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Frank Cotroni (born Francesco Cotrone; ; 1931 – 17 August 2004) was an Italian-Canadian
crime boss A crime boss, also known as a crime lord, Don, gang lord, gang boss, mob boss, kingpin, godfather, crime mentor or criminal mastermind, is a person in charge of a criminal organization. Description A crime boss typically has absolute or nearl ...
of the
Cotroni crime family The Cotroni crime family, originally CotroneAuger and Edwards ''The Encyclopedia of Canadian Organized Crime'' p.63. () was an Italian 'Ndrangheta type organized crime syndicate (or 'Ndrina) based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The United States Fed ...
in
Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...
, Quebec. Cotroni was born in 1931, in Montreal. His family, including his brother
Vincenzo Vincenzo is an Italian male given name, derived from the Latin name Vincentius (the verb ''vincere'' means to win or to conquer). Notable people with the name include: Art * Vincenzo Amato (born 1966), Italian actor and sculptor * Vincenzo Bel ...
, had immigrated to Montreal in 1924, from
Mammola Mammola is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria in the Italian region Calabria, located about southwest of Catanzaro and about northeast of Reggio Calabria. Mammola borders the following municipalities: A ...
, Calabria, Italy. His brother founded and headed the Cotroni crime family. Cotroni's principle illicit businesses were drug trafficking and labor racketeering, while he also worked at various times as a restaurateur; boxing promoter; owner of strip clubs in both Montreal and
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
; ceramic manufacturer; and the owner of a vending machine company. Cotroni had connections with the
Bonanno crime family The Bonanno crime family (pronounced ) is an Italian-American Mafia crime family and one of the " Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City, and in the United States, as part of the criminal phenomenon known as ...
, and in 1975, was convicted in the United States of smuggling cocaine and sentenced to 15 years in prison. In prison, Cotroni met fellow inmate French-Canadian
Réal Simard Réal Simard (born 7 January 1951) is a Canadian gangster from Montreal known for being a hitman for Frank Cotroni of the Cotroni crime family, who later turned informant. Early career In Simard's early days, he robbed banks with childhood friend ...
, and Simard would become Frank's driver and eventual hitman upon their release in 1979. During the violent Mafia war with the Sicilian
Rizzuto crime family The Rizzuto crime family () is an organized crime family based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, whose criminal activity covers most of southern Quebec and Ontario. The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) considers the family a facti ...
in Montreal,
Paolo Violi Paolo Violi (; 6 February 1931 – 22 January 1978) was an Italian-Canadian mobster and ''capodecina'' in the Cotroni crime family of Montreal. Violi was born in Sinopoli, Calabria, Italy, in 1931; his father Domenico was the boss of the Violi c ...
(who was acting capo for Vic Cotroni) and his brothers were murdered along with others through the mid 1970s to the early 1980s until the war ceased. The Calabrian faction continued to operate with Frank as acting boss for his ill brother after the early 1980s. In the early 1980s, Cotroni ordered Simard to commit several murders. In 1983, Simard and associate Richard Clément killed Mario Héroux, but unknowingly only severely wounded Robert Hétu, in their Toronto hotel room after they conspired to kill Clément. Hétu testified against Simard and Simard was arrested and convicted, until he became informant against Frank Cotroni and the family; this resulted in an eight-year sentence for manslaughter against Frank, his son Francesco, and two associates in 1987. In 1989, Cotroni lost his court fight against extradition on narcotics charges in Connecticut that dated back to 1983, on the condition that he serve his time in Canada. In 1997, he was again charged on narcotics violations, released from prison in 2002 after serving four years of a seven-year sentence. In the final two years of Frank's life, he released a cookbook, ''Cuisine des souvenirs et recettes'' (''Kitchen of Memories and Recipes''), published by a subsidiary of
Quebecor Media Quebecor Media Inc. is a Canadian media conglomerate that owns a wide array of media outlets, as well as an internet service provider. History In 1983 Quebecor purchased the Winnipeg Sun newspaper, which had been independently run. The newspa ...
. Cotroni died of brain cancer on 17 August 2004.


