Kansas City crime family explained

Founder:	Joseph DiGiovanni
Founding Location:	Kansas City, Missouri, United States
Territory:	Primarily the Kansas City metropolitan area, with additional territory throughout Missouri, as well as Omaha, Tulsa and Las Vegas
Ethnicity:	Italians as "made men" and other ethnicities as associates
Membership Est:	12 made members (2015)^[1]
Activities:	Racketeering, extortion, murder, gambling, loan sharking, narcotics, bookmaking, and bribery
Allies:	Chicago Outfit Cleveland crime family Colorado crime family Los Angeles crime family Milwaukee crime family St. Louis crime family
Rivals:	Various gangs in the Kansas City area

The Kansas City crime family, also known as the Civella crime family, the Kansas City Mafia or the Clique, is an Italian-American Mafia crime family based in Kansas City, Missouri.

History

Early history

The Italian-American organized crime family began when two Sicilian mafiosi known as the DiGiovanni brothers fled Sicily to Kansas City, Missouri, in 1912. Joseph "Joe Church" DiGiovanni and Peter "Sugarhouse Pete" DiGiovanni began making money from a variety of criminal operations or rackets shortly after their arrival.^[2]

Their fortunes greatly improved with the introduction of Prohibition, when they became the only group bootlegging alcohol in Kansas City. Their rackets at this time were controlled by John Lazia, who later became the leading figure when the organization expanded. The gang was given virtually a free hand to operate by their boss Tom Pendergast, head of the Pendergast Machine that controlled Kansas City's government at the time. Under Pendergast, Kansas City became a wide-open town, with absolutely no alcohol-related arrests being made within city limits during the entirety of Prohibition. The DiGiovanni family directly benefited from this lack of enforcement of prohibition laws.

Post-Prohibition

When Prohibition ended in 1933, the family, although already involved in various rackets, allegedly began extorting bars. On July 10, 1934, Lazia was assassinated, probably on the orders of his underboss, Charles Carrollo, who ruled as boss until his arrest in 1939 for tax evasion. His underboss Charles Binaggio then became the new boss and expanded the family's areas of labor into racketeering. With the help of Binaggio, Forrest Smith was elected in the Missouri gubernatorial race of 1948, and he took office on January 10, 1949. Binaggio was seen as a liability to the Mafia's nationwide commission, and it was decided that Binaggio should be killed. He was assassinated on April 6, 1950, and his successor Anthony Gizzo died of a heart attack in 1953.

Nicholas Civella

The new boss was Nicholas Civella, who greatly expanded the family's rackets and forged alliances with families from other cities, making the organization very powerful. Civella used the Teamsters to fund casinos in Las Vegas. In 1975, Civella was imprisoned on gambling charges for betting on the 1970 Super Bowl, played between the Minnesota Vikings and the Kansas City Chiefs. Around this time, there was a war in the family over control of the River Quay entertainment district, in which three buildings were bombed and several gangsters were killed.

Operation Strawman

The Kansas City FBI, suspecting mob involvement at the Tropicana Casino in Las Vegas, set up a broad investigation, known as Operation Strawman, which involved wiretapping phones of reputed mobsters and their associates in Kansas City. From the evidence collected by taps and other eavesdropping in the late 1970s, the FBI discovered a conspiracy to skim money from the Tropicana Casino.

Operation Strawman learned that Joe Agosto, head of the Tropicana's Folies Bergere show, controlled the skimming in the Tropicana. Agosto was secretly sending cash from the casino to Kansas City organized-crime chief Nick Civella and Joseph Aiuppa of Chicago, as well as Cleveland and Milwaukee mobsters.

In 1981, a grand jury in Kansas City indicted Agosto, Kansas City mob boss Nick Civella, Civella's brother Carl Civella, mob member Carl DeLuna, and Carl Thomas, who had directed the illegal skimming of cash at the Tropicana with two others. The defendants were convicted in 1983.^[3]

In January 1992, James Moretina pleaded guilty to a federal money laundering charge and was sentenced to 37 months. Moretina served as president of a firm that distributed illegal video gambling machines. He and his business partner, purported mob underboss Peter J. Simone, operated the Be Amused Vending and Amusement Co. Moretina is the son of Charles Moretina, who was convicted in the 1980s for skimming Las Vegas casino gambling receipts.

21st century

William "Willie the Rat" Cammisano, Sr., became the family's next boss until his death in 1995. Anthony Civella then became the new boss. He died in 2006.

The Kansas City family had an estimated 25 made members as of the late 1990s, according to the FBI.

The current boss of the family is believed to be John Joseph Sciortino, also known as "Johnny Joe", godson of Anthony Civella. The current underboss is believed to be Peter Simone.

On July 21, 2008, Carl "Tuffy" DeLuna, former underboss to Nick Civella and brother-in-law to Anthony Civella, died.

