Angelo Meli

Angelo Meli (Italian: [ˈandʒelo ˈmɛːli]; February 16, 1897 – December 1, 1969) was an Italian-American mobster who became a consigliere and then leading Chairman of the Detroit Partnership criminal organization of La Cosa Nostra.

Angelo Meli
Born(1897-02-16)February 16, 1897
San Cataldo, Sicily, Kingdom of Italy
DiedDecember 1, 1969(1969-12-01) (aged 72)
Fort Lauderdale, Florida, U.S.
Resting placeHoly Sepulchre Cemetery, Southfield, Michigan, U.S.
NationalityItalian
CitizenshipAmerican
OccupationMobster
Children4
RelativesBill Bufalino (nephew-in-law)
Vincent Meli (nephew)
Jack Tocco (son-in-law)
William Tocco (co-father-in-law)
AllegianceDetroit Partnership

Early life

Meli was born on February 16, 1897, in San Cataldo, Sicily, the youngest son of 13 children[1] born to Vincenzo Meli and Maria Antonia Gugaglio.[2] Meli immigrated to the United States at the age of 17, settling in Scranton, Pennsylvania, working as a coal miner.[1] He worked in a Pittsburgh foundry and moved to Detroit in 1918.[1] His brother Frank and nephew Vincent "Little Vince" Meli were members of the Detroit Partnership.[3]

In 1924, Meli married Jennie Dimercurio,[1] and had two sons, Vincent H. and Salvatore, and two daughters, Maria Antoinette and Angela.[4] In 1929, Meli became a naturalized citizen.[1]

In 1945, Meli's nephew, Marie Antoinette Meli, married attorney Bill Bufalino,[5] a cousin of Northeast Pennsylvania mob boss Russell Bufalino. In 1950, Meli's son, Vincent, married Pauline Perrone, daughter of Santo Perrone, a Detroit bootlegger.[1] In 1952, his daughter Maria, married Detroit Mafia boss Jack Tocco, son of mob boss William Tocco.[1][6]

Criminal career

In the early 1920s, Meli, Leo Cellura, and Chester LaMare opened the Venice Cafe in Detroit.[7] The Meli Boys excelled in extorting brothels, gambling houses and bootlegging operations. With Meli's assistance, LaMare soon dominated crime in that city. It required an effort by state investigators on recommendations from Michigan Governor, Alex Groesbeck to smash the organization.[7] Thirty-one criminals were convicted of liquor law violations.[7] Meli escaped the crackdown and entered into an agreement with Salvatore Catalanotte, boss of Detroit's Unione Siciliana. With Catalanotte's support, Meli formed the Eastside Mob with top aides Leo Cellura, William Tocco, and Joseph Zerilli. Catalanotte was instrumental in establishing the partnership between the Eastside Mob and the River Gang and other Jewish groups.

After Catalanotte's death on February 14, 1930, LaMare began raiding Meli-controlled speakeasies, and liquor storage houses. Meli responded by ordering LaMare's murder,[7] which happened on February 6, 1931. After LaMare's murder, Meli oversaw the merger of Detroit's various mob factions into what later became the Detroit Partnership.[7]

After the establishment of the Partnership

Once the Detroit Partnership was established, Meli became consigliere. He was a major figure in illegal weapons smuggling and in settling labor disputes. His involvement in labor racketeering helped Jimmy Hoffa's rise in the Teamsters Union.[8] He suffered only one conviction; on charges of carrying a concealed weapon. Meli had extensive legitimate business holdings in the Michigan area.

Death

Meli died on December 1, 1969, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.[4] On December 6, 1969, he was buried in Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, Southfield, Michigan.[4]