Early life

Cotroni was born in
Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...
in 1931. His oldest brother,
Vincenzo Vincenzo is an Italian male given name, derived from the Latin name Vincentius (the verb ''vincere'' means to win or to conquer). Notable people with the name include: Art * Vincenzo Amato (born 1966), Italian actor and sculptor * Vincenzo Bel ...
, was 20 years older, born in 1911 in
Mammola Mammola is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria in the Italian region Calabria, located about southwest of Catanzaro and about northeast of Reggio Calabria. Mammola borders the following municipalities: A ...
, Calabria, Italy, and immigrated to Montreal in 1924 with his two sisters, Marguerita and Palmina, and his brother Giuseppe; his other brother, Michel, was later born in Montreal like Frank.Schneider, ''Iced: The Story of Organized Crime in Canada'', pp. 245 Within Montreal, Cotroni was known to
French-Canadians French Canadians (referred to as Canadiens mainly before the twentieth century; french: Canadiens français, ; feminine form: , ), or Franco-Canadians (french: Franco-Canadiens), refers to either an ethnic group who trace their ancestry to Fren ...
as ''Les Gros'' ("the Big Guy") and to Italo-Canadians as ''Il Cice'' (an Italian phrase for the soft center of a hard nut).Auger and Edwards ''The Encyclopedia of Canadian Organized Crime'' p.61. Cotroni was fluently trilingual, speaking Italian, French and English. Cotroni grew up in a house at the junction of Ontario and St. Timotheé streets in
Le Plateau-Mont-Royal Le Plateau-Mont-Royal () is a borough (''arrondissement'') of the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The Plateau-Mont-Royal takes its name from its location on a plateau, on the eastern side of Mont-Royal and overlooking downtown Montreal, across ...
(now in Montreal), a poor neighbourhood that more affluent
Italian immigrants , image = Map of the Italian Diaspora in the World.svg , image_caption = Map of the Italian diaspora in the world , population = worldwide , popplace = Brazil, Argentina, United States, France, Colombia, Canada, P ...
avoided because of its high crime rate.Auger and Edwards ''The Encyclopedia of Canadian Organized Crime'' p.62. His father, Nicodemo, was a carpenter whose average weekly income was $35. His older brother, Vincenzo, had become involved in organized crime in the late 1920s, and in the 1930s was involved in " baseball bat elections" where he served as "muscle" for the
Quebec Liberal Party The Quebec Liberal Party (QLP; french: Parti libéral du Québec, PLQ) is a provincial political party in Quebec. It has been independent of the federal Liberal Party of Canada since 1955. The QLP has always been associated with the colour red; ...
and the Union Nationale, beating up supporters of rival parties and stuffing ballot boxes.Auger and Edwards ''The Encyclopedia of Canadian Organized Crime'' p.63. As a result of Vincenzo's work in "baseball bat elections", the Cotroni family enjoyed the protection of Quebec politicians for decades afterwards. Between 1953 and 1957,
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
mobster
Carmine Galante Carmine Galante (; February 21, 1910 – July 12, 1979) was an American mobster. Galante was rarely seen without a cigar hanging from is mouth, leading to the nickname "The Cigar" and "Lilo" (a Sicilian term for cigar). Galante had a long caree ...
lived in Montreal, and during his time in Canada, Galante forged an alliance between the
Bonanno family The Bonanno crime family (pronounced ) is an Italian-American Mafia crime family and one of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City, and in the United States, as part of the criminal phenomenon known as the ...
of New York and the
Cotroni family The Cotroni crime family, originally CotroneAuger and Edwards ''The Encyclopedia of Canadian Organized Crime'' p.63. () was an Italian 'Ndrangheta type organized crime syndicate (or 'Ndrina) based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The United States Fed ...
of Montreal that cemented the Controi family as the dominant organized crime group in Montreal.


