Lillian "Tiger Lil" Reis and Her good friend Vickie were well-known nightclub entrepreneurs and former showgirls who had ties to the gangsters. By the early 1980s, Frank(the beard)Zappacosta and John Carlyle Berkery had close ties with Angelo Bruno and Raymond Martorano of the Philadelphia crime family, as well as John McCullough, union boss of the Roofers' Union, Local 30. Philadelphia's worst neighborhoods house many locals without jobs; and for most of these people, government subsidized housing is the only option. this helps us promote a safe and accountable online community, and allows us to update you when other commenters reply to your posts. if you are trying to comment, you must log in or set up a new account. Martorano is the younger brother of notorious "hitman" and … Before you can comment, you need to update your profile to include your first and last name, as required in our. Joseph "Skinny Joey" Merlino, right, leaves federal court in Lower Manhattan with his wife Deborah after a mistrial was declared in his racketeering case on Feb. 20, 2018 in New York. After being indicted for 14 counts of trafficking in methamphetamine and the chemical P2P in January 1982, Berkery fled to Ireland to avoid prosecution, where he supposedly had contacts in the Irish Republican Army. K&A burglars", "Road Companies, Brutes and Safecrackers", "War of the Words - A legendary burglar sues to protect his good reputation", "Robbin' Hood - After months of legal wrangling, the story of Philly's K&A gang finally gets published", "Ex 'K&A' Gang Member Guilty Of Drug Charges", "Drug Trafficker Pleads Guilty To '82 Charges", "The Meth Capital of the World - Where is it? The K&A Gang was started following World War II and controlled the city's Irish-American criminal underworld for much of the late 20th century. Or of 1983? Mr. Bruno’s alleged successor and Mr. Scarfo’s predecessor in the Philadelphia mob, Philip “Chicken Man” Testa, was killed by rivals in a brazen South Philly porch-bomb attack later in 1981, designed to look like the work of Irish-American mobsters from Philadelphia’s Northeast neighborhoods. In North Carolina, several members were known as the "Hallmark Gang" and would collaborate with the Dixie Mafia. Berkery admitted to engaging in a large scale meth deal with Chelsais Bouras, leader of the Philadelphia Greek Mob. A group of alleged mobsters in South Philadelphia actually played in a local softball league—the reporters, of course, dubbed them “The Hit Men.” (One opening line in the Philadelphia Daily News? The group was mainly a burglary ring for much of its early history, but shifted into loansharking, gambling, and ultimately drug trafficking in its later existence. A fake news story about "Skinny" Joey Merlino claimed the former Philadelphia mob boss was involved in a scheme to commit widespread ballot fraud in Philadelphia … Owner of Northeast Philadelphia's Sherwood Club. A fair amount of the action of “The Irishman” centers on and around Philadelphia, where the hit-man lead character Frank Sheeran (played by Robert DeNiro) purportedly did most of his work. Ressourcement and the Reception of Newman in Twentieth- Century Theology, Vice President for Mission Integration – University of San Diego, Earn a Master’s with a Focus on Catholic Studies, The Los Angeles Religious Education Congress, Dating as a young disabled woman is hard—but I know my whole self is worthy of love, What we talk about when we talk about Britney Spears. This was largely due to the immense profit that was available due to the high demand in the area.[7]. The local “numbers” rackets compete with the state lottery, which offers a daily payout little different from that of neighborhood enterprises; sports bettors can legally place wagers in Atlantic City or Las Vegas; fans of games of chance can legally gamble at the Sugarhouse Casino in Philadelphia or at various other locales; even loan-sharking, with its notoriously high interest payments, has its legal counterpart in the “payday loan” operations found everywhere in South Philly, all charging extortionate interest. Domestically, the network is known to have ties to various criminal organizations in its surrounding area. We can't do it without you—America Media relies on generous support from our readers. as the unofficial head of the Philadelphia mob. The neighborhoods of South Philly, a stronghold of Italian-American culture for over a century, have always been a place where law enforcement and neighborhood customs have uneasily coexisted. These