O'Nesti and Rich pleaded guilty to conspiracy in March 1998. Username. "Well, it was a get-together of other members, and you took a, you took an oath, and it was drawing blood from your finger and burning a religious card and taking an oath of silence.". Remove advertising from a memorial by sponsoring it for just $5. Biondillo had been paying off politicians on his own and putting video poker machines in private clubs in Hillsville, Pennsylvania--Strollo's territory--without telling the mob boss. Arthur Treacher's in Garfield Heights Reopened by New Owner Who Plans More Locations in Ohio, The Absolutely Nutty Cleveland/East Palestine/15-Minute City Conspiracy Theory, Explained. There was a problem getting your location. "[Batcho] said, 'I don't know, I don't know. or don't show this againI am good at figuring things out. Strollo also provided information that led to the convictions of former U.S. Rep. James A. Traficant Jr., ex-Mahoning County Judge Martin W. Emrich, ex-Youngstown Municipal Judge Andrew Polovischak Jr., three men involved in the Biondillo hit, ex-Mahoning County Sheriff Phil Chance, ex-Mahoning County Prosecutor James A. Philomena and others. Learn more about managing a memorial . Eventually the repairmen taught the young Strollo how to fix the various slot, pinball, and bowling machines that were common in the shot-and-beer watering holes around town that catered to mill workers. He'll die of a heart attack with two bimbos in Barbados.". Mafia Regions At one point Strollo is heard telling a caller, "I don't feel that we should have people listening in on our conversation. Family members linked to this person will appear here. Just like that, the federal investigation had expanded from illegal gambling to racketeering and public corruption. Nearly fifty years later, "Big Ange" entered the witness protection program and became the highest-ranking mafioso to defect. Instead, he deferred to the government, represented by Craig S. Morford, an assistant U.S. attorney. He was 89 years old. How long after you were released from the halfway house?". Oops, something didn't work. Add to your scrapbook. Gains left there at about 1 a.m. and stopped to buy cigarettes and cat food before he went home. He confessed to the charges and hired Policy to defend him, but then recanted his confession. Strollo was the final mob boss in Mahoning Valley history. WebberSites Website Design and Development An enraged Licavoli demanded revenge for his cousin's murder, and, eventually, he got it. There are no volunteers for this cemetery. When Gains awoke in the hospital, he was happy to be able to move his legs but perplexed by the shooting. The first two ended with hung juries. Unlike Scalish, the white-haired, cane-carrying Prato also named a successor before he died--Naples, now answering only to Pittsburgh. The Crab Sleeps With the Fishes Current address 87 Meadowbrook Ave, Youngstown, OH 44512 $740: B. Youngstown was once among the biggest steel cities along with Cleveland and Pittsburg. "Jeff was very realistic from beginning to end.". The city's first mob boss, "Big Joe" Lonardo, rose to that position by controlling the flow of corn sugar, a key ingredient used by bootleggers. Kobler also presciently noted, "The Youngstown area exemplifies the truism that rackets cannot survive without two basic conditions--the sanction of police and politicians, and an apathetic public. It's easy to view the mob as a romantic relic--with images of Al Pacino talking to Marlon Brando in a vegetable garden--or to simply write it off as an insular faction that runs a few gambling operations and rarely uses violence outside its own ranks. Case Files Strollo testified they were lured in by money and, more disturbingly, legal protection. On the first count, for the murder of Biondillo--guilty. Morford said he found Strollo to be the most cooperative and productive witness he'd seen in 20 years as a prosecutor. "It didn't bother me at first, because I thought I had some inroads with him because I had two people talking to him.". Despite his deeds, federal authorities asked for a reduced sentence for Lenine "Lenny" Strollo, longtime crime boss of Youngstown, because of . Why not thumb his nose at the feds one last time? Exclusive Securing plea bargains from the likes of Teresi and Mandel was critical to convicting the higher-ranking