Criminal career

In 1950, Cotroni was convicted of the possession of stolen goods, serving a short sentence on the account of his age. On 24 July 1956, he was arrested for taking part in a wild street brawl that left several men injured. Cotroni was first arrested as an adult in September 1960 for the possession of a deadly weapon, being found carrying a handgun. While on bail, in November 1960, Cotroni led 30 of his men into smashing up the Chez Parée Cabaret, for which he was fined $200. On 1 July 1966, he rented a house at 5146 Trans-Island Street, which was directly opposite a branch of the Decarie Boulevard City and District Savings Bank. A group of men consisting of Paul Désormier Sr.; his three sons, Michel, Paul Jr. and Pierre; and Joe Horvath of the
West End Gang The West End Gang (french: Gang de l'ouest) is a Canadian organized crime group in Montreal, Quebec. An Irish mob group originating from the Irish-Canadian ethnic enclave of Pointe-Saint-Charles in the 1950s, the majority of the gang's earni ...
started to dig a tunnel from the basement of the house that Cotroni rented to the vault of the bank across the street. On 31 March 1967, the five men were arrested in their makeshift tunnel as they were preparing to break into the bank vault. Shortly afterwards, Cotroni was charged with conspiracy to commit robbery under the grounds that he must had known that a tunnel was being dug from the house he rented to the vault of the Decarie Boulevard City and District Savings Bank. However, Cotroni's associates refused plea bargains offered by
the Crown The Crown is the state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, overseas territories, provinces, or states). Legally ill-defined, the term has differ ...
for lesser sentences in exchange for naming him as the mastermind behind the robbery attempt, leading to Cotroni's acquittal at his trial in 1971. In the late 1960s, the Cotronis had violent feuds with French-Canadian mobster Richard Blass, with Cotroni associate Joe Di Maulo doing much of the enforcing.Schneider, ''Iced: The Story of Organized Crime in Canada'', pp. 270 On 7 May 1968, Blass and Robert Allard attempted an ambush of Frank outside his home; two of his bodyguards were killed, but Frank escaped. Cotroni's principle illicit businesses were drug trafficking and labour racketeering, while he also worked at various times as a restaurateur; boxing promoter; owner of strip clubs in both Montreal and
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
; ceramic manufacturer; and the owner of a vending machine company. Cotroni had links with known drug traffickers in New York,
Cali Santiago de Cali (), or Cali, is the capital of the Valle del Cauca department, and the most populous city in southwest Colombia, with 2,227,642 residents according to the 2018 census. The city spans with of urban area, making Cali the second ...
,
Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of the central coastal part of ...
, and
Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...
. Cotroni also imported
hashish Hashish ( ar, حشيش, ()), also known as hash, "dry herb, hay" is a drug made by compressing and processing parts of the cannabis plant, typically focusing on flowering buds (female flowers) containing the most trichomes. European Monitoring ...
from Lebanon, and was so well connected in that country that in 1975 the police discovered that he had called President
Suleiman Frangieh Suleiman Kabalan Frangieh, last name also spelled ''Frangié,'' ''Franjieh,'' or ''Franjiyeh'' (, 15 June 1910 – 23 July 1992), was a Lebanese Maronite politician who was President of Lebanon from 1970 to 1976. Early life and education Sulei ...
several times. In 1969 and 1970, Cotroni was seen by the police talking several times with
Tommaso Buscetta Tommaso Buscetta (; 13 July 1928 – 2 April 2000) was an Italian mobster and a member of the Sicilian Mafia. He became one of the first of its members to turn informant and explain the inner workings of the organization. Buscetta participated i ...
of the
Sicilian Mafia The Sicilian Mafia, also simply known as the Mafia and frequently referred to as Cosa nostra (, ; "our thing") by its members, is an Italian Mafia-terrorist-type organized crime syndicate and criminal society originating in the region of Sicily ...
, which was believed to marked the beginning of his career smuggling
heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a potent opioid mainly used as a recreational drug for its euphoric effects. Medical grade diamorphine is used as a pure hydrochloride salt. Various white and bro ...
. Besides for smuggling heroin, Cotroni was also involved in human trafficking, smuggling in illegal immigrants from the ''
Mezzogiorno Southern Italy ( it, Sud Italia or ) also known as ''Meridione'' or ''Mezzogiorno'' (), is a macroregion of the Italian Republic consisting of its southern half. The term ''Mezzogiorno'' today refers to regions that are associated with the pe ...
'' (the south of Italy). The illegal immigrants consisted of two classes of people. The first group were criminals unable to enter Canada because of their records, who were brought over to continue their gangster activities. The second group were brought over as ultra-cheap menial labor to work in such occupations such as construction workers, garbagemen or dishwashers in restaurants. The ultimate destination for both groups tended to be the United States with Canada just a stopping point along their journey.  In 1970, Cotroni along with his brother Vic attended a crime summit in
Acapulco Acapulco de Juárez (), commonly called Acapulco ( , also , nah, Acapolco), is a city and major seaport in the state of Guerrero on the Pacific Coast of Mexico, south of Mexico City. Acapulco is located on a deep, semicircular bay and has ...
to meet with gangsters from Canada, the United States, France, and Mexico to discuss plans to take over the soon to be legalized casino industry in Quebec. The chairman of the Acapulco summit was
Meyer Lansky Meyer Lansky (born Maier Suchowljansky; July 4, 1902 – January 15, 1983), known as the "Mob's Accountant", was an American organized crime figure who, along with his associate Charles "Lucky" Luciano, was instrumental in the development of the ...
who represented " the Commission" of New York. The plans turned out to be moot when
Robert Bourassa Robert Bourassa (; July 14, 1933 – October 2, 1996) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd premier of Quebec from 1970 to 1976 and from 1985 to 1994. A member of the Liberal Party of Quebec, he served a total of just un ...
reverted on legalization of casinos in response to the
