Buffalo crime family

Early origins mugshot of Peter Magaddino, the son of Buffalo family boss Stefano Magaddino In the early 1900s, Angelo Palmeri emerged as the first Mafia boss in Buffalo, New York. Magaddino had first immigrated to New York City from Castellammare del Golfo, Sicily, in 1902, and joined the Castellammarese clan in Brooklyn. The Castellammarese clan consisted of mobsters originating from Castellammare del Golfo, which included the Magaddino brothers and their cousins the Bonanno brothers. In 1922, Buffalo's crime family boss Joseph DiCarlo died and Magaddino quickly succeeded him as the new boss. The Buffalo family remained strong and relatively united until his leadership was challenged in the 1960s and split into factions. The internal war continued after Magaddino's death from natural causes on July 19, 1974, but ended in the early 1980s when Joseph Todaro Sr. became the boss. Todaro Sr. era When Todaro Sr. took over the Buffalo family many members had been operating within the Laborers' International Union of North America Local 210 for years, while avoiding police scrutiny and continuing to operate illegal activities. In 1989, Joseph Todaro Sr. and his son Joseph Todaro Jr. were identified in an FBI gambling investigation as the leaders of the 45 made member Buffalo Mafia family. The FBI investigation claimed that Joseph Todaro Sr. and Joseph Todaro Jr. were in control of various criminal activities that included labor racketeering, bookmaking, loansharking and narcotics trafficking. The investigation into the Torina drug ring revealed Todaro and Falzone were "involved in a Las Vegas-to-Buffalo pipeline for cocaine and other illegal activities." On March 20, 1990, Las Vegas police arrested three Buffalo natives Louis Giambrone, Joseph Amoia and Lawrence Panero, all three were identified as associates of the Buffalo mob. Charles Torina, a Buffalo native who was described as a key link in the drug pipeline from Buffalo to Las Vegas, had previously worked as a pit boss in a Las Vegas casino. In 1996, Joseph Todaro Sr. and his son Joseph Todaro Jr. were listed among 24 alleged organized crime figures who were accused of influencing the Laborers International Union of North America since the 1960s. The Laborers local 210 forced Joseph A. Todaro Jr., Frank Bifulco, Salvatore Cardinale, John Catanzaro, Leonard Falzone, Sam Frangiamore, Bart Mazzara, Robert Panaro, Donald Panepinto, John A. Pieri, Joseph R. Pieri, Charles Pusateri, Joseph Rosato, Danny Sansanese Jr., Victor Sansanese, Louis Sicurella and Vincent "Jimmy" Sicurella out of the union. The L.A. underboss Carmen Milano, along with L.A. soldiers Stephen Cino and Louis Caruso, and L.A associates Johnny Branco and Peter Caruso, originally planned to rob and steal Blitzstein's jewelry. When the police arrested Murdock in 1999, he decided to become a government witness. According to Murdock, the Musitano brothers had been fed up with being a satellite (crew) of the Buffalo family and having to pay tribute money to the family. However, Coppola's pronouncement was premature. A 1999 article reported that Canadian intelligence indicated a new "crime lord" linked to the "powerful Todaro crime family" had been installed over the Golden Horseshoe region of Ontario. According to CISC intelligence, the new, yet unidentified, Buffalo boss had a strong relationship with outlaw bikers, unlike his predecessor Johny Papalia, who refused to work with them. As a result of this new, yet shaky, alliance, organized crime expert Detective Sergeant Peter Polcetti of the CISC said: "The Todaro family now controls Niagara, Hamilton, Toronto and Montreal." Gerald "Skinny" Ward was a locally powerful criminal in the Niagara Peninsula who purchased his cocaine from the Magaddino family, and in 1998 began his alliance with the Hells Angels. In 2000, Ward and his gang joined the Hells Angels. The police estimated in 2008 that Ward and the Niagara chapter of the Angels were responsible for selling about 75% of cocaine in the Niagara region. After the Hells Angels national president Walter "Nurget" Stadnick was arrested in 2001, Ward became one of the co-leaders of the Canadian Hells Angels. In 1999, Joseph E. Todaro Sr. along with his son Joseph A. Todaro Jr. and 16 others were named in a civil racketeering lawsuit for controlling local 210 through the years by various racketeering acts. The court complaint identified Joseph E. Todaro Sr. as boss and his son Joseph A. Todaro Jr. as underboss