Susany took revenge on Batcho, and we hear Lenny Strollo's story - the head of Youngstown's rackets. February 27, 2023, 5:15 PM. And when the Mahoning Valley's economic base disappeared, so did the mob's clientele. In 1963 Strollo was arrested for counterfeiting $10 bills and, after a lengthy appeal, served jail time in 1967. Subscribe now to get the latest news delivered right to your inbox. But by the 1990s, those days were gone. The result: More than 70 convictions of mobsters and public officials, including a sheriff, prosecutor, county engineer, judges, lawyers and others. This memorial has been copied to your clipboard. Judge O'Malley, meanwhile, permitted Melissa Biondillo Rich of Boardman to give a victim-impact statement. "Probably three, four months," Strollo said. This flower has been reported and will not be visible while under review. But in the mid-1970s, control of crime in Youngstown was still split between the Cleveland and Pittsburgh families. Rivals, Drugs, and Money Strollo helped fix the case because he believed Turnage to be one of Altschuler's main guys, i.e. YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN) - Notorious Youngstown mob boss Lenny Strollo has died. Lenine Strollo from Canfield, OH, age ~91. But they didn't have the whole thing.". Paul Gains, a former U.S. Steel mill worker, Youngstown police officer, and criminal defense attorney, won a close Democratic primary. To view a photo in more detail or edit captions for photos you added, click the photo to open the photo viewer. "The mob thought they had lightning in a bottle with the drug dealers," says Milano. Gains was a true victim, the judge said. Strollo told of having cases fixed for Riddle, Turnage, and Harris. 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 . Strollo implicated Altshuler, his friend of more than twenty years, in the murder of rival gangster Ernie Biondillo Jr. and attempted murder of Mahoning County Prosecutor-Elect Paul Gains. See more ideas about youngstown, youngstown ohio, mob. Failed to report flower. The government was able to build its case by convincing lower-echelon criminals to roll over on their superiors. Lenine Strollo is 91 years old today because Lenine's birthday is on 04/21/1931. Which memorial do you think is a duplicate of Edina Strollo (175814704)? "When [the Mafia] ran the gambling for the working-class people in Youngstown, they made enormous amounts of money," Jay Milano says. 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. Subscribe to The Binge to get all episodes of Crooked City: Youngstown, OH ad-free right now. Use Escape keyboard button or the Close button to close the carousel. BOARDMAN One-time Valley mob boss Lenine "Lenny" Strollo, 90, the former organized crime boss who cooperated with the FBI and provided testimony on several Youngstown-area killings and other. February 24, 2013 at 12:00a.m. But jail might have been the safest place for a Youngstown mobster in the 1960s. All Rights Reserved. Since then, he has participated in countless interviews with FBI agents and federal prosecutors, and testified at trials. To use this feature, use a newer browser. Gains, gunned down in his Boardman home Dec. 24, 1996 -- on Strollo's order -- spoke at the Canfield Township man's sentencing Tuesday in U.S. District Court. Joey was killed by a single bullet from a high-powered sniper rifle, and the hit was said to have been orchestrated by Lenny Strollo in a power move to take over the Youngstown operations. Edit a memorial you manage or suggest changes to the memorial manager. Uncategorized The only question that remained was why the trio did not take the plea bargains offered by the government, as 42 others did. Licavoli agreed to head the Cleveland family and named his cousin Leo "Lips" Moceri--a brutal hit man and loan shark--underboss. Strollo was the final mob boss in Mahoning Valley history. & lt;a href=mailto:meade@vindy.com & gt;By PATRICIA MEADE & lt;/a & gt; VINDICATOR CRIME REPORTER CLEVELAND -- Mahoning County Prosecutor Paul J. With Morford just a few feet away, Milano breezily predicted a happy end for the Youngstown don. 99 CA 147 PLAINTIFF-APPELLEE, ) ) - VS - ) OPINION ) JEFF RIDDLE, ) ) . or don't show this againI am good at figuring things out. The once-powerful organized crime figure was indicted Dec. 10, 1997, on Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations violations of aggravated murder (of rival Ernie Biondillo Jr. in June 1996), casino-style gambling and numbers lottery. If you have questions, please contact [emailprotected]. Strollo was a self-employed vending machine owner, according to his. He occasionally wore a bulletproof vest--though even that wouldn't have helped him on the warm morning of August 3, 1996. Batcho, whose state trial is scheduled to begin next month in Youngstown, allegedly pulled the trigger of his .38-caliber handgun. It was complex and interesting," he says, noting his law firm had to build a new database just to keep track of all the evidence. But it wasnt long before vendors taking the $10 bills to the banks to be deposited found out they were counterfeit. Mandel was a former U.S. attorney within the Justice Department. "Yes," Strollo responded. According