October crisis The October Crisis (french: Crise d'Octobre) refers to a chain of events that started in October 1970 when members of the Front de libération du Québec (FLQ) kidnapped the provincial Labour Minister Pierre Laporte and British diplomat James Cr ...
of 1970. The ''
Front de libération du Québec The (FLQ) was a Marxist–Leninist and Quebec separatist guerrilla group. Founded in the early 1960s with the aim of establishing an independent and socialist Quebec through violent means, the FLQ was considered a terrorist group by the Cana ...
'' (FLQ) in its manifesto of 8 October 1970 that was read out on national television and radio following the kidnapping of the British trade commissioner
James Cross James Richard Cross (29 September 1921 – 6 January 2021) was an Irish-born British diplomat who served in India, Malaysia and Canada. While posted in Canada, Cross was kidnapped by members of the Front de libération du Québec (FLQ) durin ...
accused Bourassa of being the puppet of "the election riggers Simard–Cotroni", which was clearly a reference to the support offered by the Cotroni family to the '' Parti libéral du Quebec''. On 18 February 1971, with his lawyer
Sidney Leithman Sidney Leithman (14 October 1936 – 13 May 1991), better known as "Sid", was a Canadian lawyer known for representing numerous reputed organized crime figures in Montreal. Leithman was shot dead in a murder that remains unsolved. Mob lawyer L ...
at his side, Cotroni called a press conference to discuss his arrest in Mexico the previous month. This was the first press conference in Canada ever called by a Mafia leader, which reflected Cotroni's personality, as he was more "audacious" and less bound by the traditional rules of the Mafia as Cotroni enjoyed media attention in a way that his brothers did not. Cotroni made a point of stressing that his arrest in Acapulco for the possession of stolen jewelry was a case of mistaken identity. The scholar Steven Schneider noted that Cotroni's "reckless abandon" led to him being arrested more times than his brothers Vic and Pep had been combined.   On 10 July 1973, two Cotroni family
soldiers A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a conscripted or volunteer enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, or an officer. Etymology The word ''soldier'' derives from the Middle English word , from Old French ...
were killed by French-Canadian outlaw bikers working for heroin dealer Angelo Facchino, which prompted a meeting between Cotroni and
Paolo Violi Paolo Violi (; 6 February 1931 – 22 January 1978) was an Italian-Canadian mobster and ''capodecina'' in the Cotroni crime family of Montreal. Violi was born in Sinopoli, Calabria, Italy, in 1931; his father Domenico was the boss of the Violi c ...
on 31 July 1973. The meeting was
wiretap Telephone tapping (also wire tapping or wiretapping in American English) is the monitoring of telephone and Internet-based conversations by a third party, often by covert means. The wire tap received its name because, historically, the monitorin ...
ped by the police, and Cotroni said of the killers were: "crazy, crazy, crazy... They've killed something like 10 guys already!" It was agreed that Cotroni would have the "crazy, crazy, crazy" bikers killed, while Violi would have Facchino killed. On 2 September 1973, Facchino was killed by two Cotroni
hitmen Contract killing is a form of murder or assassination in which one party hires another party to kill a targeted person or persons. It involves an illegal agreement which includes some form of payment, monetary or otherwise. Either party may be ...
, Tony Vanelli and Moreno Gallo. Another Cotroni family soldier, Tony Di Genova, was subsequently killed. In another wiretapped talk, Violi expressed much rage at Cotroni whom he stated wasted too much in hunting down the "Frenchmen". Violi stated: "I told Frankie to leave the Italian acchinoto me and hit the Frenchmen first... He should have gone into the club, clients or no clients, lined everybody up against the wall and rat-a-rat-tat!" On 9 November 1973, Cotroni together with Frank D'Asti, Paul Oddo, Gudio Orsni and Jorge Asafy Bala were indicted in New York on charges of smuggling nine kilograms of cocaine from Mexico into New York city on 9 January 1971. On 8 November 1974, Cotroni was arrested following an
extradition Extradition is an action wherein one jurisdiction delivers a person accused or convicted of committing a crime in another jurisdiction, over to the other's law enforcement. It is a cooperative law enforcement procedure between the two jurisdi ...
request from the United States alleging that he had smuggled $3 million worth of
cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly used recreationally for its euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from the leaves of two Coca species native to South Am ...
imported from Mexico into the United States. Cotroni fought the extradition request right up the
Supreme Court of Canada The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC; french: Cour suprême du Canada, CSC) is the Supreme court, highest court in the Court system of Canada, judicial system of Canada. It comprises List of Justices of the Supreme Court of Canada, nine justices, wh ...
, which declined his request, thus leading to this extradition. In 1975, with connections to the
Bonanno family The Bonanno crime family (pronounced ) is an Italian-American Mafia crime family and one of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City, and in the United States, as part of the criminal phenomenon known as the ...
of New York City, Frank Cotroni was convicted in the United States of smuggling $3 million worth of cocaine into New York City through Mexico and sentenced to 15 years in prison; he was paroled after four years on the condition he not return to the United States. While in prison, Frank met fellow inmate, French-Canadian
Réal Simard Réal Simard (born 7 January 1951) is a Canadian gangster from Montreal known for being a hitman for Frank Cotroni of the Cotroni crime family, who later turned informant. Early career In Simard's early days, he robbed banks with childhood friend ...
, nephew of Armand Courville, a long-time associate of Vic Cotroni. Simard would become Frank's driver and eventual hitman upon their release in 1979. Frank considered Simard a nephew.Schneider, ''Iced: The Story of Organized Crime in Canada'', pp. 527 Another French-Canadian protégé of Cotroni's was Claude Faber, who had married his niece and who specialized in bringing unions under the control of the Cotroni family.Auger and Edwards ''The Encyclopedia of Canadian Organized Crime'' p.78. Faber, whom the media often described as Cotroni's right-hand man, was later convicted of cocaine trafficking and for the 1982 murder of Claude Ménard.  