of the Buffalo family and the owners of La Nova Pizzeria. However, others thought Falzone was only acting as the "front boss" for the Todaros and that Joseph Todaro Jr. was the acting boss while his father became the senior statesman for the family. The FBI continued to release the crime family's organizational charts until at least 2006. The Niagara Falls Reporter indicated Leonard Falzone was promoted to the top spot after Joe Todaro Sr. reportedly stepped down in 2006. rumors swirled about who would lead the family. That same year, Dan Herbeck wrote an article about Ronald Fino called "Life after Local 210 for the FBI's inside guy." The article indicated Fino was "skeptical of the Justice Department's claims that mob influences were totally removed from Local 210 and the Laborers international." Ronald believed the federal trusteeship the government established to clean the union "didn't go far enough." Additionally, The Toronto Stars organized crime reporter Peter Edwards indicated that in 2013 the Buffalo Crime Family was seeking to revive itself from recent losses through loansharking at the Casino Niagara in Canada on the American border. In the late 2000s, news broke about a homeowner association (HOA) scam alleged to have ties to the Buffalo mob. A witness told the FBI that the Silver Lining Construction company was controlled by the New York Mob and that its owner, Leon Benzer, thought of himself as a "Soprano" because of his association with attorney John V. Spilotro, the nephew of Vegas mobster Tony Spilotro. "Investigators also disclosed a key player in one of the HOA takeovers," was Paul Citelli, who "was known to have ties to the Buffalo mob." According to George Knapp, I-Team reporter for CBS news affiliate KLAS NewsNow channel 8 in Vegas the FBI said Citelli "is affiliated with the Buffalo mob." Joseph Bravo, another defendant in this HOA scam, was indicted with Paul Citelli for being a part of a Las Vegas to Niagara Falls cocaine trafficking ring run by the Buffalo mob from the late 1980s to mid 1990s, when it was considered "the dominant La Cosa Nostra family on the streets of Las Vegas." Todaro Jr. and the Canadian underboss In March 2017, nearly 20 years after Coppola's article "The Withered Arm", Dan Herbeck wrote a similar piece titled "The Mafia is all but dead in Western New York". In it, the FBI field office in Buffalo stated that only "scattered remnants that are no longer believed to be active or organized remain." The piece also highlighted many of the same factors that Coppola's 1998 article cited for the decline of the Buffalo crime family. However, arrests by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Project Otremens indicate the pronouncements about the Buffalo Crime Family's demise were overstated. In November 2017, the FBI and Canadian newspapers indicated the family is still active. In November 2017, Giuseppe (Joe) and Domenico Violi, who have longstanding ties to the Buffalo Mob, were arrested on narcotics trafficking charges. These charges show a continuation of the long-established mafia drug trafficking triangle from Toronto/Hamilton, Ontario to Buffalo and Montreal to New York City established by Stefano Magaddino and his cousin, Joseph Bonanno. Michael McGarrity of the FBI said the Otremens operation "unearthed and dug up the roots of a partnership extending from New York City to Buffalo and Toronto to Montreal, proving once again that Italian organized crime groups have evolved far beyond the neighbourhood cliques of days gone by." Additionally, Peter Edwards in The Toronto Star wrote, "The arrests also hit members of the Buffalo crime family headed by the late Joe Todaro." The US Department of Justice said that Canadian law enforcement authorities had arrested various members and associates of the Bonanno, Gambino, and Todaro crime families on charges that include narcotics trafficking. In response to these arrests, Canadian journalist Adrian Humphries wrote: Among those arrested in Canada are members of the Todaro organized crime family, based in Buffalo, according to U.S. authorities. The Todaro crime group was built by the now-deceased Joseph Todaro Sr., who took over the Buffalo Mafia once led by the influential boss Stefano (The Undertaker) Magaddino. Further, in September 2018, Peter Edward reported that "the Buffalo Mob isn't dead, despite some media reports." According to his article the Buffalo/Todaro Crime family is strong enough to call the shots in the recent mob war between the Musitano and other crime families in the Hamilton underworld. This article reports: ::* "New York State mob still has considerable influence in the southern Ontario underworld, sources say." ::* "I don't think anyone knows for certain how this plays out... One thing's for sure, Buffalo will always have a say north of the border."