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.ni/tLA wmnu ts i tLilING SOU AD OF EXPERTS'*• r• ■ mFamilies*, By 1ED STOUT. WASHINGTQNfUPl ) — A nationwide attack has begun on at least- 15 of - the. 24 big Cosa Nostra '/families that reputedly .run organized crime In the Unijed states; - it was disclosedtoday. ...The vehicle for: the assault thet touches cities from Massachusetts to Florida to California is a flying squad of investigative experts from .five federal agencies: . . • .-/.•-'file, squgd is directed by the. Justice Department’s organized crime section, headed'-by-Henry E- Petersen, and includes mem-bers from the. FBI, the Internal Revenue Service, the Bureau of Narcotics and the Labor Department.Legitimate FrontsPetersen told UPI much of. the effort was aimed at illegalities (hat could lead to action against the legitimate businesses being used as fronts by the syndicate. He listed these men and-areas as'major targets in the drive:—Raymond L, S. Patriarca, cited .by'Senate investigators as the kingpin of organized crime, in New England,, with operations centering in-Boston and Providence, R. I. -HEAVY RAINS itLAMED• *rAt Least 92 Killed Inmo DE JANEIRO, Brazil CAP) — At least 92 persons aremgs which collapsed Sunday night in Rio, hut the engineer in—New York City syndicate operations, which Petersen said are controlled by Joseph Colombo, Vito Genovese, Caspar Di-gregorio, Carlo Gambino, and Gaetano (Three -Finger Brown) Luchese,—Northern New Jersey, where operations are run by the Catena brothers, Gerardo and Gene, .Others Identified Others identified by Petersen with their primary bases ol operations were:John Scalish, Northern Ohio; Joseph Zerilli, Detroit; John Larocca, Pittsburgh; Nicholas Civeila, Kansas City; Carlos Marcello, New Orleans;. S am Giancana, Chicago; StepbanoMagaddino, Buffalo and Angelo Bruno, Philadelphia.In addition, Petersen said, the flying squad planned to move into Florida late this week. Santos Trafficante Jr. was identified. in Senate crime hearings as the syndicate boss for thatarea.Other activity centers are LosAngeles, San Diego, Las Vegas, Denver, and Chattanooga, Tctm.According to Petersen, the renewed drive on organized crime was I he outgrowth of a White House meeting last May during which President Johnson and federal law enforcement officials discussed the $7 billion - a-year problem.Big. OperationShortly afterward, he said, the organized crime section began building its staff and drawing on elements from (lie Treasury and Labor departments. Last Nov. 15 the inter -agency crimebustmg group took shape. Petersen explained its operations this way.:-—Field representatives of theagencies involved — and other agencies ranging from the Im-migration and Naturalization Service to the Agriculture Department, If ihey are needed— gather all available data on the legal and illegal operations of the syndicate in a .specific area.—'The inter - agency group goes.'to the area involved and, after an analysis of the data, decides which of thc syndicate’s operations Is most vulnerable tohigh- pressure investigation. It j Sources said the Philadelphia ts m this aica that specialists investigation has already turn*from agencies generally not involved with crime sometimes lend a hand,Pressure On In Philadelphia, for example. As many as 50 federal agents from a number of agencies are reported to he working on the case of I he man officials believe controls the city’s syndicate operations.ed up SO businesses in this country and abroad that arc connected in some way with syndicate leader Bruno.So far/ the flying squad has made its visits to Boston, Los Angeles and Philadelphia and has met in San Francisco to analyze the Las Vegas situation. After its Florida visit this week it plans to move on to' KansasEditorials Comics General NewsLubbock Avalanche-JournalLubbock, Texas, Tuesday Evening, February 21, 1 %7See lioncCity.Petersen said the groundwork for the major New York and Chicago efforts was still being done. This is not a short-range program,” he said, adding that the key to its success would be “to continue keeping the pressure on the syndicate,He said state and local law enforcement agencies were working'with federal authorities to maintain the pressure in m a n y areas. We can’i. begin to enforce this crackdown nationwide” without the help of local officials he said, nothing that the 33,-000 investigators in all federal agencies made up a force about the size of the New York City jxjlice department.- jYou’re ahead
Newspaper Details
Avalanche Journal
Lubbock, Texas, US
Tue, Feb 21, 1967
Page 70
Full Page
Clipped by
Madison H.
NA, 25 May 2023
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