On March 9, 2010, the FBI indicted Gerlarmo "Jerry" Cammisano, James Moretina, Michael Lombardo, and James DiCapo for allegedly operating a "multi-million-dollar internet gambling scheme".^[4] Jerry Cammisano, son of William "Willie the Rat" Cammisano, served as the "master agent" of the sports bookmaking operation, which was based in the Kansas City area.^[5] Prior to the indictment, six individuals pleaded guilty in connection with the investigation, including three – Vincent Civella and brothers Michael and Anthony Sansone – who are the son and grandsons of former Kansas City boss Anthony "Tony Ripe" Civella.^[6] Jerry Cammisano's brother, William D. Cammisano, Jr., also pleaded guilty for his role in the sports bookmaking operation.^[7]

According to the crime reporter Scott Burnstein in 2015, the Kansas City family is "probably on its last legs" with twelve or less "made" members. The family still has some gambling and loansharking with some extortion involving drugs and the strip club industry.^[1]

Historical leadership

Boss (official and acting)

• 1912–1931 – Joseph "Joe Church" DiGiovanni
• 1931–1934 – John "Brother John" Lazia – murdered in 1934
• 1934–1939 – Charles "Charlie the Wop" Carrollo – convicted in 1939
• 1939–1950 – Charles Binaggio – murdered in 1950
  • 1950–1953 – Anthony Gizzo 1953–1983 – Nicholas Civella – convicted in 1977 and 1980; deceased in 1983
  • Acting 1977–1979 – Carl "Tuffy" DeLuna – imprisoned in 1979
  • Acting 1979–1983 – Carl "Cork" Civella – became official boss
• 1983–1984 – Carl "Cork" Civella – convicted in 1984
• 1984–1995 – William "Willie the Rat" Cammisano
• 1995–2006 – Anthony "Tony Ripe" Civella – arrested in 1992, released 1997
  • Acting 1995–2006 – John "Johnny Joe" Sciortino – became official boss
• 2006–present John "Johnny Joe" Sciortino

Members

Administration

• Boss – John "Johnny Joe" Sciortino – current boss of the family; Sciortino was formerly a capo and the godson and protégé of boss Anthony Civella.^[8] He was named acting boss by Civella after Civella’s 1995 imprisonment, and Sciortino became the official boss after Civella’s 2006 death. Sciortino is suspected of being involved in the murder of family associate Larry Strada, who was shot to death in the driveway of his home on May 16, 1990. FBI agents testified that the two mobsters charged in the case, John Mandacina and Patrick McGuire, were seen meeting with Sciortino and Peter Simone at Simone's Social Avenue Club in the hours before Strada's murder.
• Underboss – Peter "Las Vegas Pete" Simone – longtime family member.^[9]
• Consigliere – Frank DeLuna – the FBI in Missouri believes he is the aide to Sciortino.^[1]

Soldiers

• Vincent Civella – son of former boss "Tony Ripe" Civella. In 2010, Civella pleaded guilty to conducting an illegal gambling operation that utilized a computer system based in Costa Rica. He was also ordered to forfeit $40,000 to the federal government.^[10] He was released from prison on September 23, 2011.^[11]
• James Moretina – In 2010, Moretina pleaded guilty to conducting an illegal gambling business alongside Vincent Civella.^[12] He was released from prison on April 27, 2012.^[13]
• Vincent Pisciotta – A career criminal, Pisciotta was charged with second-degree murder in 1980 for a 1978 killing, but a mistrial was declared when a key witness vanished. The witness later reappeared and claimed that he was beaten out of testifying.^[14] In 1988, he was indicted for another murder, but charges were reduced to manslaughter and he served 120 days in jail. In 2013, Pisciotta was convicted of arson in an incident where he helped burn down a restaurant for insurance money.^[15] He has a projected release date of December 9, 2029.^[13]
• Peter J. "P.J." Ribaste – Kansas City soldier, Ribaste has been excluded from gambling in the state of Nevada.^[16]
• John Termini – In 1993, Termini was convicted of conducting an illegal gambling business.^[17]

Former members

• Anthony J. Biase – former capo. Biase operated in Omaha, Nebraska. He died of natural causes on September 21, 1991.
• Randy "Junior" Badolato – Kansas City soldier & St. Louis crime family street capo, enforcer and grandson of deceased St Louis capo Ralph "Bottles" Badolato who was a former teamster and long time protége of Anthony Giordano. Junior Badolato, who was deemed inactive in the mid 2000s, was allegedly one of the top earners in both Kansas City and St. Louis.
• William "Little Willie" Cammisano Jr. – captain and son of former Kansas City mob boss William "Willie the Rat" Cammisano Sr. His first conviction was in 1989 for obstruction of justice after he intimidated a witness involved in a murder trial; he was released three years later. He had been the suspect of numerous gangland executions during the 1980s. Cammisano is also blacklisted from every casino in Kansas City and Las Vegas.^[18] In 2010, he pleaded guilty to running a massive illegal gambling operation which amounted to $3.5 million over the course of three years; he received one year.^{[19] [20]} Cammisano died of COVID-19 on January 17, 2023.^{[21] [22] [23]}

In media

In August 2008, retired FBI agent William Ouseley published his history of the KC crime family from 1900 to 1950 in a book titled Open City.