—Paul Manning, a former Hamilton undercover police officer who worked on organized crime investigations. ::* "Buffalo would have to give approval for high-level killings, sources said, adding that mob leaders there are believed to have turned their backs on one side in the dispute and given tacit approval to the other." ::* "They're all supposed to be under Buffalo," one source said of the two feuding Ontario crime factions. ::* "Buffalo factions of Traditional Organized Crime are not 'in' Canada per se, but historically have controlled aspects of Canadian 'family business' and do get kickbacks from profits from illicit activity," Manning said. Reporters allege that Al Iavarone of Ancaster was killed in September 2018 in retaliation for the May 2017 murder of Angelo Musitano. Rumors circulated that the murder was related to "an unpaid debt and rivalries between Niagara mobsters and influence from the Buffalo mob." Revenge was another reason for Angelo's death. James Dubro indicates this hit wasn't just approved by the Buffalo crime family, but ordered by Domenico Violi, later to be revealed as the Buffalo mafia's underboss. Angelo's murder occurred "20 years to the month" after Musitano hitman Kenneth Murdock killed Johnny "Pops" Papalia (the long time Buffalo mob captain and head of the Papalia crime family) and his right-hand man Carman Barillaro (a Buffalo and Papalia crime family soldier). Additionally, the Toronto Sun claims that the current mob war in Southern Ontario has its roots in the mob conflict that had Paolo Violi and his brothers Francesco & Rocco (Domenico "Dom" and Giuseppe "Joe" Violi's dad and uncles) murdered in Montreal during the late 1970s by the Rizzuto crime family. This was suggested as early as 2010 when Globe and Mail article stated, "A general picture is emerging of the power struggle overwhelming the Rizzutos. It's likely that Calabrese families, largely based in Toronto and backed by big players in New York State, are seizing control after the Rizzutos pushed them aside." In 2019 Brad Hunter explained, "It may have taken years but the Violi family were not going to let sleeping dogs lie." Nicolo Rizzuto Jr. was gunned down on December 28, 2009, followed by the disappearance of his brother-in-law Paolo Renda on May 10, 2010. Renda was the Rizutto crime family consigliere at the time of his murder. Finally, Nicolo Rizzuto Sr. was killed by a sniper on November 10, 2010. Dr. Anna Sergi (lecturer in criminology at the Department of Sociology, University of Essex, United Kingdom, and deputy director of the Centre for Criminology) confirms the Otremens operation which resulted in the Violi brothers' arrests, indicates New York crime families are using drug trafficking routes they established long ago and that these families are being "reinvigorated" by their long established working relationships with the Calabrian mafia in Canada. However, her article calls into question the current affiliation of the Todaro Crime Family in Buffalo. She indicates it is a "Crime Syndicate" formerly aligned with the LCN (La Cosa Nostra) families of New York. See chart in linked article: New York Crime Families Survive and Collaborate. During the investigation, police listened in as the agent and Violi discussed a variety of criminal activity and profit-making opportunities. Violi trafficked approximately 260,000 pills (including PCP, MDMA and meth) to the undercover RCMP agent for more than US$416,000 during which the agent was officially inducted as a "made" member of the Bonanno crime family in Canada. He also received another US$24,000 as his cut of the profit. Wiretaps indicated Violi was made the underboss of the Buffalo crime family 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. 