Charles Matranga
| Founded by | Charles Matranga |
|---|---|
| Founding location | New Orleans, Louisiana, United States |
| Years active | 1860s-present |
| Territory | Louisiana |
| Ethnicity | Italian, Italian American, Sicilian American |
| Membership | 35 made members |
| Criminal activities | Extortion, Bookmaking, Drug trafficking, loansharking, Gambling, Racketeering, Conspiracy, Murder, fencing and narcotics |
| Allies | Genovese crime family, Kansas City crime family, Cleveland crime family, and Colombo crime family |
| Rivals | New Orleans gangs |
The New Orleans crime family is an American Mafia Crime family based in the city of New Orleans. The Crime Family has a history of criminal activity dating back to the late nineteenth century. The family reached its height of influence under Carlos Marcello, one of America's most powerful Mafia dons during the mid-twentieth century and at its height had over a hundred members. However, a series of setbacks during the 1980s reduced its clout, and law enforcement dismantled most of what remained shortly after Marcello's death in 1993. In spite of this, it is believed that some elements of the organization remain active in the Big Easy today.
The Matranga crime family, established by Charles (1857 - October 28, 1943) and Antonio (Tony) Matranga (d. 1890 ?), was one of the earliest recorded American Mafia crime families, operating in New Orleans during the late 19th century until the beginning of Prohibition in 1920.
Born in Sicily, Carlo and Antonio Matranga settled in New Orleans during the 1870s where they eventually opened a saloon and brothel. Using their business as a base of operations, the Matranga brothers began establishing lucrative organized criminal activities including extortion and labor racketeering. Receiving tribute payments from Italian laborers and dockworkers, as well as from the rival Provenzano crime family (who held a near monopoly of commercial shipping from South American fruit shipments), they eventually began moving in on Provenzano fruit loading operations intimidating the Provenzanos with threats of violence.
Although the Provenzanos withdrew in favor of giving the Matrangas a cut of waterfront racketeering, by the late 1880s, the two families eventually went to war over the grocery and produce businesses held by the Provenzanos. As both sides began employing a large number of Sicilian mafiosi from their native Monreale, Sicily, the violent gang war began attracting police attention, particularly from New Orleans police chief David Hennessy who began investigating into the warring organizations. Within months of his investigation, Hennessy was shot by several unidentified attackers while walking home on the night of October 15, 1890; he died of his wounds less than twelve hours later, having refused to identify his assailants beyond claiming "The Dagoes shot me".
The murder of Hennessey created a huge backlash from the city and, although Charles and several members of the Matrangas were arrested, they were eventually tried and acquitted in February 1891 with Charles Matranga and a 14-year-old member acquitted midway through the trial as well as four more who were eventually acquitted and three others released in hung juries. The decision caused strong protests from residents, angered by the controversy surrounding the case (particularly in the face of incriminating evidence and jury tampering), and the following month a lynch mob stormed the jail killing 11 of the 19 defendants—five of whom had not been tried—on March 14, 1891. The Hennessy lynchings led to the American Mafia adopting a hard and fast rule that policemen and other law enforcement officials were not to be harmed.
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