Editing Rochester crime family (section)

==Independence under Frank Valenti==
Frank Valenti became the dominant Rochester leader during the 1960s. Popular and retrospective accounts state that he told Magaddino the Rochester organization would operate independently, often dating this break to around 1970. No contemporary charter, Commission ruling or equivalent formal record was located in the reviewed material.

The evidence nevertheless supports real organizational separation: Rochester developed its own boss, crews, local gambling permissions and internal succession disputes rather than functioning merely as a Buffalo outpost. The break should be described as a process of territorial and leadership autonomy rather than one proven declaration on a precise date.

Frank's faction defeated remaining Russo opposition, but his control was short-lived. He left Rochester in the early 1970s amid legal pressure and internal conflict. His departure did not dissolve the organization; it opened another struggle for control.