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. In his new role, Violi was to "assume control over the operations of the Luppino-Violi crime family and solidify his power base with further and greater collaboration with the New York-based Mafia families." According to wiretaps from the Violi brothers' case, Giuseppe Violi told the undercover agent back in February 2015 that Cece Luppino had been approached about becoming a made member, but Cece had told his father that if he could make money he would be involved, but if not, he doesn't want to be involved; "that there are too many headaches". Hamilton Police have extended their search for Luppino's killer across the Canadian border into the United States, asking Buffalo area police and news agencies to disseminate pictures of the suspect taken from surveillance cameras. An attempt on Pasquale "Pat" Musitano's life was made outside the office of his lawyer, Joseph Irving, in Mississauga on the morning of April 25, 2019. According to reports, Pat was shot four times, once in the head. The Buffalo News indicated that Musitano "had organized crime enemies in Montreal and Buffalo" and that crime reporter "Peter Edwards said, he was more convinced than ever that the Buffalo mob was a player in the shooting" after "a source kept repeating 'Buffalo' over and over while talking about the incident." On October 12, 2020, longtime Buffalo family member Frank BiFulco died in his home. It was reported that Iavarone had been associated with the Musitano crime family bosses Angelo Musitano and Pasquale Musitano, before they were both assassinated. In 2019, former DEA agent Joseph Bongiovanni was indicted on charges of bribery, obstruction, and conspiracy. The indictment claimed that between 2008 and June 2019, former agent Bongiovanni had friends who were connected with the Buffalo Mafia family and knew these friends were involved distribution and importation of marijuana and cocaine. After his second trial Joseph Bongiovanni was convicted of one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, one count of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance, four counts of obstruction of justice, and one count of false statement to law enforcement. At both trials, prosecutors alleged Bongiovanni worked closely with co-defendant Peter Gerace, the owner of Pharoah’s Gentleman’s Club, claiming the club was used for drugs and sex trafficking. Gerace closed Pharaoh's in September 2025 after the conviction blocked him from renewing the club's liquor license. ==Historical leadership==

Boss (official and acting) • 1908–1912 – Benedetto Angelo "Buffalo Bill" Palmeri – stepped down, becoming Underboss. • 1912–1922 – Giuseppe "Don Pietro" DiCarlo Sr. – died of natural causes on July 19, 1974, at the age of 82. • Acting 1962–1967 – Frederico "Freddie Lupo" Randaccio – died on November 12, 2016. Underboss (official and acting) • 1912–1920 – Benedetto Angelo "Buffalo Bill" Palmeri – became Consigliere • 1953–1956 – Angelo Acquisto – caught stealing from the boss and committed suicide on January 11, 1956 – the son of boss Joseph Todaro Sr.; became Boss • 2006–2012 – Benjamin "Sonny" Nicoletti Jr. – Niagara Falls mobster; died on September 3, 2012 Consigliere (official and acting) • 1920–1932 – Benedetto Angelo "Buffalo Bill" Palmeri – died on December 21, 1932 • 1953–1958 – John C. Montana – stepped down, died in 1964 • 1958–1967 – Antonino "Nino" Magaddino – stepped down • 2024–2025 – Salvatore "Sam Naples" Napoli – died in April 2025 • 2025–present – Victor Sansanese ==Current members==

Administration • Boss — Joseph A. "Big Joe" Todaro Jr. — Boss of the family and owner of the "La Nova" pizzeria in Buffalo. In the early 1980s, his father Joseph Todaro Sr. became boss of the Buffalo family and promoted him to Underboss. In 2006, he became boss when his father Joe Todaro Sr. retired and used Leonard Falzone as his Front boss until 2016 when Falzone died. In 1997, Panaro was indicted along with members of the Los Angeles crime family for the robbery and murder of Las Vegas Chicago Outfit associate Herbert Blitzstein. In May 1999, Panaro was acquitted of the January 1997 murder of Blitzstein, as part of a plot to take over his loanshark and insurance fraud operations in Las Vegas. However, he was convicted of conspiracy to interfere with interstate commerce by extortion, a plot targeting Blitzstein, and was sentenced by former U.S. District Judge Philip Martin Pro to over 7 years in prison. • Consigliere — Victor Sansanese — became the consigliere again after the death of Sammy Napoli. In 1989, Victor and his brother Daniel Sansanese Jr. were identified as local 210 officials and were accused of controlling bookmaking for the Todaros. In 1996, Sansanese was removed from local 210 where he had been serving as director of training. Caporegimes Buffalo faction • Donald "The Turtle" Panepinto — capo and