Coney Island gang
 The Brooklyn Daily Eagle reports Pellegrino Morano's 1918 sentence of twenty years to life | |
| Origins | |
|---|---|
| Founding Location | Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York City |
| Territory | Coney Island and southern Brooklyn |
| Headquarters | Santa Lucia restaurant |
| Lineage | |
| Parent Organization | Brooklyn Camorra (loose umbrella) |
| Profile | |
| Structure | Informal Campanian gang with local command under Morano |
| Activities | Gambling, policy and card games Robbery and burglary Extortion plans Cocaine sales (some individuals) Murder and violent enforcement |
| Politics | |
| Leader | Pellegrino Morano Tony Parretti (described in testimony as underboss) |
| Allies | Navy Street gang (situational alliance) |
| Enemies | Morello–Terranova organization |
| Activity | |
| Status | Defunct |
| Years Active | c. 1912–1918 |
| Dissolved Date | 1918 |
| Dissolution Cause | Informant testimony Trials and convictions |
The Coney Island gang was a Neapolitan and Campanian criminal group based around Pellegrino Morano's Santa Lucia restaurant in Brooklyn. It was one of the two principal constituent gangs grouped under the retrospective Brooklyn Camorra umbrella. David Critchley identifies Morano as the Coney Island boss; testimony described Tony Parretti as his underboss.[1] The rank reflects testimony about this gang rather than a standardized citywide Camorra hierarchy.
Rackets and alliance
[edit]Morano operated gambling, policy and card games and worked with Navy Street figures in criminal ventures. Around 1912 he reportedly ran a Mulberry Street card game with Angelo Giordano and Alessandro Vollero, demonstrating cooperation across neighborhood lines.[2] Testimony also connected people around the Santa Lucia milieu to cocaine sales, but the evidence does not establish a centrally managed narcotics department.
The Navy Street and Coney Island groups cooperated but retained separate leadership and bases. Their alliance should not be mistaken for permanent subordination to one Brooklyn boss.
Mafia–Camorra conflict
[edit]Morano and allies came into conflict with the Morello–Terranova organization over rackets and revenge killings. Meetings at the Santa Lucia restaurant brought together Camorra and Morello representatives, but efforts at accommodation failed. Coney Island leaders pressed for violence while Navy Street opinion was reportedly divided.[1]
The September 7, 1916 murder of Nick Terranova and Eugenio Ubriaco became a central prosecution event. Informant Ralph Daniello's later testimony connected Morano, Vollero and other Brooklyn figures to the conspiracy.[3]
Downfall
[edit]Morano was convicted of second-degree homicide and sentenced in 1918 to a term of twenty years to life.[4] The convictions dismantled the gang's contemporary leadership. During the 1920s, individual non-Sicilian offenders entered several formerly Sicilian organizations; no reviewed source establishes that Salvatore D'Aquila absorbed the Coney Island gang intact.
References
[edit]- ↑ 1.0 1.1 David Critchley, The Origin of Organized Crime in America: The New York City Mafia, 1891–1931 (New York: Routledge, 2009), pp. 108–134.
- ↑ Critchley, Origin of Organized Crime, pp. 112–121.
- ↑ “Two Die in Pistol Fight in Brooklyn Street”, The New York Times, September 8, 1916.
- ↑ “20 Years to Life Morano Sentence”, Brooklyn Daily Eagle, May 20, 1918, p. 14.