Cotroni–Rizzuto war

During the violent Mafia war with the Sicilian faction of the family led by
Nicolò Rizzuto Nicolo Rizzuto (; February 18, 1924 – November 10, 2010) was an Italian-Canadian crime boss and founder of the Rizzuto crime family, the Sicilian Mafia organization based in Montreal, Quebec. Rizzuto was born in Cattolica Eraclea, Sicily, Ita ...
in Montreal, Paolo Violi (who was acting '' capo'' for Vic Cotroni) and his brothers were murdered along with others through the mid-1970s to the early 1980s until the war ceased and the
Rizzuto family The Rizzuto crime family () is an organized crime family based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, whose criminal activity covers most of southern Quebec and Ontario. The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) considers the family a facti ...
took over.The Rizzuto family
by Corinne Smith (January 6, 2011) CBC News Montreal

, Montreal Gazette, September 18, 2008

, Montreal Gazette, November 23, 2006
During his time in the "Mafia Row" at the U.S. federal prison in Lewisburg, Cotroni strengthened his connections with American Mafiosi, which is believed to have saved his life upon his return to Montreal. The Rizzuto family did not wish to assassinate someone so closely linked to
American Mafia The American Mafia, commonly referred to in North America as the Italian American Mafia, the Mafia, or the Mob, is a highly organized Italian American criminal society and organized crime group. The organization is often referred to by its memb ...
leaders and who had drug smuggling connections that extended around the world. While at Lewisburg, Cotroni brought some $850,000 in counterfeit U.S. currency together with the printing plates for producing the counterfeit cash and attempted to lessen his sentence by making a plea bargain to reveal to the
Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice ...
(FBI) the location of the said plates and counterfeit currency. The Canadian criminologist Steven Schnedier called Cotroni's proposed plea bargain a "scam" that he attempted to commit against the U.S. Department of Justice. One Bonanno family ''capo'',
Alphonse "Sonny Red" Indelicato Alphonse "Al" Indelicato (February 25, 1931 – May 5, 1981), also known as Sonny Red, was a powerful American caporegime in New York City's Bonanno crime family who was murdered with Dominick Trinchera and Philip Giaccone for planning to overth ...
, unaware of the fraudulent nature of Cotroni's offer, ordered him killed as a "rat" who had violated ''
omertà Omertà (, ) is a Southern Italian code of silence and code of honor and conduct that places importance on silence in the face of questioning by authorities or outsiders; non-cooperation with authorities, the government, or outsiders, especiall ...
''. A
Genovese family The Genovese crime family, () also sometimes referred to as the Westside, is an Italian-American Italian-American Mafia, Mafia crime family and one of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City and New Jersey as ...
''capo'', William Masselli, had to inform Indelicato that Cotroni was not violating ''omertà''. In a phone call tapped by the FBI, Masselli was heard saying: "They were gonna whack this guy out for nothing. See how you can get whacked out for nothing?... They were almost gonna mark that guy wrong, that Cotroni, Frank Cotroni. So Sonny Red calls me down this week, and I know him good, Sonny Red... That's why I'm showing you this and I want you to go, it goes no further than here because that guy happens to be with us. I wanna know what the fuckin' story is behind it, in the meantime I gotta go back down there Monday or Tuesday and tell him you're marking the guy for no fuckin' reason". The U.S. Department of Justice, knowing that Cotroni was essentially attempting to buy his way out of prison with his "scam" offer to reveal the location of the counterfeit money and plates, declined his proposed plea bargain. The Calabrian faction continued to operate with Frank as acting boss for his ill brother after the early 1980s. Peter Edwards, the crime correspondent of the ''
Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and par ...
'', wrote in his biography of Cotroni that when he returned to Montreal on 25 April 1979, he "looked more like a prince returning from the Crusades than a trafficker coming home from Lewisburg's Prison Mafia Row. His hair was worn in a well groomed, cavalier style, flowering halfway over his ears. And his eyes shone even brighter than his perfect teeth as he strode through
Dorval Airport Dorval () is an on-island suburban city on the island of Montreal in southwestern Quebec, Canada. In 2016, the Canadian Census indicated that the population increased by 4.2% to 18,980. Although the city has the largest surface area in Montré ...
in Montreal, his New York lawyers John Iannuzzi in tow." Frank kept a high profile, attending boxing matches and hockey games, and cruising around Montreal in his
Lincoln Continental The Lincoln Continental is a series of mid-sized and full-sized luxury cars produced by Lincoln, a division of the American automaker Ford Motor Company. The model line was introduced following the construction of a personal vehicle for Ed ...
driven by Simard. A militant fan of the
Montreal Canadiens The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...
hockey team, Cotroni was always at the Molson Arena to watch their games and likewise he was a constant presence at boxing matches. Simard later wrote in his 1987 autobiography ''La Neveu'' that Cotroni was embittered by the rise of the Rizzuto family at the expense of his own, and he intended to take back the status of the premier Mafia family in Canada from the Rizzutos. Frank first ordered Simard to kill Michel "Fatso" Marion in January 1980, who was ripping off his rackets. Simard killed Marion while he was eating breakfast at a diner, giving the
coup de grâce A coup de grâce (; 'blow of mercy') is a death blow to end the suffering of a severely wounded person or animal. It may be a mercy killing of mortally wounded civilians or soldiers, friends or enemies, with or without the sufferer's consent. ...
on Frank's order.Schneider, ''Iced: The Story of Organized Crime in Canada'', pp. 528 In June 1981, Simard murdered Giuseppe Montegano, a low-level cocaine dealer in Montreal, at Frank's son Francesco's private club, as he was suspected of being a police
informant An informant (also called an informer or, as a slang term, a “snitch”) is a person who provides privileged information about a person or organization to an agency. The term is usually used within the law-enforcement world, where informant ...
and had hostilities with Francesco. After a meeting with Michel Pozza had gone badly, Cotroni turned to Simard and said "Something has to be done about him", which the latter understood as an order to kill him.Auger and Edwards ''The Encyclopedia of Canadian Organized Crime'' p.197. Pozza came from
Trento Trento ( or ; Ladin and lmo, Trent; german: Trient ; cim, Tria; , ), also anglicized as Trent, is a city on the Adige River in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol in Italy. It is the capital of the autonomous province of Trento. In the 16th centu ...
in northern Italy and in 1976 had become a money launderer and the ''
consigliere Consigliere ( , ; plural ) is a position within the leadership structure of the Sicilian, Calabrian, and Italian-American Mafia. The word was popularized in English by the novel '' The Godfather'' (1969) and its film adaptation. In the novel, a ...
'' to the Cotroni family, which was an unusual promotion for somebody not from southern Italy. On 27 September 1982, Pozza had dinner with Cotroni and Simard, with the former pressing him to cease his shifted allegiance to the Rizzuto family. Midway through the dinner, Simard left early while Cotroni gave Pozza a handshake at the end, saying they would always be friends. Afterwards, Pozza went home where Simard was waiting for him, and shot him in the head on his driveway. Cotroni continued his alliance with the Genovese family, being linked to 115.5 pounds of heroin seized by the
U.S. Customs The United States Customs Service was the very first federal law enforcement agency of the U.S. federal government. Established on July 31, 1789, it collected import tariffs, performed other selected border security duties, as well as conducted c ...
on 27 January 1982 from a Genovese-owned warehouse in
Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
, which was believed to have been smuggled with Cotroni's help. An FBI report of 17 May 1982 stated that a senior member of the Genovese family "is dealing junk eroinon a large scale with Frank Cotroni out of Canada". The report further stated this man "travels to Montreal on a regular basis to set up the wholesale shipment of 'junk' from the Cotronis in Canada to the United States, and that the Cotronis have strong connections in Sicily which give them an unlimited supply of 'junk'". The FBI found out that on 26 July 1982, Cotroni wired US$93,000 from Montreal to a bank in Italy as a payment for a shipment of heroin that was due to arrive in New York on 26 July 1982. In 1983, Cotroni was indicted by a Connecticut grand jury on one count of conspiring to traffic in heroin with five other men in New York City, and three counts of illegally transporting more than $5,000 from
Bridgeport, Connecticut Bridgeport is the most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the fifth-most populous in New England. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequo ...
, to Montreal.