acting consigliere operating in Buffalo. Panepinto is a long time member of Buffalo faction and former member of local 210. His two sons Marc and Don Panepinto worked in local 210 and later became attorneys. On September 6, 1993, his daughter Dana Christine Panepinto married Joseph Edward Todaro the son of Joseph Todaro Jr. In 1996, Panepinto along with other members of the Buffalo family were forced out of local 210 LUINA. In late 2018 his son Marc Panepinto was sentenced to two months in prison on public corruption charges. On January 30, 2019, his son Cece Luppino was murdered in front of his brother Nat Luppino’s Hamilton home. Soldiers Buffalo faction • Salvatore "Sammy" Agro — soldier; born in March 1927. In March 1953, Agro was sentenced to 1 year in prison for conspiracy to deal in narcotics. • Joseph Bella — soldier; born in December 1972. During a raid at his home in April 2020, cocaine, MDMA, marijuana, drug paraphernalia and a shotgun with ammunition were found at his home. In March 2023, Bella was sentenced by former U.S. District Judge Richard Arcara to 3 and a half years in prison for wire fraud, possession of a firearm, and intent to distribute cocaine. • Peter Gerace Sr. — soldier in Buffalo. His father in-law was Joseph Todaro Sr., his brother-in-law is boss Joseph Todaro Jr. and his two sons Peter Gerace Jr. and Anthony Gerace are associate's of the Buffalo family. In 1996, Gerace along with Frank Bifulco, Salvatore Cardinale, John Catanzaro, Leonard Falzone, Sam Frangiamore, Bart Mazzara, Robert Panaro, Donald Panepinto, John A. Pieri, Joseph R. Pieri, Charles Pusateri, Joseph Rosato, Danny Sansanese Jr., Victor Sansanese, Louis Sicurella, Vincent "Jimmy" Sicurella and Joseph A. Todaro Jr. were forced out of local 210 LUINA. Gerace later stepped down from his business manager position in Local 210. He had served as Local 210 president, business manager and business agent before he was forced out of the union. "From late 1992 until February 1995, the men ran Advanced Distributing Co., a Kenmore firm that cheated customers with promises that they could win a new Cadillac or up to $40,000 in cash." Gerace pleaded guilty to the scheme in 2005 after the trial was delayed over a dispute regarding the admission of evidence. Gerace Jr. was formerly the operator of ''Pharaoh's Gentleman's Club'' in Cheektowaga. His father Peter Gerace Sr., who owned the club, married Joe Todaro Jr.'s sister, and his brother Anthony Gerace is also a mobster. Attorney Paul Cambria Jr. indicated the government may be trying to link Peter Gerace Jr. to his client Joseph Bongiovanni's case, Bongiovanni is a Buffalo-based DEA agent who was indicted for allegedly accepting "bribes to protect his drug-dealing friends who had ties to the Buffalo Mafia." Cambria had defended Gerace in his wire fraud case. In December 2024, Gerace Jr. was found guilty of conspiracy to defraud the United States, bribery, sex trafficking conspiracy, narcotics conspiracy, and witness tampering. According to prosecutors, Gerace used Pharaoh’s Gentlemen's Club to conduct his illegal activities, primarily his drug trafficking business, including the sale of heroin, cocaine, marijuana and Adderall, from between 2006 and 2019. Gerace allegedly made pay-offs to Joseph Bongiovanni, a corrupt DEA agent, who was sentenced to 5 years in prison. As of September 2025, Gerace is incarcerated at the Cattaraugus County Jail in Little Valley, New York. On September 22, 2020, a grand jury indictment identified Masecchia as "member or associate of 'Italian Organized Crime'" and indicated he had been described by law enforcement as "an associate and possibly a made member of the Buffalo LCN family." At the center of the indictment is the allegation that Masecchia bribed DEA Agent Joseph Bongiovanni to block investigations into himself and others believed to be tied into the local mafia. Masecchia "was the target of several DEA investigations between 2008 and 2019 and yet was never arrested or charged while Bongiovanni was an agent." Michael married Bart T. Mazzara's daughter, Krista. Bart Mazzara was alleged by prosecutors to be a made member of the Buffalo mob. His wife Krista's uncles are Dan and Victor Sansanese. In February 2022, Masecchia was sentenced to over 7 years in prison by U.S. District Judge John Sinatra for intent to distribute marijuana and possession of firearms. According to prosecutors at his trial, Masecchia had served as a marijuana drug dealer since at least 1999, and