Jimmy Fratianno

Jimmy Fratianno
Mugshot of Jimmy Fratianno
Born	November 14, 1913 (1913-11-14) Naples, Italy
Died	June 30, 1993 (1993-07-01) (aged 79)
Criminal status	Deceased

Aladena "Jimmy the Weasel" Fratianno (November 14, 1913 – June 30, 1993) was an Italian-born American mobster originally from Cleveland, Ohio, and later acting head of the Los Angeles crime family before becoming a US government witness. Fratianno was the most powerful mobster to become a federal witness until Sammy "the Bull" Gravano agreed to testify against the Gambino crime family in 1991.

Born in Naples, Italy, Fratianno was brought to the United States by his parents four months later. He began stealing from fruit stands as a child. Fratianno went by the name "Jimmy" because he believed "Aladena" sounded like "a broad's name". He earned his nickname "Weasel" from a witness who saw him outrun police in the Little Italy section of Cleveland. The police then attached the nickname to his criminal record. As a youth, Fratianno boxed under the name "Kid Weasel", but otherwise did not like the name and was never called "Weasel" in person. As a young man, Fratianno became involved in Cleveland's organized criminal syndicate as a gambler and robber. After a prison sentence for assault, he moved to Los Angeles, where he was introduced to mobster John Roselli.

In 1947, Fratianno became a made man in the Los Angeles crime family under boss Jack Dragna. Fratianno worked with fellow Los Angeles mobsters Frank "Bomp" Bompensiero, Leo Moceri, Dominic Brooklier and Louie Piscopo. In 1952, Dragna promoted Fratianno to caporegime. After Dragna's death in 1956, Frank DeSimone became the new boss of the Los Angeles crime family. Fratianno soon became dissatisfied with DeSimone's leadership and in 1960, after serving a 6 ¹⁄₂ year sentence for extortion, Fratianno transferred to the Chicago Outfit. He still lived and remained active in California and Las Vegas and remained closely associated with Bompensiero. During the 1960s and 1970s, Fratianno started his own trucking company. His wife Jewel officially owned the company, even after her separation and divorce from Fratianno. Fratianno also attempted several times to build, own, or obtain a share in a Las Vegas casino, but failed each time. During this period, he started providing information on organized crime to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). In exchange for his information, Fratianno received less scrutiny from law enforcement along with a small amount of money. Fratianno's information was of minimal value and never helped convict anyone. In 1976, the Los Angeles family offered Fratianno the opportunity to become acting boss, so he rejoined them.