Expansion into Ontario

In July 1983, Frank sent Simard to Ontario where he met with Johnny Papalia in
Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilto ...
on behalf of Frank. Papalia, the most powerful Mafia boss in Hamilton, accepted Simard's presence in
southern Ontario Southern Ontario is a primary region of the province of Ontario, Canada, the other primary region being Northern Ontario. It is the most densely populated and southernmost region in Canada. The exact northern boundary of Southern Ontario is disp ...
as the Cotroni family outranked the Papalia family; the crucial moment in the Papalia–Simard meeting occurred when the latter phoned Cotroni in Montreal and then handled the phone to Papalia where Cotroni confirmed that Simard represented him. Frank seized the Ontario market, with Simard bringing Quebec
strippers A stripper or exotic dancer is a person whose occupation involves performing striptease in a public adult entertainment venue such as a strip club. At times, a stripper may be hired to perform at a bachelor party or other private event. Mo ...
to Toronto clubs, where he allowed Papalia to put his
pinball Pinball games are a family of games in which a ball is propelled into a specially designed table where it bounces off various obstacles, scoring points either en route or when it comes to rest. Historically the board was studded with nails call ...
machines in his clubs. In late 1983,
Roy McMurtry Roy is a masculine given name and a family surname with varied origin. In Anglo-Norman England, the name derived from the Norman ''roy'', meaning "king", while its Old French cognate, ''rey'' or ''roy'' (modern ''roi''), likewise gave rise to ...
, the Ontario Attorney General, summoned all of the police chiefs in Ontario to a secret conference in Toronto, where the police chiefs in a joint memo to McMurtry stated: "By far our greatest concern must be the Cotroni family of Montreal... Needless to say, we consider
rank Rank is the relative position, value, worth, complexity, power, importance, authority, level, etc. of a person or object within a ranking, such as: Level or position in a hierarchical organization * Academic rank * Diplomatic rank * Hierarchy * ...
Cotroni our most serious threat". Cotroni was reported to have stated that Toronto was just as lucrative a market as Montreal, but unlike Montreal, the police in Toronto were not as corrupt, making Toronto a more difficult market to operate.  In November 1983, Simard and associate Richard Clément killed Mario Héroux, but unknowingly only severely wounded Robert Hétu, in their Toronto hotel room after they conspired to kill Clément.Vastel and Simard, ''The Nephew: The making of a Mafia hitman'', pp. 34 Hétu testified against Simard and Simard was arrested and convicted, until he became informant against Frank Cotroni and the family; this resulted in an eight-year sentence for manslaughter against Frank, Francesco and two associates in 1987 for the Montegano murder. To replace Simard as his Toronto agent, Cotroni hired the boxer Eddie Melo. On 16 September 1984, Vic Cotroni died of cancer, leaving Frank as boss.


