[47], On July 10, 2008, in the Cerberus operation of the Guardia di Finanza, several people were arrested including Barbaro 'ndrina members and Antonio Papalia's son Pasquale, who received orders from the bosses in prison, Domenico, Rocco and Antonio Papalia who were said to have controlled the construction sector in Buccinasco, Corsico and Pogliano Milanese. [146] Iannuzzelli, the owner of the House of Frankenstein Wax Museum, was a loanshark who was under the protection of Dominic Longo. [110], The next year, Bader mentioned to a friend from the Montreal underworld about what had happened to him in August 1973, who in turn passed along the news to the Cotroni family. [10], Shirley Ryce, became the mistress of Rocco Papalia, the younger brother of Johnny, in 1962. Frank was fined $2000 and Koaches jailed for four months. "[140] Papalia greatly resented the police surveillance, and was once overheard by a police bug complaining about the "lady Mountie" who had been assigned to follow him, saying, "What's the world coming to? [64] While Bluestein kept control of the Toronto gambling market, he had paranoia and was later committed to a mental institution in 1973 after he had killed a friend, before later dying of a heart attack in 1984. Brass knuckles were smashed into his eyes and a broken bottle was ground into his mouth. All are welcome, there is no charge. [2] The Papalias also operated with the Barbaro 'ndrina in the northsouth operation, also having connections stretching to Australia. Bluestein's Lakeview Club earned more than $13 million a year, but on March 21, 1961, at the Town Tavern in Toronto, Papalia met with Bluestein. If a guy needed a few bucks, John would give him a job taking the garbage out, or painting something, or whatever needed to be done. [72], In July 1961, Papalia was ordered to be extradited to the United States for his role in the smuggling ring. [47] Papalia especially liked to target stockbrokers who worked on Toronto's Bay Street, usually demanding that they pay him about $1,000 per week as "protection", supposedly against their enemies, but in fact for protection against being beaten by Papalia's crew. "[46] Those who refused his offers of partnership were then beaten bloody by Papalia's thugs. "[75] While waiting trial in New York's West Street jail, Papalia was known as "Canadian John" and learned how to play chess. [5][89] His father died on May 14, 1964, while Papalia was in jail, while his mother died on July 27, 1970. "[24] On January 27, 1944, Papalia was arrested for failing to register for conscription for the defense of Canada as he was legally obliged to do in 1942 when he turned 18. [59], The 100 some witnesses to the beating were reluctant to come forward, but in May of that year Papalia turned himself in to police to take some heat off of the crime family, and he was sentenced in June to 18 months in prison for the assault. They got nothing better to do than run around following me all the time at taxpayers' expense. [4] One news report stated that the events of 1997 "decapitated the Papalia family". Johnny was too much like Sonny Corleone," said Dubro, referencing James Caan's hotheaded character in 1972's The Godfather. He got where he is through fear. He was born out of wedlock. In 1997, the Buffalo family's Canadian faction boss Johnny Papalia and his lieutenant Carmen Barillaro were murdered by Kenneth Murdock. [104] Racco asked Papalia to look after his son after his death, which was a mark of great honor within the Mafia subculture. [106], In 1971, Stanley Bader, a disreputable Toronto stockbroker with a talent for swindling his investors went into business with Sheldon "Sonny" Swartz, who was the son of a Papalia family associate. They're setting people up to be compromised. [37] Papalia was also associated with F.M. [50], In 1955, with assistance from Sylvestro, Papalia started opening charter gambling clubs in Hamilton and Toronto. I loved it. Papalia was born in Hamilton, to Italian immigrants. [28] Bynoe was a well known bencher with the Law Society of Upper Canada who had been representing members of the Papalia family since 1961 when he defended Johnny Papalia for beating up Maxi Bluestein. [12] Maria Rosa initially married Antonio's younger brother Giuseppe Papalia Jr., giving birth to two sons in Italy, however when Giuseppe died, she immigrated to Canada with her two sons in 1913 to live with Antonio, whom she married at