The San Jose crime family, also known as the Cerrito crime family or San Jose Mafia, was one of the two families that controlled organized crime in

San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popu ...

, within the nationwide criminal organization known as the Mafia (or

La Cosa Nostra 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 membe ...

). The other family that ran organized crime in San Jose was 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 ...

of New York.

History

Early history

In the early 1940s Onofrio Sciortino founded the first probable organized crime in San Jose, California. Sciortino would derive a majority of his profits from loansharking, gambling, counterfeiting, shylocking, prostitution and extortion. He would rule over the San Jose area from the early 1940s until his death on September 10, 1959.

Cerrito and the Bonanno family

FBI Chart of San Jose crime family in 1976

Active LCN members(SACRAMENTO & MODESTO AREA)

Joseph Cerrito took over the crime family after the death of Sciortino. Cerrito emigrated to the United States from Palermo, Sicily in the late 1920s and eventually settled in San Jose in the early 1940s. He owned three car dealerships in the San Jose area. Cerrito gained some popularity for being caught at the 1957 mob meeting in

Apalachin, New York Apalachin ( ) is a census-designated place within the Town of Owego in Tioga County, New York, United States. The population was 1,131 in the 2010 census. The CDP is named after Apalachin Creek. ''Apalachin'' means "from where the messenger retur ...

. In 1964, he was spotted meeting

former underboss Frank Garofalo at a hotel in Palermo, Sicily. Many believe they were discussing the war within the Bonanno Family. Life Magazine listed Cerrito as the Mafia boss of San Jose in 1968. Angry over the accusation, he sued the company for libel. But the case was later thrown out of court. Cerrito died in 1978 from natural causes.

Leadership under Marino

A loyal caporegime named Angelo Marino was selected as the new boss over the San Jose rackets in 1978. Marino had close connections with San Francisco mayor

Joseph Alioto Joseph Lawrence Alioto (February 12, 1916 – January 29, 1998) was an American politician who served as the 36th mayor of San Francisco, California, from 1968 to 1976. Biography Alioto was born in San Francisco in 1916. His father, Giuseppe ...

(served 1968–1974), Marino was close with San Francisco crime family boss James Lanza and Los Angeles ''consigliere'' and FBI informant Frank Bompensiero. He owned and operated the California Cheese Company. His father, Salvatore, a longtime member of the Pittsburgh crime family, handed the company to Marino. His company controlled eighty-five percent of the cheese distribution in California and fifty percent west of the Mississippi River. Marino brought over many Sicilian immigrants to work in his cheese factory. Marino was indicted in October 1977 with his son Salvatore for the murder of Peter Catelli. Peter Catelli had tried to get a job with Marino's company. When Marino refused him a position, Catelli tried to extort $100,000 from Marino. Angelo Marino ordered Catelli's father Orlando to kill him in a trailer on the north side of the California Cheese factory. Orlando refused, and Salvatore then killed Peter and shot Orlando in the head. Orlando survived and testified against the Marinos. Marino avoided trial for the next three years by claiming illness, but he continued to operate the crime family from a hospital. Joseph Piazza and Thomas Napolitano were also arrested for participating in the attack. On October 12, 1980 Angelo Marino was convicted of second-degree murder and attempted murder. His conviction was overturned on appeals and he was released. Angelo Marino died of a congestive heart failure due to diabetes in February 1983.

Figlia as Boss

Emmanuel J. Figlia was the boss over the remaining crime family. He was considered an underboss to Marino. In 1998 Salvatore Marino, son of the previously mentioned Angelo, was released from San Quentin Prison. The crime family took a large blow after the deaths of Frank Maestri and Vito Frank Adragna. Adragna died on April 7, 2008, he was 90. Figlia died of natural causes on September 25, 2009.

Current status

Emmanuel Joseph Figlia was the boss over the remaining Cerrito Crime Family from 1983 to 1995. Salvatore "Sal" Marino was released from San Quentin Prison in 1998 and is said to have taken over the crime family. Figlia died on September 25, 2009. He was 91 years old. They also lost Vito Frank Adragna a year earlier. Adragna was a consigliere in the crime family. There has been an increase of Asian and Mexican gangs located where the former position of the Cerrito crime family was. The family is now believed to be defunct.

Historical leadership

Boss

*1940s–1959 — Onofrio Sciortino — died on September 10, 1959 *1959–1978 — Joseph Cerrito — died *1978–1983 — Angelo Marino — died February 1983 *1983–2009 — Emmanuel J. Figlia — died on September 25, 2009

Underboss

*1959–1983 — Emmanuel J. Figlia — became boss