to Harris's testimony, Riddle asked Batcho if Gains was dead. Strollo became a government snitch in 1999 after being indicted in December 1997 on Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations violations of aggravated murder, casino-style gambling and numbers lottery. "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. based on information from your browser. "Jeff was very realistic from beginning to end.". With so many public officials on the take, short-circuiting standard legal procedures was relatively easy. Bikers The line was dead. Are you sure that you want to remove this flower? It would have been a wise move, because there was no surprise ending, no fourth-quarter heroics. Lenny Strollo, seen in a photo above, once had virtually the. Lenine "Lenny" Strollo, 90, of Youngstown, was called home on Wednesday, May 19, 2021. Strollo had his own gambling operations, most notably the All-American Club in Campbell, a run-down suburb east of Youngstown where every flagpole seems to have a Greek or Italian flag hanging underneath its American counterpart. Vericora and the data available through this service may not be used to make resolutions about consumer employment, insurance, credit, housing or for any other goals that would require FCRA compliance. YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN) - Notorious Youngstown mob boss Lenny Strollo has died. Batcho allegedly went in for the kill, but his gun jammed. Sports The bullet entered and exited Gains's arm, then entered his side and went through his back, exiting near the spine. Dee will always be remembered and loved by her family and friends for her generosity and kindness. Morford asked Strollo. "It was worth it. By then, the disheveled Traficant had crafted a populist message, which struck a chord with Youngstown's unemployed mill workers, and he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. His testimony touched on everything from his youth repairing vending machines to Cleveland's bloody mob war of the late 1970s to the series of Mafia-related shootings that erupted in Youngstown in 1996. Addresses. A major drug offender who went to prison for a 1996 mob assassination has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for cocaine and heroin possession and trafficking and engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity. East Coast One of those challengers was John Nardi, a reputed murderer and drug smuggler who was an officer of Cleveland Teamsters Local 410. Learn more about managing a memorial . Information he provided Strollo provided information about a number of unsolved homicides and about La Cosa Nostra activities in Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Detroit and New York, Morford said. The One Way Street Crooked City: Youngstown, OH True Crime Requires subscription and macOS 11.4 or higher Lenny Strollo runs the rackets in Youngstown, but not everyone wants to get in line. Questioned later by prosecutors, the jeweler said the ring Wilkins pawned was tough to forget--after all, not many have the initials "EB" spelled in diamond nuggets. You know what? 8 years ago Scott Burnstein. [6] In 2021, the boss Thomas "Sonny" Ciancutti died, he was also the last known made . No fine was imposed. "We really haven't had a democracy in this community in years. "It's like riddles and puzzles to put together," Morford says. Everyone in Strollos gang, including some well-known characters like Frankie Lentine, got in the act. This relationship is not possible based on lifespan dates. After court, Synenberg said it was a fair sentence under the circumstances and Morford's remarks were "on point" about the help Strollo gave the government. All contact info about Lenine Strollo, 91 from Canfield, Ohio - address, e-mail, phone, public records, etc at Vericora FOR FREE Three defendants, three counts each, nine guilty verdicts. Please complete the captcha to let us know you are a real person. As for Altshuler, Riddle, and Turnage, even their lawyers were not completely sure why they took a bad gamble on a life sentence. The balance of power changed irrevocably in 1976, when Cleveland don John Scalish died unexpectedly during open-heart surgery without having named a successor. 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. Are you sure that you want to delete this memorial? . The first two ended with hung juries. She was always there to give a helping hand to anyone in need. They've basically been running Mahoning County as a criminal enterprise, because it suited a lot of people," says James Callen, president of the Citizens League of Greater Youngstown, which screens political candidates and speaks out about organized crime. Hit and Miss When Lenny Strollo testified at the federal courthouse, he was only a few miles from where the old Hotel Statler used to stand. Use the links under See more to quickly search for other people with the same last name in the same cemetery, city, county, etc. The ambush flashed into Cleveland's first mob war, which left four Lonardos and seven Porrellos dead. Nearly fifty years later, "Big Ange" entered the witness protection program and became the highest-ranking mafioso to defect. On this day in 1991 Joey Naples, a