Steven La Torre

Steven Joseph La Torre[1] (born Stefano La Torre; Italian: [ˈsteːfano la ˈtorre]; March 12, 1886 – July 5, 1984) was an Italian-American crime boss of the Bufalino crime family. He founded what would become the Bufalino crime family, which he ran from 1903 to 1908. La Torre died on July 5, 1984.

Steven La Torre
Born	Stefano La Torre March 12, 1886 Montedoro, Sicily, Kingdom of Italy
Died	July 5, 1984 (aged 98) Pittston, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Resting place	Memorial Shrine Cemetery, Carverton, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Nationality	Italy
Citizenship	United States
Occupation	Crime boss
Spouse(s)	Rose Lucchino
Children	4
Allegiance	Bufalino crime family

Early life

La Torre was born on March 12, 1886, in Montedoro, Sicily, to Giuseppe La Torre and Maria Marranca.[2] He entered the United States in May 1903,[3] settling in Pittston, Pennsylvania.[1] He set up a criminal empire in Pittston-Scranton-Wilkes-barre areas of Pennsylvania. La Torre paid for the passage of Mafia boss Santo Volpe to Pennsylvania in 1906. They formed "the men from Montedoro".[4] In April 1907, La Torre was arrested with Santo Volpe, Charles Bufalino, uncle of future crime boss Russell Bufalino,[1] and twenty other men for a protection racket against mine workers in the region.[5]

La Torre married Rose Lucchino, and had two sons, Joseph and Samuel, who both became Federal Bureau of Investigation informants;[6][1] and two daughters, Mary and Lena.[7]

Criminal career

In 1908, La Torre stepped down as boss of Pittston, but remained connected to the Mafia. Volpe became the new crime boss.[8] In 1955, La Torre was called to a meeting with Joe Barbara where he refused to have a possible rat in the Pittston crime organization killed. Barbara became angry with La Torre and reduced his influence in the Mafia. La Torre remained a consultant to Russell Bufalino until his death in 1984.

Death

La Torre died of natural causes on July 5, 1984, at the age of 98. He is buried in Memorial Shrine Cemetery, Carverton, Pennsylvania.[7]

References

1. Federal Bureau of Investigation (May 12, 1967). "No Title". Mary Ferrell Foundation. Retrieved July 1, 2020. STEVEN JOSEPH LA TORRE was born on 3/11/86 in Montedoro, Sicily, immigrated to the United States in 1903 and had always resided in Pittsaton, Pa., area. [...] It is to be noted the CHARLES C. BUFALINO, is the uncle of RUSSELL A. BUFALINO [...] Since 4/20/67, SA WAYNE D. SMITH of the Wilkes-Bare RA has been contacting SAMUEL STEVEN LA TORRE (PH 872-PC), subject of Philadelphia File 137-4887. Cite uses generic title (help)
2. "Immagine 22". Antenati (in Italian). Retrieved July 1, 2020. L'anno milleottocentottantasei, addì quattordici di Marzo [...] è comparso La Torre Giuseppe di Stefano, [...] il quale mi ha dichiarato che alle ore [...] del dì dodici del corrente mese [...] da Marranca Maria, sua moglie, [...] è nato un bambino di sesso maschile che egli mi presenta, e a cui dà il nome di Stefano.
3. Passenger Manifest for the S.S. Sicilian Prince, May 16, 1903, available at Ellis Island: The Statue of Liberty.
4. Fox, Stephen R. (1989). Blood and Power: Organized Crime in Twentieth-Century America. Morrow. ISBN 978-0-688-04350-6.
5. Birkbeck, Matt (2013). The Quiet Don: The Untold Story of Mafia Kingpin Russell Bufalino. Berkley Books. p. 45. ISBN 978-0-425-26685-4. That changed on April 22, 1907, when Volpe, LaTorre and Charles Bufalino were arrested, along with twenty other men for terrorizing the mining communities.
6. Valin, Edmond. "In Pittston, Informants run in the family". The American Mafia. Retrieved July 1, 2020. In 1951, thirty-eight-year-old Joseph LaTorre began to share with the authorities confidential information about a criminal group called the "Organization." [...] In 1967, his younger brother, Samuel LaTorre, also became an informer. The FBI assigned him informant symbol code "PH-872."
7. "Stephen LaTorre". Times Leader. July 6, 1984. p. 15. Retrieved July 1, 2020 – via Newspapers.com. His wife, Rose, died in 1973. Suriviving are his sons, Joseph, Jenkins Township; Samuel, Exeter; daughters, Mrs. Mary Parrino, Pittston; Mrs. Lena Lipparini, Jenkins Township; [...] Interment will be in a family plot in Memorial Shrine Cemetery, Carverton.
8. Newton, Michael (April 6, 2012). The Mafia at Apalachin, 1957. McFarland. p. 22. ISBN 978-0-7864-8986-2.