that Masecchia had been associated with a corrupt DEA agent in Buffalo. During the raid at his home in August 2019, over $28,000 in cash was seized, along with 2 rifles, 5 shotguns, 1 pistol, marijuana and cocaine, steroids and needles, THC edibles, cannabis syrup, drug paraphernalia and 4 mobile phones. In May 2025, Masecchia was released early from prison due to medical issues. • John A. Pieri – soldier operating in Buffalo. His father Joseph Pieri and his uncle Sam Pieri were powerful members of the Buffalo family. • Natale "Nat" Luppino — soldier in the "Luppino crew" operating in Hamilton, Ontario. His brother Giuseppe "Joe" Violi also operates in the Luppino family. • Sam Capitano — associate of the Buffalo family. A member of the Pizza Gang who was identified by Ron Fino as a confidant of Joe Todaro Jr. He was suspended from the union for one year and was prevented for holding a leadership position in the local for five years. • Joseph Edward "Joey" Todaro III — the son of Joseph Todaro Jr., the boss of family, and the grandson of Joseph Todaro Sr., the former boss of the Buffalo family. In October 1989 he was indicted with felony assault for beating William Gorman, a bouncer at Celebrities Nite Club in the Cheektowaga Ramada Renaissance Hotel, with a baseball bat. In June 1993, Todaro along with Frank BiFulco, Gaetano Miceli, John Catanzaro, Frank Tripi, Samuel Amoia Jr. (the grandson of Sam Pieri), Michael A. Muscarella, Larry Panaro, Steve Sacco and Vincent Spano were linked to a Telemarketing firm that had been raided by the FBI. Utica faction • Russell E. "Russ" Carcone — operating from Utica. In 1989, Carcone along with his father Benedetto Carcone and others were indicted on racketeering. In December 1990, Carcone, his father Benedetto P. "Benny" Cacrone, Jack J. "Jake" Minicone Jr., Anthony J. Inserra and Jack Zogby were convicted of running a criminal enterprise centered in Utica from 1973 to 1989, and crimes that included extortion, loansharking, illegal gambling, trafficking in stolen property and murder. His father Benny ran operations from the Swap Shop at 512 Albany Street in Utica and forced the local bookmakers to make regular payments to him and his son Russ. The Utica shoplifting ring worked in teams and stole items for quick resell like razor blades, batteries and compact discs. On March 23, 2004, his father Benedetto "Benny" died. Allied groups Buffalo chapter of the Outlaws • John "Tommy O" Ermin — currently the national president of the Outlaws Motorcycle Club. Before being promoted, Ermin served as the president of Buffalo chapter of Outlaws and was linked to Buffalo Mafia boss Joeseph "Big Joe" Todaro, Jr. Niagara chapter of the Hells Angels (Canada) • Gerald "Skinny" Ward — President of the Niagara chapter of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club. Ward began associating with the Buffalo family during the late 1990s, buying and re-selling cocaine in Hamilton. Ward began an alliance with the Hells Angels in 1998, before he and his gang joined the club in 2000. By 2008, the police estimated that Ward and the Niagara chapter of the Hells Angels were responsible for selling about 75% of the cocaine in the Niagara region. When Hells Angels Canada national president Walter "Nurget" Stadnick was arrested in 2001, Ward became one of the co-leaders of the Canadian Hells Angels. == Former members ==

Buffalo faction • Frank J. "Butchie Bifocals" BiFulco – born March 10, 1945, and grew up on Buffalo's West Side. He later became a capo who operated within the Buffalo area. In 1993, BiFulco along with Gaetano "Tommy Chooch" Miceli, John Catanzaro, Joseph Todaro III (the son of Joseph Todaro Jr.), Frank Tripi, Samuel Amoia Jr. (the grandson of Sam Pieri), Michael A. Muscarella, Larry Panaro, Steve Sacco and Vincent Spano were linked to Telemarketing firms that were raided by the FBI. In 1996, BiFulco along with Joseph Todaro Jr., Leonard Falzone, and brothers John and Joseph Pieri were forced out of local 210. On September 10, 2012, BiFulco was released from prison. BiFulco died on October 12, 2020. In April 1988, Catanzaro a Local 210 steward was indicted and charged with demanding and receiving $35,000 in wages to guarantee labor peace as a no-show union steward on the construction of a brine pipeline between Wyoming County and Niagara Falls. On November 10, 2004, Catanzaro died. • Leonard F. "Lennie Calzone" Falzone – former acting boss and consigliere. In 1996, while Falzone was in prison for