capo in the Pittsburgh Crime Family (Youngstown, Ohio faction) was killed in a contracted mob hit at the age of 59. You mean that politician is likely going to be indicted on corruption charges by the FBI? He'd spend $20,000 a year on grapes alone, and considered it the highest honor to supply all the wine at weddings of his friends' children. O'Nesti and Rich pleaded guilty to conspiracy in March 1998. The judge said, however, that given the nature of the government's allegations, Rich's father had participated in organized crime activity, too. You are only allowed to leave one flower per day for any given memorial. Marker Address Rent ? Once named "Crimetown USA" by The Saturday Evening Post, Youngstown, OH was overrun by the mob. He would continually tell friends that the federal government was misguided in targeting the Mafia, because taking down the mob would only create a vacuum that would be filled by more ruthless criminals. When Gains regained consciousness, he managed to pick up his telephone. Youngtown is just south of my hometown. Greene fell victim to the same technique five months later. CLEVELAND -- Mahoning County Prosecutor Paul J. Gains' victim-impact statement likely helped shorten former mob boss Lenny Strollo's prison term. The sentence The judge could have sentenced Strollo to 14 years in prison but accepted Morford's recommendation of 12 years and eight months. No animated GIFs, photos with additional graphics (borders, embellishments. Edina M. "Dee" Strollo. How long after you were released from the halfway house?". Include gps location with grave photos where possible. Resend Activation Email, Please check the I'm not a robot checkbox, If you want to be a Photo Volunteer you must enter a ZIP Code or select your location on the map. The banners, full of bold lettering and exclamation points, leave the false sense that community pep can trump economic reality. "Approximately when did this occur? You can unsubscribe at any time. The trial was the culmination of a four-year FBI investigation that yielded thousands of pages of sworn affidavits and two thousand hours of conversations secretly recorded by FBI phone taps and bugs. to view this obituary, sign the guest book and send condolences to the Strollo family. Informants told the FBI that Strollo feared Naples would try to take over his gambling operations while he was away. He said the government could have gone to trial and put Strollo in prison, but the same corrupt system would still exist. YOUNGSTOWN Lenine "Lenny" Strollo, 90, was called home Wednesday, May 19, 2021. Armstrong served a total of 10 years, and it was during his time behind bars that he decided to get even with the Strollos and Prato. Canfield There will be a Mass of Christian Burial held on Monday, January 30, 2017 at 11:00 am at St. Charles Borromeo Church, 7345 Westview Dr., Boardman, with Father Philip Rogers officiating for Edina M. Dee Strollo, 87, of Canfield, who passed away peacefully Thursday morning, January 26, 2017 with her loving family by her side. He turns away and stares at the wall. Id buy something for a buck or buck and a half, give them the 10 and get the change, Armstrong recalled in a telephone conversation from his home outside Ohio. Morford said that Mahoning County, when the organized crime investigation began in 1994, was corrupt, violent and out of control. He said he was set up by Danny Strollo and Brier Hill Jimmy (Vincenzo Jimmy Prato, the acknowledged Godfather of the Mafia in the Valley.). Fresh out of jail, Strollo was at the zenith of his criminal career. Bachelor's degree. Try again later. He confessed to the charges and hired Policy to defend him, but then recanted his confession. Editors Dante Strollo, the brother of Youngstown, Ohio, mob boss Lenny Strollo - photo above, died on Tuesday. "I thought, I'm gonna die," Gains recalls. In addition, University Heights attorney Stewart Mandel pleaded guilty last year to filing a false corporate income tax return. By episode 11, Congressman Traficant hopes to free a man facing convictions of being a Nazi war criminal. cemeteries found within miles of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list. "It was a total upset," Strollo said. It absolutely disgusts me.". WebberSites Website Design and Development I would start cashing them, would take one, 10 and 20 [dollars] and put them together. Featured By 1998, Wilkins, Blair, and Harris had all pleaded guilty and agreed to testify about their roles in the shootings of Biondillo and Gains. This is a carousel with slides. Burial will take place at Calvary Cemetery, Youngstown. There was a time when the industrial corridor stretching from Cleveland through Youngstown to Pittsburgh produced more steel than most European nations. "Lenny will be on a beach with a couple of blondes and a bag full of hundred-dollar bills, waving, saying, 'No, Bernie, I'll never give you up,'" Milano said with a grin on his face, clearly amused by the image. According to his because there was no surprise ending, no fourth-quarter heroics place for a Youngstown mobster in act... Dee & quot ; Lenny & quot ; Strollo, the brother of Youngstown, OH overrun... 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