some point, through it remains unclear when the wedding actually took place. [152], In April 1997, Pasquale "Fat Pat" Musitano, the boss of the Musitano family, met with Gaetano "Guy" Panepinto, the Toronto agent of Montreal's Rizzuto family, in Niagara Falls. [22], Johnny was extradited to the United States for trial in 1962 for his role in the French Connection heroin smuggling ring, found guilty and sentenced to 10 years. [28] At his trial, Papalia claimed that he was not selling heroin as the prosecution claimed, but rather buying it as he maintained he needed heroin to treat the pain caused by the syphilis he contacted. [28], Police also identified Ryce a month later and also admitted to being paid by the Papalias for sexual favours, agreeing to cooperate with police by placing a tape recorder in her purse. Antonio Papalia founded the Papalia family in Canada in the 1940s, and is one of three centralized Mafia organizations in Hamilton, with the other two being the Musitano crime family and the Luppino crime family. [42] By 1955, Papalia was known for wearing expensive suits and driving equally expensive automobiles, together with his womanizing habits. [56] Berton described the beating, "as terrible a beating as it is possible to give a man without killing himIron bars with ropes attached to them for greater leverage rained down on Bluestein's head and across his forehead, eyes and cheekbones. [82] Had he been granted a new trial, Papalia then planned to ask to have the charges dismissed under the grounds that his guilty plea and the resultant negative publicity made it impossible to find an impartial jury to hear his case. Papalia also operated various gambling bars and vending machine businesses. Known as the "The Enforcer," Johnny (Pops) Papalia was born March 18, 1924 in Hamilton and died at the age of 73 when he was shot in the head outside his family's vending machine business,. [75] Much to Papalia's annoyance, some of his interests in Toronto were handed over by the Magaddinos to Volpe. [91] Papalia met with Luppino to ask that his interests in Toronto be returned, a request that was refused, but Luppino did say that there was still work for Papalia to do in Toronto. Mafia Criminal organization Social issue Activism . [86] It was for this reason that Papalia never visited Italy. [1] Just Paw-fect - new police puppies put through their . [145] One Toronto businessman, Donald Pressey, paid Papalia $10,000 after "Pennybender" threatened him and said he was working on behalf on the Montreal underground. They are considered all cousins, one large extended family. Another branch of the family is based in Griffith in the Australian state of New South Wales. [47], Domenico Papalia, was involved in at least five kidnappings and convicted for the 1976 murder of the emerging boss Antonio D'Agostino, outside a restaurant. [53], In 2010, the National Anti-Mafia Directorate of Italy named the Papalia family as one of the 'ndrinas with "active affiliates" in Australia. [46], His brother Frank, who would have been the heir to the operation, decided not to retaliate; instead, he retired and lived inconspicuously. [53] In October 1958, Papalia made contact with Vinnie Mauro and Frank Caruso of the Genovese family, saying he wanted to smuggle heroin into the United States and needed someone to sell the heroin. [29] In the summer of 1979, police pulled Frank over to ask questions about possible drinking and driving in hopes he would refuse a breathalyzer test, charge him, and impound his car to install wiretaps. [55] In 1959, Papalia was the only Canadian who attended the meeting in New York that formally set up the French Connection smuggling network. Violi and Cotroni got their sentences appealed to just six months, but Papalia's was rejected; he served four of the years. "[11] As a teenager, Papalia was a member of a gang that staged burglaries in Hamilton, with the icehouse at the corner of Railway and Mulberry streets serving as their base. Era in carcere dal 1992", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Papalia_crime_family&oldid=1133212737, Racketeering, loan sharking, money laundering, gambling, drug trafficking, extortion, fraud and prostitution, This page was last edited on 12 January 2023, at 18:41. [156], Amid controversy, Papalia was refused a full Funeral Mass by the Diocese of Hamilton due to having been a career criminal. [136] The police placed bugs on the parking