racketeering and loansharking he was forced out of local 210 along with Joseph Todaro Jr., Frank BiFulco and brothers John and Joseph Pieri. His son Ronald M. "Ron" Fino later became an FBI informant. Mauro received 14 years for a gambling conviction. In the trial he was called "a crusty war horse with a record of gambling arrests dating from the 1950s. "He called himself 'the bookmaker's bookmaker' when he testified during a hearing of the State Crime Commission in 1960." Police and gambling experts described him as the "biggest known bookmaker" in this region in the "last four decades." Mauro, also, had large gambling operations in Las Vegas. He was convicted of Social Security fraud for arranging a "no show" job at Atlas Auto Glass for his son Charles. His conspiracy to commit bank fraud charge was dropped in the Moore case because it wouldn't add more jail time. Mauro denied claims he was a member of the Buffalo family". • Salvatore "Sam Naples" Napoli – former consigliere. In 1969, while Napoli worked under brothers Alber and Matthew Billiteri he was charged with loansharking. In the late 1960s, Nicoletti Jr. worked with his father controlling a sports book operation in Niagara county. The charges against Nicoletti Jr. were later dismissed because of illegal wiretaps. In 1977, Nicoletti was a suspect in the November 14, 1977 murder of John Certo, after witnesses saw Certo slapping Nicoletti's niece in Niagara falls bar. On May 2, 1982, his father Benjamin Nicoletti Sr. died. In 1992, Nicoletti was indicted along with Angelo "Bobby" Plumeri, Vincent Palmeri, Anthony Previte, Pasquale M. Accetta, Roy H. Arist, Peter De Loreto, Paul Kaczowski Jr., Alfred Ligamarri Jr., Edward A. Loverde, Samuel Mangione, Charles Ogrodowski, Peter Pietrangeli, Ricardo J. Ross Jr., and Charles Tattersall on illegal gambling charges in Niagara County. Nicoletti owned a number of properties in the Niagara falls area including a motel. Nicoletti died on September 3, 2012. • Joseph P. Rosato – became a made man in 1985. • Daniel J. Sansanese Jr. – became a made man in 1970, and served as secretary-treasurer of Local 210 until his retirement in 1994. Barillaro was one of Johnny Papalia's top lieutenants and was responsible for controlling gambling, bookmakers and loan sharks in Niagara Falls. • Giacomo Luppino – former capo of the "Luppino crew" in Hamilton. Giacomo Luppino died of natural causes at the age of 87 in March 1987, whereby his son Jimmy Luppino took over the Luppino family. • Enio "Pegleg" Mora – former associate of the Buffalo family. In 1968, Mora immigrated to Canada and began working with Siderno Group leader Rocco Zito. The police suspected that Mora and Papalia were involved in the 1983 murder of Paul Volpe. His father Antonio and mother Maria Rosa Italiano had immigrated to Canada from Delianuova, a village in Calabria, Italy. He was the boss of the Papalia crew of Hamilton. His crew included his three brothers Domenic, Frank and Rocco and his brother in-law Tony Pugliese. Volpe maintained a close relationship with both the Luppino and Bordonaro families in Hamilton. During the 1960s Volpe became one of Stefano Magaddino's top men in Toronto. In 1983, Volpe was murdered, it was suspected that Johnny Papalia and Enio Mora played a role in his death. == Former associates ==

• Peter A. Capitano Sr. – a former associate. He served as a former business manager, secretary-treasurer, business agent and executive board member in local 210. == Government informants and witnesses ==

• Jimmy Fasanella – hairdresser, degenerate gambler and associate of Frank "Chickie Botts" Grisanti who became a reluctant government witness in the racketeering trial of James Moore. Moore was accused of using his position at Citibank to arrange fraudulent loans for gamblers in debt to mob controlled bookmakers Nicholas "Sonny" Mauro, Bart Mazzara, and Russell "Hymo" Amsden. His father Joseph Fino was a capo in the Buffalo family. • Carmen LaBruna – informant who was called a "gangster and outlaw of the first order" by Erie County District Attorney Edward Cosgorave. He became a government informant after his second-degree murder conviction for helping reputed mobster Gino Albini dispose of Elayne Stec's body in a Buffalo sewer in the 1970s. Stec had witnessed Albini kill a man outside a West Side bar. While in prison LaBruna began cooperating with authorities. He related the details of 20 Buffalo mob-related murders that dated to the late 1950s in hopes of reducing his