Boxing

Controi, an avid boxing fan, dominated the boxing industry in Quebec. A Royal Commission under Justice Raymond Bernier of the Quebec Sports Safety Board examined boxing, with the Bernier commission interviewing 105 people between October 1984 and July 1985. The report, which was presented in March 1986, was so damning that much of the report was censored by the Quebec government, although parts of the censored portions were leaked to the journalist Michel Auger, the crime correspondent of ''
Le Journal de Montréal ''Le Journal de Montréal'' is a daily French-language tabloid newspaper published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It has the largest circulation of any newspaper in Quebec and is also the largest French-language daily newspaper in North America. Es ...
'', who had those portions published in his newspaper. Bernier wrote: "If this happened in baseball or football or hockey, it would be a national scandal". Bernier called Cotroni "the guiding spirit" of boxing in Montreal. Bernier wrote that the Fighting Hilton Family of boxers were working for Cotroni and the boxing fights in Montreal were "probably" rigged. The commission stated that Cotroni was treated like royalty whenever he attended a boxing match anywhere in Canada. The Bernier commission wrote that boxers in Quebec as a condition of their employment were required to sign exploitative contracts that ensured that they had to hand over half of their earnings from not only their boxing fights, but also from any non-boxing jobs they might hold to people associated with Cotroni. The report stated that Cotroni was paying the bills of the boxer Dave Hilton Sr., including his rent, groceries, furniture and clothing. Cotroni was described as the only man who could control the alcoholic Hilton Sr. and in turn controlled the careers of Hilton's four sons, all of whom were boxers. One Montreal boxing promoter, Henri Spitzer, stated that "the father ilton Sr.is always drunk and I need Cotroni's help to keep him in line". The report also stated that Cotroni and his associates "have a percentage of certain boxers' revenues", stating that an agreement had been signed in November 1981 that the boxer Dave Hilton Jr. would share half of his earnings to Cotroni, to the sum of $100,000. The Bernier commission accused Cotroni of exploiting the Hilton family, who were "victims of their youthful ignorance and their thirst for glory". The report stated a contract signed between the Hiltons and the American boxing promoter
Don King Donald King (born August 20, 1931) is an American boxing promoter, known for his involvement in several historic boxing matchups. He has been a controversial figure, partly due to a manslaughter conviction and civil cases against him, as well a ...
on 31 January 1985 was largely the work of Cotroni. The lawyer for the Hiltons,
Frank Shoofey Franklin Dimitrios Shoofey (1941 – 15 October 1985) was a prominent criminal lawyer in Canada who was active in the Quebec Liberal Party. In a still-unsolved murder, he was shot to death while working late at his Montreal law office. Early h ...
, was mostly excluded from the talks, with the negotiations being conducted by the lawyers for Cotroni and King. The report concluded: "The Hiltons have conceded all and received little in return. For example, the minimum purse for an eventual championship fight is a ridiculously low $150,000". The report stated that the actual value of a championship fight for the Hilton brothers should have been closer to $500,000. A police wiretap showed that Cotroni had called Hilton Sr. from his jail, where he was being held at time, to tell him that the contract with King was "a good one". Schoofey told ''
The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...
'' that he was unhappy with the contract the Hiltons signed with King, saying: "I would have gotten a million-dollar guarantee for the boys, with big bonuses up front". Hilton Sr. praised Cotroni, saying: "There were times when I needed money for rent. He was always there, with no questions asked. He helped a lot of amateur boxers and amateur teams". Cotroni told the media at the time: "I'm not a gambler and I have never put a penny on the Hiltons. I just want the boys to have the money because you should see how they suffered when they were young. People know what I do for the poor people, not just the Hiltons". Shoofey, who testified against Cotroni for the Bernier Commission, was murdered in his Montreal office on 15 October 1985. The journalist Claude Poirier wrote in 2019 that Shoofey had told him shortly before his murder that he had been receiving death threats from people associated with the Cotroni family who were unhappy about his criticism of Cotroni's influence on the Hilton family.