meters on Railroad Street, hoping to catch Papalia say something incriminating as he held his meetings while walking up and down the street. Papalia behaved with characteristic insolence when interviewed by two police officers, giving flippant answers to questions about his relationship with Duke. [102] In August 1971, Papalia assaulted a court employee, Len Joy, who arrived at the Monarch Vending office to give him a summons. When the police arrested Kenneth Murdock in 1999, he decided to become a government witness. [88] Two of Papalia's Australian cousins were murdered. [14] In Toronto and Hamilton, Zaneth purchased considerable amounts of cocaine, heroin and morphine from members of the Perri-Starkman group. [157] He was buried at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, in a family plot, in Burlington. But he got on everybody's nerves. [27] Ryce wrote in her 1988 memoir Mob Mistress: How a Canadian Housewife Became a Mafia Playgirl, "I was 23 years old and all of a sudden there I was with people waiting on me and taking care of me. The guy was afraid of us and he paid. [31] A court authorization also allowed for the implementation of wiretaps at the Papalias' businesses on Railway Street in Hamilton and consigliere Bruno Monaco's car while parked at Toronto Pearson International Airport. [23] After police raids, Papalia started working with James McDermott and Vincent Feeley in several clubs throughout southern Ontario. "[122] About his reputation for violence, Papalia said he had "a short fuse" and added, "Hey, we all lose our temper sometime, don't we? In 1984, Papalia attempted to redevelop an entire city block he owned in Hamilton to put up a luxury hotel, which was frustrated by the city of Hamilton, which refused the necessary permits to redevelop the block. [66] As a loan shark, Papalia forced those who took loans from him to pay back $6 for every $5 they had borrowed with the interest compounding on a weekly basis, amounting to an annual 1,040 percent interest on the loans. [100][99] Papalia remained close to American gangsters whom he often met in the resort towns of Turkey Point and Port Rowan on the shores of Lake Erie. While Rocco returned to Buccinasco after 26 in prison, and is considered by the authorities as the head of the 'ndrina. [97] French gangsters of Le Milieu attended the summit as it was planned to use the casinos to launder the profits from the French Connection smuggling network. [15], Nazzareno "Ned" Italiano, the first cousin to Maria Rosa Italiano, was imprisoned in 1929 for trafficking in heroin while he refused a plea bargain offer from the Crown to testify against his employers Perri and his common-law wife and business partner Bessie Starkman in exchange for a lighter sentence. He was rushed to the hospital on April 25th after being gunned down outside of his lawyer's office in Mississauga. October 9, 2021. [Frank Cotroni]"[127] Simard replied that F.C is "my friend", leading Papalia to ask "Can you get in touch with him? The branch was founded and headed by the children of Giuseppe Papalia and Serafina Barbaro. Box 7200, Leesburg, VA 20177 [27] When visiting Toronto, Papalia was known to joke that the particular branch of the Toronto-Dominion bank that he robbed in 1944 was "our bank. [122] Papalia told Moon that he had stopped taking vacations in Mexico because there was "too much crime" in that nation, and now preferred the West Indies. [107] In 1973, Bader swindled a group of Montreal investors, which Swartz mentioned to Papalia. Those crummy, rotten cameras and all you crummy rotten guys. [48] His brothers, Antonio and Rocco Papalia, used ransom money from kidnappings to buy large shipments of drugs for export. [148] The crime expert Jerry Langton wrote, "Well into the '90s, Papalia was the undisputed Godfather in Hamilton, especially after Luppino died in 1987. "[75] Papalia's behaviour was such that he was refused admission to the airplane, and instead the RCMP were forced to drive him to the U.S. border at Fort Erie with Papalia vomiting in the backseat to be handed over to the agents of the federal Bureau of Narcotics. Johnny Papalia was the Buffalo crime family capo in charge of all Southern Ontario operations and Johnny . "[46] When the answer was no, Papalia replied "Well, it's going to. Two of his siblings brother Rocco and sister Antoinette Pugliese are still alive. Rocco Perri was heavily involved with Stefano "The