaps of Domenico and Giuseppe "Joe" Violi recorded a discussion that the Musitanos were supporting the Cuntrera-Caruana Mafia clan who have roots in Montreal and Toronto.[43][44] The records also refer to a September 2017 recording made by police indicating that Pat Musitano was already a marked man at that time, but provide no indication as to who had authorized the "hit": "The [police agent] stated that [he] would have thought that ‘they’ would have gotten rid of [Pat Musitano] before his brother, [Angelo Musitano, murdered in May 2017]. D Violi stated that 'they' wanted to show [Pat Musitano]; that it was a message, D Violi thought. They had told D Violi that ... [Pat Musitano] would be gone; that that would be one headache out of the way".[43]

In February 2020, two of the accused pleaded guilty to the 2018 invasion of Natale Luppino's home; the court heard that they had indeed planned to target Natale Luppino, in addition to his nephew Giuseppe Capobianco. Charles Boucher-Savard admitted to having stabbed Capobianco and received a four year sentence; Natale had also been in the home at the time but was not attacked. The second individual, Jonathan Monette, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit robbery and was sentenced to one year. Four other persons, from Montreal, faced charges of attempted murder for their roles in the conspiracy.[45][46]

References

  1. "'It opens up an underworld:' How a drug plea has exposed a Mafia network in Hamilton". 2018-12-03. Archived from the original on 2019-01-17. Retrieved 2019-01-29.
  2. Schneider, Iced: The Story of Organized Crime in Canada, p. 259
  3. Schneider, Stephen (2018). Canadian Organized Crime. Canadian Scholars' Press Inc. p. 176. ISBN 9781773380247.
  4. "Unease as mobsters set free". National Post. 13 February 2019. Retrieved 4 May 2019.
  5. "Unease as mobsters set free". National Post. Archived from the original on June 29, 2013. Retrieved June 29, 2013.
  6. "Four charged in 2018 stabbing at mobster Nat Luppino's home". Welland Tribune. 2 May 2019. Archived from the original on 4 May 2019. Retrieved 4 May 2019.
  7. "Obituary: Luppino, Immacolata "Concetta" (nee Sorenti)". The Hamilton Spectator. June 15, 2018. Archived from the original on July 19, 2019. Retrieved July 19, 2019.
  8. "Retired mobster dies peacefully". thespec.com. 15 July 2009. Archived from the original on 2 February 2019. Retrieved 1 June 2017.
  9. Schneider, 2009 p.285-286
  10. Schneider, 2017 p.173-178
  11. Edwards, p.137
  12. Schneider, Stephan (2016). Iced: The Story of Organized Crime in Canada. Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4W1A8: Harper Collins. pp. Kindle Location 9780. ISBN 9781443429900.CS1 maint: location (link)
  13. "The life and death of Rocco Zito". torontosun.com. 30 January 2016. Archived from the original on 2 January 2017. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  14. Schneider, Stephen (15 October 1998). Canadian Organized Crime. Toronto: Canadian Scholars' Press Inc. p. 178. ISBN 1773380249. Archived from the original on 4 March 2020. Retrieved 11 February 2020.
  15. Schneider, Iced: The Story of Organized Crime in Canada, p. 333
  16. Schneider, Iced: The Story of Organized Crime in Canada, p. 310
  17. "Mob war led to Russo shooting, sources say". theglobeandmail.com. 16 April 2005. Archived from the original on 25 April 2017. Retrieved 25 May 2017.
  18. Schneider, Iced: The Story of Organized Crime in Canada, p. 319
  19. "Realtor's murder 'smells like a power play' in Hamilton's Mafia underworld, ex-undercover cop says". thestar.com. 1 February 2019. Archived from the original on 2 February 2019. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
  20. "Shocking mob trial allegation: Hamilton crime figure was Underboss of Buffalo Mafia". National Post. 3 December 2019. Retrieved 26 April 2020.
  21. "Mobster's son shot dead in 'targeted' hit at Hamilton home". CBC News. 1 March 2019. Archived from the original on 29 July 2019. Retrieved 26 April 2020.
  22. "Mafia hitman reveals his code for killings". thestar.com. 13 August 2010. Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 10 December 2016.
  23. Cedilot, Andre; Noel, Andre (2012). Mafia Inc: The Long, Bloody Reign of Canada's Sicilian Clan. VINTAGE CANADA. p. 280. ISBN 978-0-307-36041-0.
  24. "2002 Halton Police report had intelligence on accused mobster". thestar.com. 15 November 2017. Archived from the original on 2 March 2018. Retrieved 30 January 2018.