References
  1. "Angelo Meli Tells His Story". Detroit Free Press. October 13, 1963. p. 2. Retrieved August 22, 2020 – via Newspapers.com. Cataldo, Sicily, 1897. He was the youngest son of 13 children born to Mr. and Mrs. Vincent Meli. He was 17 when he entered the United States through New York and went into the hard coal region near Scranton, Pa., where a brother lived at Dunmore. [...] "I worked in a Pittsburgh foundry as a helper, then as, a molder before coming moved to Detroit in 1918." said Meli. [...] Meli wife, born Jennie Dimercurio, whom he married in 1924, [...] Then, in 1952, the U.S. Government moved to revoke Meli's citizenship on the grounds that he cancealed citizenship his police record when he applied for citizenship in Brooklyn 1929. [...] Meli's son, Vincent H., [...] was married 13 years ago to Pauline Perrone, daughter of Santo (Sam) Perrone, an ex convict and one-time bootlegger. [...] A daughter, Marie Antoinette (Tony) has been married 11 years to Jack Tocco, son of William (Black Bill) Tocco, another prohibition-era figure with a number of arrests in his background.
  2. "Immagine 98". Antenati (in Italian). Retrieved August 22, 2020. L'anno milleottocentonovantasette, addì diciassette di Febbraio [...], nella casa Comunale [...] è comparso Meli Vincenzo, [...], il quale mi ha dichiarato che alle ore [...] del dì sedici del corrente mese, [...] da Gugaglio Maria Antonia sua moglie [...] è nato un bambino di sesso maschile che egli mi presenta, e a cui dà il nome di Angelo.
  3. Ashenfelter, David (January 10, 2008). "Reputed mobster of Detroit Meli dies at 87". Detroit Free Press. p. 23. Retrieved August 22, 2020 – via Newspapers.com. Vincent Angelo Meli, a reputed member of the Detroit Mafia, [...] The FBI described Vincent Meli's father, also named Frank, and uncle Angelo Meli as Detroit-area Mafia leaders.
  4. "District Deaths". The Times Herald. Port Huron, Michigan. December 6, 1969. p. 2. Retrieved August 22, 2020 – via Newspapers.com. MARINE CITY – Angelo Meli, 72, who formerly owned a horse farm south of Marine City, was buried today in Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, Ten-Mile Road, following funeral services in Holy Family Catholic Church, Detroit. Meli identified some years ago as a member of the Detroit Mafia family, died Monday in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. [...] Survivors are his widow, Jeannie; a son, Vincent H., Flint; two daughters, Mrs. Jack Antoinette Tocco and Mrs. Sam Angela Ludico; a brother, Frank, and 16 grandchildren. The family requests that contributions be made to Lt. Salvatore A. Meli American veterans Post No. 2 Building Fund. Lieutenant Meli was a son of Mr. Meli.
  5. "MARIE A. TONI BUFALINO". The Detroit News. Grosse Pointe Woods, Michigan. December 9, 2002. Retrieved August 22, 2020 – via Legacy.com. Beloved wife of the late William. [...] Sister of Vince Meli.
  6. "Maria "Toni" Tocco". Bagnasco & Calcaterra Funeral Home. Sterling Heights, Michigan. November 25, 2018. Retrieved August 22, 2020. Tocco, Maria “Toni” age 84, November 25, 2018. Beloved wife of the late Jack. [...] Dear sister of the late Vincent Meli, Sam Meli and Angela Lucido.
  7. Kavieff, Paul R. (June 10, 1999). "The crosstown mob wars of 1930-31". The Detroit News. Retrieved August 22, 2020. In the early ’20s, LaMare established a base of operations in Hamtramck. He opened a popular nightclub known as the Venice Cafe. With his business partners, Angelo Meli and Black Leo Cellura, LaMare grew rich and powerful, shaking down brothels and gambling houses for protection and muscling into the bootlegging rackets. Hamtramck became so corrupt and wide open that in the fall of 1923, numerous complaints prompted Michigan Gov. Alex Groesbeck to take drastic action. Groesbeck ordered detachments of the Michigan State Police into Hamtramck to take control of the city government. This operation resulted in the arrest and eventual conviction of 31 men, including Hamtramck Mayor Peter C. Jezewski, for Prohibition law violations. [...] Meli sent word to Joe Amico and the other fish market assassins that unless they put their boss Chester LaMare “on the spot,” they would die. Amico, who was the closest to LaMare, orchestrated the final betrayal of the boss. [...] LaMare’s death effectively ended the crosstown mob wars. Amico and Macklin were later tried for LaMare’s murder and acquitted. Leaders of the Eastside Mob became the founders of what was to become Detroit’s modern day Mafia organization.
  8. Moldea, Dan E. (1978). The Hoffa Wars: The Rise and Fall of Jimmy Hoffa. Charter Books. ISBN 0-441-34010-5.

Further reading
  • Kelly, Robert J. (2000). Encyclopedia of Organized Crime in the United States. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press. ISBN 0-313-30653-2.
  • Sifakis, Carl (2005). The Mafia Encyclopedia. New York: Da Capo Press. ISBN 0-8160-5694-3.
  • Sifakis, Carl (2001). The Encyclopedia of American Crime. New York: Facts on File Inc. ISBN 0-8160-4040-0.
  • Moldea, Dan E. (1978). The Hoffa Wars: The Rise and Fall of Jimmy Hoffa. Charter Books. ISBN 0-441-34010-5.
  • Brandt, Charles (2004). I Heard You Paint Houses. New Hampshire: Steerforth Press. ISBN 1-58642-077-1.
American Mafia
Preceded by
Unknown		 Detroit Partnership
Consigliere
1931–1969		 Succeeded by
John Priziola
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