are all historic figures who have made appearances on newsreels or … Gang activity was extremely high in Philadelphia in the 19th century. They also traded the cliché burglary attire for professional suits, while on the job, in case they were stopped. (Mr. Merlino’s nickname was supposedly coined in childhood to distinguish him from a similarly named but huskier relative, “Fat Joey.”) These days, in the booming home-construction market of Philadelphia, the alleged mobsters are more likely to be renovating row homes in South Philadelphia and flipping them for profit, all by the books. The crew was adamant about not carrying weapons with them while they burglarized. Peter and Michael, raised on the streets of Philadelphia, are the children of Irish mob members, forever linked by the crimes of their fathers. Directed by Jérémie Guez. After deliberations had begun several days before, the jury had told the judge four times that they were impossibly deadlocked and unable to reach a verdict on any of four counts against Mr. Merlino; each time Judge Sullivan had asked them to continue deliberating. He was allegedly assumed to be an informant on the meth operation that the Traitz brother ran in tandem with members of the K&A gang. In court, Mr. Merlino’s lead lawyer, Edwin Jacobs, hammered government witnesses for inconsistencies in testimony and for their own criminal backgrounds, including the star witness, J. R. Rubeo. From the 19th century Irish American ghettos, to 1920s Prohibition, to the modern age of drug trafficking, Irish American mobsters have played a prominent role in organized crime throughout the Northeast and Midwest United States. Mr. Jacobs has argued in previous court cases that 1980s-style racketeering in South Philly is largely defunct and that Mr. Merlino and his associates are hardly the violent criminals they are made out to be in government prosecutions. As a result, places like Strawberry Mansion that were once coveted are now starting to see the negative effects. George Holmes alleges that a showgirl named Lillian Reis and Vickie Mason(AKA, Viola Lorenzo) gave the gang the tip they needed to pilfer $478,000 in cash and jewelry from the home of John B. It’s is largely about the media, and the people who consume it. 30 years later, Michael now runs the criminal organization and lusts for more power, his dangerous antics frequently held in check by his cautious cousin Peter. Whistling Jack McConnell was one of the toughest gangsters in Philadelphia’s Irish mob in the 1920s. Not according to friends and relatives in South Philadelphia, who see him and his associates as something else: the adult versions of the “corner boys” who grew up with them in the tight-knit Italian-American Catholic neighborhoods of South Philly, locals who made their first holy Communion at St. Paul’s or St. Monica’s or Epiphany of Our Lord, where the boys went to St. John Neumann and the girls to St. Maria Goretti, two Catholic high schools that combined into a single school in 2004. If you’re already a subscriber or donor, thank you! Pope Francis has increased leadership roles for women in the church. Michael Caputo - Member of the Stocker drug ring. Carl "Better Days" Jackson and Zappacosta assumed control of the group. [5], By the late 1970s, with the advent of modern home-security technologies, the burglary racket was no longer viable as a main source of income. There was drama (Skinny Joey wasn’t pleased), and we fled. Edward Loney was to arrange the procurement of 50 gallons of P2P, a precursor chemical, along with Waldemar "Walter" Roeder from Toronto, while Jackson sold mass quantities to contacts in New York. That was almost two years ago, when I spent a week researching and writing a story on Mr. Merlino’s trial on racketeering and gambling charges. Sometime in the 1990s, William "Billy Shamrock" Harding (Edward Harding's descendant", came to be known as the boss of remnants of the Irish mob in Philadelphia. The American Mafia History made its mark on the United States shortly after Prohibition (the outlaw of manufacturing, selling, and transport of alcohol) began in 1920. They are known to have amicable ties to the La Cosa Nostra, namely the Scarfo crime family, but also the South Jersey faction of the New York City-based Genovese crime family,[3] the local Greek mob, local Jewish-American gangsters, and various independent drug and hijacking gangs of various European ethnicities in the Greater Philadelphia area. There were plenty of young men posturing as wiseguys, and more