  25. "Shocking mob trial allegation: Hamilton crime figure was Underboss of Buffalo Mafia". National Post. 2018-12-04. Retrieved 2018-12-04.
  26. "Sons of former Montreal Mafia boss implicated in major RCMP drug bust". Montreal Gazette. 10 November 2017. Archived from the original on 11 August 2018. Retrieved 27 January 2019.
  27. Edwards, Peter (15 November 2017). "2002 Halton Police report had intelligence on accused mobster". Archived from the original on 2 March 2018. Retrieved 30 January 2018 via Toronto Star.
  28. Edwards, Peter (10 November 2017). "Accused Violi brothers in trafficking bust come from colourful family". Archived from the original on 8 March 2018. Retrieved 16 March 2018 via Toronto Star.
  29. "Cafe owner gets 13 years for drug trafficking". thestar.com. 30 January 2018. Archived from the original on 8 March 2018. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
  30. "RCMP announces major bust with links to organized crime in Canada and U.S." 9 November 2017.
  31. "Burlington man sentenced in drug trafficking case - Toronto Star". thestar.com. 16 March 2018. Archived from the original on 16 March 2018. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
  32. "Son of murdered mob boss sentenced to 16 years in prison for drug trafficking". thestar.com. 1 June 2018. Archived from the original on 1 June 2018. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  33. "Murdered mob boss's son pleads guilty in Hamilton to selling drugs to 'made' New York Mafia member". thestar.com. 3 December 2018. Archived from the original on 4 December 2018. Retrieved 5 December 2018.
  34. "Pat Musitano killing opens the door for turnover in Hamilton Mafia underworld, expert says". thestar.com. July 13, 2020.
  35. "Hamilton trafficking convictions tied to rare Mafia initiation ceremony secretly videotaped by a police informant". thestar.com. 4 December 2018. Archived from the original on 6 December 2018. Retrieved 5 December 2018.
  36. "'It opens up an underworld:' How a drug plea has exposed a Mafia network in Hamilton". Archived from the original on 2018-12-04. Retrieved 2018-12-04.
  37. "A Canadian murder. 'Buffalo's crime family.' Is the Mafia still around?". Archived from the original on 30 April 2019. Retrieved 30 April 2019.
  38. "'Too many headaches' and not enough cash: Hamilton murder victim had turned down offer to join Mafia". nationalpost.com. 31 January 2019.
  39. "Montrealers facing attempted murder charges after attack on Luppino crime family". CBC News. 1 May 2019. Archived from the original on 4 May 2019. Retrieved 4 May 2019.
  40. "Mob hit: Cece Luppino gunned down at his parents' Mountain Brow home". thespec.com. 30 January 2019. Archived from the original on 1 February 2019. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
  41. "Cece Luppino was killed in the doorway of his Hamilton home". The Spec. 3 January 2020. Retrieved 26 April 2020.
  42. "Montrealers facing attempted murder charges after attack on Luppino crime family". cbc.ca. May 1, 2019. Archived from the original on May 4, 2019. Retrieved May 4, 2019.
  43. "Police sting revealed plans for gangland hits on Musitano family". CBC News. 29 April 2019. Archived from the original on 4 May 2019. Retrieved 4 May 2019.
  44. "Here's how a wiretap recorded a conversation about getting rid of Pat Musitano". thestar.com. April 27, 2019.
  45. "Two plead guilty in home invasion at Hamilton mobster's Mountain home". Standard. 14 February 2020. Retrieved 26 April 2020.
  46. "Natale Luppino 'made' don in notorious Hamilton crime family". Welland Tribune. 3 January 2020. Retrieved 26 April 2020.

Further reading

  • Cédilot, André and Noël, André. Mafia Inc: The Long, Bloody Reign of Canada's Sicilian Clan. Random House Digital, Inc., 2012. ISBN 0307360415.
  • Totten, Mark. Nasty, Brutish, and Short: The Lives of Gang Members in Canada. James Lorimer & Company, 2012. ISBN 1459400380.
  • Freeman, Bill and Hewitt, Marsha. Their Town: The Mafia, the Media and the Party Machine. James Lorimer & Company, 1979. ISBN 0888622678.
  • Schneider, Stephen. Iced: The Story of Organized Crime in Canada. John Wiley & Sons, 2009. ISBN 0470835001.
  • Schneider, Stephen. Canadian Organized Crime. Canadian Scholars, 2017. ISBN 1773380249.
  • Edwards, Peter and Auger Michel. The Encyclopedia of Canadian Organized Crime: From Captain Kidd to Mom Boucher. Random House Digital, Inc., 2012. ISBN 0771030495.
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