On March 20, 2009, Blackhand Strawman, a documentary of Kansas City's organized crime history was released in theaters in Kansas City.

On March 1, 2011 retired FBI agent William Ouseley published his history of the KC crime family from 1950 to 2000 in a book titled Mobsters in Our Midst.

On November 25, 2013, the documentary film Gangland Wire was released. This film uses audio clips from FBI wiretaps to tell the story of how law enforcement uncovered a massive conspiracy to control Las Vegas casinos.

See also

• Crime in Missouri
• List of Italian Mafia crime families

Further reading

• AmericanMafia.com - 26 Mafia cities - Kansas City
• Crime Magazine - The History of the Kansas City Family

Notes and References

1. Web site: State Of The Syndicate: The Kansas City Mafia Today. The Gangster Report. Scott Burnstein. November 3, 2015 .
2. Book: Ouseley. William. Open City: True Story of the KC Crime Family 1900-1950. 12 June 2008. Leathers Publishing. 978-1585974801.
3. Web site: Tropicana | ONE. www.onlinenevada.org. 2020-05-25. 2020-07-10. https://web.archive.org/web/20200710100212/http://www.onlinenevada.org/articles/tropicana. dead.
4. https://www.justice.gov/archive/usao/mow/news2010/cammisano.ind.htm Four Men, Two Businesses Indicted For $3.5 Million Illegal Gambling Operation
5. https://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2010/03/08/daily38.html More Kansas City men are indicted under sports betting operation
6. https://archives.fbi.gov/archives/kansascity/press-releases/2010/kc030310.htm Kansas City Man is Sixth to Plead Guilty to Illegal Gambling
7. https://archives.fbi.gov/archives/kansascity/press-releases/2010/kc022510.htm Harrisonville Man Pleads Guilty to Illegal Gambling
8. News: Stephens . Joe . July 15, 1992 . Anthony Civella sentenced . . September 1, 2022.
9. Web site: Kansas City mafia continues to dwindle. About the Mafia. 2 December 2015 . 17 May 2016.
10. Web site: Kansas City Man is Sixth to Plead Guilty to Illegal Gambling . 2022-06-24 . FBI . en-us.
11. Web site: Inmate Locator . 2022-06-24 . www.bop.gov.
12. Web site: Parkville Man Sentenced for Trafficking Over $400,000 in Counterfeit Goods, Illegal Gambling Operation . 2022-06-24 . FBI . en-us.
13. Web site: BOP: Federal Inmates By Name . 2022-06-24 . www.bop.gov.
14. Web site: Hereford House defendants have ties to organized crime, motion says . 2022-06-24 . bizjournals.com.
15. Web site: 2015-01-07 . Hereford House Owner, Two Others Sentenced for Fire that Destroyed Landmark Restaurant . 2022-06-24 . www.justice.gov . en.
16. Web site: Nevada Gaming Control Board : Ribaste, Peter, Joseph . 2022-06-24 . gaming.nv.gov.
17. Web site: United States of America, Appellee, v. John Termini, Appellant, 992 F.2d 879 (8th Cir. 1993) . 2023-07-21 . Justia Law . en.
18. Web site: William Dominick Cammisano, Jr. . 17 May 2016 . Nevada Gaming Control Board.
19. Web site: Remembering Kansas City's mob past . 17 May 2016 . Kansas City Business Journal . Steve Vockrodt.
20. Web site: William 'Willie' Cammisano Jr. pleads guilty to running illegal gambling operation; son of 'Willie the Rat' Cammisano . 17 May 2016 . The Pitch . Justin Kendall.
21. News: Burnstein . Scott . January 17, 2023 . Last Of A Dying Breed: Little Willie Cammisano Dead At 73, Kansas City Mob Mourns Departed Gangland Royalty . The Gangster Report . https://web.archive.org/web/20230121135550/https://gangsterreport.com/last-of-a-dying-breed-little-willie-cammisano-dead-at-73-kansas-city-mob-mourns-departed-gangland-royalty/ . January 21, 2023.
22. News: Lukitsch . Bill . January 19, 2023 . Reputed ex-Kansas City mobster dies at 73 after long illness that began as COVID-19 . . https://web.archive.org/web/20230121140115/https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/crime/article271312112.html . January 21, 2023.
23. News: Passantino Bros. Funeral Home . January 21, 2023 . William D. Cammisano, Jr. Obituary (1949 - 2023) . . https://web.archive.org/web/20230121140732/https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/legacyremembers/william-d-cammisano-jr-obituary?pid=203687980 . January 21, 2023.