mobsters. Design Awards: 2011 CEDIA Electronic Lifestyle Award - Home Theater Level VII Bronze Technical Design West Coast, The Company You Keep (Cicero Edition): Alleged New Chicago Mafia Chief Louie Rainone Has A Pal Joey, Burnstein Op-Ed: Reports Of Chicago Mob Legend Jimmy Is Role As Informant Missing Context, Rewarding FBI For Hypocrisy, Bad Faith, Chicago Mafia Don Solly D DeLaurentis Not Present At Underboss Jimmy Is Wake, As Windy City Underworld Mourns Loss, Pagans MC Parties In The Ozarks As Part Of Expansion Agenda, Recruiting Rally In Branson, Missouri Runs Smoothly, GR SOURCES: Hells Angels Want Backing From Highwaymen MC In Fight With Outlaws MC For Brand Building In Michigan. "Approximately when did this occur? "Who are the high rollers? Strollo denies any involvement in Naples's murder, and the case remains unsolved. "It was a tough time for me. To the "young lady who spoke [Rich]," he hoped that the good Lord would give her comfort. "As long as I'm in office or alive, I'm still a concern to them," he says of the Young-stown mob. Lenny was born April 21, 1931 in Youngstown, the son of the late Dominic and Antoinette (Cavallo) Strollo and was a lifelong area resident. Of the 46 people indicted from a four-year FBI probe of organized crime and corruption in the Mahoning Valley, 42 people took plea bargains, including Lenine "Lenny" Strollo, a made man in the Pittsburgh Mafia who ran the Youngstown rackets. "I don't think about it too much," he says, slapping his hand on his desk with a sense of finality. An email has been sent to the person who requested the photo informing them that you have fulfilled their request, There is an open photo request for this memorial. Strollo said he had his brother pay Campbell police chief Charles Xenakis $500 a month for three years and claimed that Campbell Law Director Mike Rich fixed numerous cases for him. It's tough to imagine longtime Cleveland don John Scalish burping as his final show of bravado, much less cooperating with federal agents. It is centrally located between Cleveland and Pittsburg as well. From information like that, the FBI got a search warrant for Strollo's home, and, in January 1997, agents seized more than 40,000 pages of documents, including financial and gambling records. Learn more about merges. Amazingly, Gains was sworn in as Mahoning County prosecutor ten days later, bits of the bullet still lodged near his spine. "I couldn't believe there was a place as corrupt as Mahoning County," Assistant U.S. Attorney Julia Stiller said as she left Judge O'Malley's courtroom. "[Strollo's mob] knew they were being watched," says Wooley, pointing out that, even after the 1995 Super Bowl raid, the mobsters continued their gambling and bribery and went ahead with the shootings of Biondillo and Gains. Edina M. "Dee" Strollo. That changed in the early 1980s, when a war left the Cleveland mob decimated and Pittsburgh dominant. You may not upload any more photos to this memorial, This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has 20 photos, This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded 5 photos to this memorial, This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has 30 photos, This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded 15 photos to this memorial. on In addition, University Heights attorney Stewart Mandel pleaded guilty last year to filing a false corporate income tax return. East Coast Susany took revenge on Batcho, and we hear Lenny Strollo's story - the head of Youngstown's rackets. 0 cemeteries found in Youngstown, Mahoning County, Ohio, USA. Watch the Scribbler podcasts about Strollo and the a. Found more than one record for entered Email, You need to confirm this account before you can sign in. The judge said the federal Bureau of Prisons can continue to handle the medical needs of Strollo, who turns 73 in April. In that trial, Terlecky's attorney was Stewart Mandel. To use this feature, use a newer browser. Batcho allegedly went in for the kill, but his gun jammed. If you notice a problem with the translation, please send a message to [emailprotected] and include a link to the page and details about the problem. But jail might have been the safest place for a Youngstown mobster in the 1960s. She called Strollo a hypocrite for attending her father's funeral and shaking her hand. My last thought