than a few gangsters posing as legitimate businessmen, so often on the street and in the restaurants it was hard to tell the civilians from the connected guys. With Matthias Schoenaerts, Joel Kinnaman, Maika Monroe, Paul Schneider. William "Chucky" McIlvain - Member of Carl Jackson's crew. The Philadelphia Inquirer and The Philadelphia Daily News both had reporters dedicated almost exclusively to the “mob beat” in those days. Mr. Merlino’s prominent public profile in Philadelphia before his long prison sentence and his alleged return to crime since his release have reportedly once again made him the prime target of F.B.I. He lived in Philadelphia from 1996 to 1999. My office was just a couple of blocks from the Italian Market; I ate at Dante and Luigi’s and loved Villa di Roma (which also is the locale of several scenes in "The Irishman"). The Philadelphia Irish Mob is made up of many members of local 30 Roofers union (which has been under federal juristiction since they days of John McCullough), Kensington Thugs and High rankin powerful figures consist of owners of vending companies and several Resturant/Taverns. Many of the traditional criminal enterprises with which Mr. Merlino and his South Philly associates have been charged over the years now have their counterparts in the legitimate world. I didn’t see the Thin One again until two decades later, when we shared an elevator at the courthouse for the Southern District of New York in 2018. John Gerard - Member of Carl Jackson's crew. In short time he became an entrepreneur, financing and becoming partner in several bars and restaurants in Northeast Philadelphia. On Feb. 20, 2018, Judge Richard Sullivan (whom President Trump has since promoted to the federal circuit) declared a mistrial in Mr. Merlino’s case. Rich. In the mid-to-late 1900’s the Irish Mob had a strong presence in Boston. Of the 46, only Mr. Merlino and one other defendant refused deals. Owen "O" Dunn K&A associate, mostly known as C.K. [9] It is widely held that this was made possible due to the K&A Gang, and the Junior Black Mafia, among others.[10]. Green Street Counts. Pressed for comment after the declaration of a mistrial, Joseph "Skinny Joey” Merlino had only one thing to say: “God bless the jury.”. informant.) The former died in prison in 2012, and the latter became a government witness and lived out the rest of his life in the Federal Witness Protection Program. As a frequent reader of our website, you know how important America’s voice is in the conversation about the church and the world. ‘The Irishman’ Review: An epic look at death, sin and organized crime from Martin Scorsese, Read: Pope Francis’ Lenten message for 2021. “They murdered ’em, 17-5.”) It could be easy to forget that people were being extorted, cheated, shot and more. They busied themselves with bootlegging, extortion, loansharking and illegal gambling, and it was during the Prohibition era that Sabella and his crew were recognized as members of the wider Sicilian crime syndicate of New York and Chicago. But, as historian Dennis Clark points out, the Irish were in Philadelphia to stay. But is Mr. Merlino a gangster in the mold of notorious mob bosses like John Gotti or Russell Bufalino (played by Joe Pesci in "The Irishman") or Vincent “The Chin” Gigante? I used to work in South Philly. Wondering why we ask for your email, or having trouble registering. [16], In the early 2000s, the Traitz brothers, who were connected to the K&A Gang through the Roofers' Union - Local 30 were indicted for the murder of Robert Hammond. [13], Along with Carl Jackson and Frank Zappacosta(Seib), 22 affiliates of the K&A meth ring were indicted under federal drug manufacturing charges related to an operation that authorities believe produced roughly ten million dollars worth of speed in hidden labs across the Pennsylvania area. His second cousin is the pastor of one of South Philly’s most prominent parishes. See more ideas about irish mob, mob, mobster. [17], The K&A burglary crew was a coalition of "crew chiefs" and the organization was a horizontal one in terms of structure.[4]. 28 talking about this. When a television reporter asked Mr. Merlino about rumors that the incarcerated Mr. Scarfo had put a $500,000 bounty on his head, he smiled and quipped, “Give me the half-million dollars, and I’ll shoot myself.” Mr. Merlino was later wounded in a drive-by shooting by apparent rivals on a South Philadelphia street corner in 1993, an incident in which his close friend Michael “Mikey Chang” Ciancaglini was killed.