Later years and death

On 8 December 1987, Cotroni pledged guilty to manslaughter with regard to the murder charges he was facing due to Simard's testimony. Cotroni lost his court fight against extradition in June 1989 and agreed to face the charges in Connecticut on the condition that he serve his time in Canada. Two of Cotroni's sons followed him into the family business. Francesco "Frankie" Cotroni Jr. was close to Allan "The Weasel" Ross of the West End Gang. Besides for serving as the liaison with the West End Gang, Frankie Cotroni was charged on 10 October 1986 as an accomplice to the murder of Giuseppe Montegano on 14 June 1981, with the Crown alleging that Simard had killed Montegano on the orders of Frank at the prompting of Frankie. On 15 January 1988, Frankie made a plea bargain with the Crown, pleading guilty to manslaughter, for which he served three years in prison. On 17 April 1996, Frankie was again arrested on the charges of drug trafficking, leading him to make a plea bargain, agreeing to eight years in prison in exchange for a guilty plea, but he released on parole in October 2000. In 1996, Frank Cotroni was charged with conspiring to import 180 kilograms of cocaine into Canada; he was released from prison in 2002 after serving four years of a seven-year sentence. On 23 August 1998, Cotroni's son Paulo was shot and killed in the driveway of his home in Repentigny by two hitmen, Gérald Gallant and Gérard Hubert.Les confessions d'un tueur à gages
Félix Séguin and Éric Thibault, ''
Le Journal de Montréal ''Le Journal de Montréal'' is a daily French-language tabloid newspaper published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It has the largest circulation of any newspaper in Quebec and is also the largest French-language daily newspaper in North America. Es ...
''
Police initially investigated a theory that Paolo Cotroni was killed over a $250,000 debt he owed to an Asian organized crime syndicate, but the
Rock Machine The Rock Machine Motorcycle Club (RMMC) or Rock Machine is an international outlaw motorcycle club founded in Montreal, Quebec, Canada in 1986. It has twenty one Canadian chapters spread across seven provinces. It also has nine chapters in the ...
motorcycle gang later became the prime suspects in the murder. Paolo had been dealing with the
Hells Angels The Hells Angels Motorcycle Club (HAMC) is a worldwide outlaw motorcycle club whose members typically ride Harley-Davidson motorcycles. In the United States and Canada, the Hells Angels are incorporated as the Hells Angels Motorcycle Corporati ...
, rivals of the Rock Machine, and was a friend of Hells Angels biker
Scott Steinert Scott Steinert (1962 – 4 November 1997) was an American outlaw biker and gangster who was a member of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He is generally regarded as the man behind the 9 August 1995 car bomb which acc ...
.Police arrest 10 in biker slayings
Graeme Hamilton, ''
National Post The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper available in several cities in central and western Canada. The paper is the flagship publication of Postmedia Network and is published Mondays through Saturdays, with ...
'' (27 March 2009)
Prior to his death, he had been warned by Rock Machine member
Johnny Plescio Johnny Plescio (1964 – 8 September 1998) was a Canadian outlaw biker and gangster, who was one of the founding members of the Rock Machine Motorcycle Club. Plescio became widely known for his "strong-arm tactics" and was highly respected withi ...
to cease his affiliation with the Angels. On 26 March 2009, Gallant testified that he and Hubert had killed Paolo in a $20,000 murder contract given by
Frédéric Faucher Frédéric Faucher (born 16 December 1969) is a Canadian outlaw biker and gangster who served as national president of the Rock Machine Motorcycle Club during the Quebec Biker War (1994-2002). He played a significant role in the conflict and was ...
and Marcel "Le Maire" Demers, the leaders of the Rock Machine's
Quebec City Quebec City ( or ; french: Ville de Québec), officially Québec (), is the capital city of the Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the metropolitan area had a population of 839,311. It is t ...
chapter. On 30 June 2002, Frank Cotroni was arrested for violating his parole conditions by meeting men with criminal records in an Italian restaurant, but was released in August 2002. In the final two years of Frank's life, he released a cookbook, ''Cuisine des souvenirs et recettes'' (''Kitchen of Memories and Recipes''), published by a subsidiary of
Quebecor Media Quebecor Media Inc. is a Canadian media conglomerate that owns a wide array of media outlets, as well as an internet service provider. History In 1983 Quebecor purchased the Winnipeg Sun newspaper, which had been independently run. The newspa ...
. The cookbook included spaghetti and pizza recipes, but also features traditional Quebec dishes of beans and pork. In the foreword, Cotroni recalled childhood memories of home-cooked Italian meals and delicious dishes at local restaurants and cabarets. He said nothing of his alleged Mafia ties but hinted at his criminal past in the preface. "This book is not an autobiography even if some memories I have recalled touch on specific periods of my life," he said. Frank Cotroni died of brain cancer on 17 August 2004 at the age of 72.


References


Books

*Auger, Michel & Edwards, Peter ''The Encyclopedia of Canadian Organized Crime: From Captain Kidd to Mom Boucher'', Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 2012, . *   {{DEFAULTSORT:Cotroni, Frank 1931 births 2004 deaths 20th-century Canadian criminals Canadian male criminals Canadian gangsters of Italian descent Canadian crime bosses Criminals from Montreal Cotroni crime family People extradited from Canada to the United States Canadian prisoners and detainees Prisoners and detainees of Canada Canadian people imprisoned abroad Prisoners and detainees of the United States Canadian drug traffickers Canadian people convicted of manslaughter Canadian people convicted of drug offences Organized crime in Montreal Deaths from cancer in Quebec People of Calabrian descent