sentence. In 1988, Carman LaBruna was credited for the 15 years he had spent in prison for the murder and a 1969 hotel robbery in Buffalo and paroled. Federal and state authorities had to convince LaBruna not to return to Buffalo after his release and enter Federal Witness Protection Program (WITSEC). He was given a new name and relocated to a western state hundreds of miles from Buffalo. In November 1989 Cape Coral, FL asked Buffalo Police Department to look out for LaBruna. Later that month he was arrested in Ft. Myers for attempted murder, armed robbery, and being a felon in possession of a firearm. He was accused of shooting his roommate, David Kohler, in the side and back while taking his wallet that contained $100. It was reported that Kohler was found by a fisherman in an isolated marsh where he was bleeding profusely some 45 minutes later. A jury failed to reach a verdict in the first trial but a second jury acquitted him. In 1993 Carmen was charged with aggravated battery for stabbing 24-year-old Ted Allen Jordan outside a Cape Coral 7-11 store after an argument. The stabbing was witnessed by an off duty police detective. At the time of this arrest, Daniel Wright, the US Marshal for Buffalo, was unaware of the arrest and could not comment on LaBruna's status in WITSEC. Authorities in Florida indicated LaBruna left witness protection in the late 1980s, lived under his own name and was not worried about the mob finding him. • Faust Novino – former associate, drug dealer and hitman who was accused of being involved in the murder of Michael Ress who ran a large marijuana trafficking ring with ties to the Buffalo mob. Ress' murder was alleged to have been planned by John T. Sacco. Ress's narcotics were supplied by John C. Sacco Jr., a high ranking mob member who later became and informant. "Sacco, (John C., Jr.) who died of natural causes in 1991, had been shot three times by Novino during a 1976 Connecticut Street hit on Novino for his murder two years earlier of Albert J. Billiteri Jr., son of Buffalo mob member Albert "Babe" Billiteri." Novino was convicted of murdering the son of former Caporegime Babe Billiteri in 1974. After cooperating with the government Faust Novino entered witness protection and was given a new identity. • David Petri – former associate turned government witness who was threatened by loanshark Frank "Chickie Bots" Grisanti to keep him from testifying against him and his coconspirators in "mob banker" James Moore's racketeering case. According to Petri, Grisanit asked him to modify his testimony against Moore and indicated "Ronald Raccuia, a former city official who has gone into hiding as an FBI witness, is one of several persons who should be looking over his shoulder." Grisanti's statement scared him enough to move his family from Buffalo." • Fred Saia – former associate who was proposed for membership but "lost his chance when he was involved in a gun deal that went sour and upset some bosses." Saia ran gaming tables at area stag parties in the 1960s and 1970s and booked rock bands for a Cheektowaga night club giving mob leaders a 25% cut. He became a laborer in LiUNA Local 210 in the 1950s because he was friendly with a mob leader. He came to be a government informant after being caught in a cocaine deal because he feared what the Todaros would do alleging "they did not want their people to be involved in narcotics dealing" in the 1980s. His testimony in a union disciplinary hearing resulted Joe Todaro, Jr., Leonard Falzone and 4 other members with alleged mob ties submitting their letters of resignation. Saia allegedly had Vincent "Jimmy" Sicurella and Michael LaPorta torch cars for insurance money. His son Tomas Saia, a convicted cocaine dealer, was indicted for his involvement in mob connected telemarketing companies ==Factions and territories==

The Magaddino family's operations as centered around Buffalo and throughout New York state, with additional territory in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Ontario in Canada. The family also maintains links to Castellammare del Golfo in Sicily. including Rochester. The organization is also active in Utica and elsewhere in Upstate New York. and throughout Southern Ontario, including Burlington and Niagara Falls. • Pennsylvania – The family operates in Erie County. • Ohio – The family operates in Youngstown, • Florida – The family operates in South Florida, including Broward County. == List of murders committed by the Buffalo crime family ==