was, How's my mother going to handle this? Here those conditions have combined to produce a breakdown of the democratic process. Becoming a Find a Grave member is fast, easy and FREE. Mayfield Heights resident James Teresi pleaded guilty to running an illegal gambling business. . When guys like Lawrence "Jeep" Garono and even Strollo's older brother Dante struck deals with the feds, Strollo, a man known for weighing his options very carefully, realized he had little choice. But in the mid-1970s, control of crime in Youngstown was still split between the Cleveland and Pittsburgh families. Dee was also the cherished aunt of many nieces and nephews; as well as a great-aunt and great-great aunt of many more.Besides her parents, Dee was preceded in death by a sister, Alice Palermo; and two brothers Dante and Dominic Strollo.Family and friends may pay their respects on Monday, Jan. 30, 2017, from 10 until 10:55 a.m. at St. Charles Borromeo Church in Boardman.Burial will take place at Calvary Cemetery in Youngstown.Arrangements have been entrusted to the professional care of the Rossi & Santucci Funeral Home, 4221 Market St. in Boardman (new location).In lieu of flowers and to honor Dees life, the family requests material donations be made to Hospice of the Valley, 5190 Market St., Boardman, OH 44512.Dees family wants to thank the dedicated staff of Sunrise Assisted Living in Poland, as well as the caring angels and staff at Hospice of the Valley for their love and dedication throughout these last months.Family and friends may visit www.rossisantuccifh.com. Turnage was once a promising high school football player, but he quit college after a year and returned to Youngstown, where he fell in with drug dealers like Antwan "Mo Man" Harris, Cleveland Blair, George Wilkins, and Warren Willis. Prosecutors claimed his three employees arranged the 1996 killing of Ernie Biondillo _ Strollo's rival _ and the woundings of Mahoning County Prosecutor Paul Gains days before he . Include gps location with grave photos where possible. Then I passed out.". But if Strollo's contempt for the feds was increasing, so was their infiltration of the Youngstown mob. With so many public officials on the take, short-circuiting standard legal procedures was relatively easy. Scroll to read more Cleveland News articles. Try again later. Podcasts I would start cashing them, would take one, 10 and 20 [dollars] and put them together. Because of limited space, many of the more colorful stories could not be included in this column. Lenine Strollo 7000 Leffingwell Rd Canfield, OH 44406 Age 91 (Born Apr 1931) Background Check - Available . Traficant countered that he accepted the $163,000 as part of a maverick operation to trap the mobsters. Agents also heard Strollo discuss bribing county officials with O'Nesti, Traficant's mob connection. Please check your email and click on the link to activate your account. He said the government could have gone to trial and put Strollo in prison, but the same corrupt system would still exist. 1,379,043,021 total records available. Judge O'Malley said she wasn't the one he needed to apologize to. Try again later. Morford, in explaining the extent of Strollo's cooperation to Judge O'Malley, said whatever information he provided was "like money in the bank." Try again later. | For nearly eight hours over two days, Lenny Strollo took the stand in the storied courthouse and gave a fascinating behind-the-scenes account of organized crime in northern Ohio. She also loved her Golden Girls sisters trips to many casinos and enjoyed spending family time with everyone.Dee leaves to cherish her memories, her beloved sisters, Jennie Dundee and Vilma Cramer; as well as her loving brother and sister-in-law, Lenny (Antoinette) Strollo. Following the trial, Mandel became a business partner of mob boss Lenine Strollo for a company in Conneaut, OH. Friends say Strollo always despised the FBI. Photos larger than 8Mb will be reduced. By Gangsters Inc. & lt;a href=mailto:meade@vindy.com & gt;By PATRICIA MEADE & lt;/a & gt; VINDICATOR CRIME REPORTER CLEVELAND -- Mahoning County Prosecutor Paul J. Documentary Dogged investigators. You are only allowed to leave one flower per day for any given memorial. The only ones who didn't cop a plea, he noted bitterly, were "two shines and a Jew.". 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