Undertaker" Magaddino, the boss of the Buffalo crime family from New York, and Johnny "The Enforcer" Papalia, boss of the Papalia crime family in Ontario. [14] Moon stated, "John was a bastard. [104] The meeting was held in Italian, a language that Papalia could speak competently, albeit he was "not fluent in the delicacies of the language. He would looked like a complete fool. [162] In October 2006, the Musitano brothers were both released from prison. Rocco projected power and over the years some of it rubbed off on meYou need help? [133] When Longo died, Iannuzzeli disappeared three days later. [119] In 1977, Papalia was featured in the CBC television documentary, Connections, about Mafia influence on the Canadian economy. It is typical of what happens when a syndicate tries to take over and organize crime. [125] In July 1983, Ral Simard moved to Ontario from Montreal where he met with Papalia in Hamilton on behalf of Frank Cotroni. [114] Justice Peter Wright said of the three men convicted, "The evidence in his case is grim and appalling. [30], When Papalia was released in 1951, he moved to Montreal for a stint, where he worked with Luigi Greco and New York City Bonanno crime family representative Carmine Galante in heroin trafficking. [57] As Papalia entered the Toronto police station, he displayed his hatred of journalists yelling insults at the assembled reporters, being quoted as saying "look at the dirty rats. [92] As Papalia grew more wealthy and powerful, he came to display a sultanistic attitude alongside his megalomania. [131] The police considered Papalia to be one of the prime suspects behind Volpe's murder. [133] Papalia read Deadly Silence and later briefly met Nicaso; the latter found it significant that Papalia did not actually deny the accusation about Volpe's murder. "He was very good to all the kids and very good to all the people who lived in the area. People who use our name pay. "[14] Johnny, the oldest brother to Frank, Rocco and Dominic Papalia, half-brothers Joseph and Angelo Papalia, brother-in-law Tony Pugliese, and associates, all worked in running his clubs and gambling operations. [63] Addison noted that the witnesses had all taken oaths on the Bible to tell the truth before testifying, which led him to sourly note that the fear of Papalia seemed greater than the fear of God with the witnesses at this trial. [28] Ryce reported that being a mob mistress had its advantages as she was always had a table for herself and her friends at the bar of the Royal Connaught Hotel, no matter how full the popular bar was. Now? [108] On August 26, 1973, Swartz told Bader that the defrauded investors were from the Cotroni family who were planning to "maim" him, but that Papalia had stepped in to save him by agreeing to take $300,000 to Montreal. I don't mind these cops following me, but when I have bits and piece of me out and there are girls following me, there is no honor in that."[141]. "[122] About why he was seen with gangsters so often, Papalia replied, "You go to Italian weddings, you meet people. Money was no object. [91] Vendemini's widow, Giuseppina, told the police that her husband was frequently on the phone with a man she only knew as Vincenzo. [1] [4] From the ten children of Francesco Barbaro and Marianna Carbone descended five branches of the family and eight 'ndrine that dominate the 'Ndrangheta of Plat: Barbaro Castanu, Rosi, Nigru, Pillaru, Perre Maistru, Papalia Carciutu, Sergi 'Mbilli (now in the background) and Trimboli Piseja. Papalia has an inbred need to steal other men's women. [18] Johnny, the oldest brother to Frank, Rocco and Dominic Papalia, half-brothers Joseph and Angelo Papalia, brother-in-law Tony Pugliese, and associates, all worked in running his clubs and gambling operations. They do it for the future. [30] Frank did refuse, fined $150, his licence suspended for three months and his car taken to impound, where it was worked on by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Buffalo crime family . [60], A profile of Papalia was published in Toronto Star Weekly Magazine by Peter Sypnowich under the title "He Wanted To Be Canada's Al Capone. Papalia also operated various gambling bars and vending machine businesses. [51] After police raids, Papalia started working with James McDermott and Vincent Feeley, two major figures in gambling, in several clubs throughout southern Ontario. 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