Rocco Perri
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Rocco Perri (; born Rocco Perre; December 30, 1887 – disappeared April 23, 1944) was an
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...
-born
organized crime Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...
figure 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 Hamilt ...
,
Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
, Canada. He was one of the most prominent
Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic ...
-era crime figures in Canada, and was sometimes referred to as "King of the
Bootleggers Bootleg or bootlegging most often refers to: * Bootleg recording, an audio or video recording released unofficially * Rum-running, the illegal business of transporting and trading in alcoholic beverages, hence: ** Moonshine, or illicitly made ...
" and "Canada's
Al Capone Alphonse Gabriel Capone (; January 17, 1899 – January 25, 1947), sometimes known by the nickname "Scarface", was an American gangster and businessman who attained notoriety during the Prohibition era as the co-founder and boss of the ...
". Born in the Italian town of Platì in Calabria, Perri immigrated to the United States, and later to Canada, in 1908. In the early 1910s, he started work in construction and in a bakery. Perri and his
common-law In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipresen ...
wife,
Bessie Starkman Bessie Starkman (born Besha Starkman; June 21, 1890 – August 13, 1930) was an organized crime figure in Hamilton, Ontario, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, in the early 20th century. She and her Common-law marriage, common-law husband, Kingdom of Ita ...
, began a business in bootlegging when the sale and distribution of alcohol was prohibited in both
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
and the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. Starkman dealt mainly with the finances of the business. In 1928, Perri was charged with
perjury Perjury (also known as foreswearing) is the intentional act of swearing a false oath or falsifying an affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to an official proceeding."Perjury The act or an inst ...
after a Royal Commission testimony, and served five months of a six month prison sentence. In 1930, Starkman was ambushed in her garage and killed; no one was charged with her murder. In 1940, Perri was arrested and sent to
internment Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simpl ...
at Camp Petawawa as part of the
Italian Canadian internment Italian Canadian internment was the removal and internment of Italian Canadians during World War II following Italy's June 10, 1940, declaration of war against the United Kingdom. Through the ''War Measures Act'', the government of Canadian Prime ...
; he was released three years later. Perri disappeared in Hamilton on April 23, 1944, when he went for a walk; his body was never found, and this caused speculation surrounding his purported death.


Early and family life

Rocco Perri was born in
Platì Platì (; scn, label= Calabrian, Pratì) is a town and ''comune'' (municipality) in the province of Reggio Calabria, in Calabria, southern Italy. It rises above sea level on the slope of the Aspromonte mountains and is located next to the Asprom ...
,
Calabria , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...
,
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
, on December 30, 1887, and immigrated to the United States in 1903, then to Canada in 1908. In 1912, Perri met
Bessie Starkman Bessie Starkman (born Besha Starkman; June 21, 1890 – August 13, 1930) was an organized crime figure in Hamilton, Ontario, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, in the early 20th century. She and her Common-law marriage, common-law husband, Kingdom of Ita ...
, a Polish Jew who had immigrated to Canada circa 1900, while he lived as a boarder in her family home in The Ward,
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 ancho ...
,
Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
, with her husband Harry Toben and their two children. Shortly after, Perri began an affair with Starkman, and when he got a job working on the
Welland Canal The Welland Canal is a ship canal in Ontario, Canada, connecting Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. It forms a key section of the St. Lawrence Seaway and Great Lakes Waterway. Traversing the Niagara Peninsula from Port Weller in St. Catharines t ...
in 1913, she left her husband and children to move in with Perri in St. Catharines and begin a
common-law In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipresen ...
relationship. When the
Canadian government The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown-in-C ...
cut funding to the Welland Canal project due to
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, Perri became unemployed. After working in a bakery, he was hired as a salesman for the Superior Macaroni Company. However, Perri and Starkman found a better means of income when the ''
Ontario Temperance Act The ''Ontario Temperance Act'' was a law passed in 1916 that led to the prohibition of alcohol in Ontario, Canada. When the Act was first enacted, the sale of alcohol was prohibited, but liquor could still be manufactured in the province or importe ...
'' came into effect on September 16, 1916, as it restricted the sale and distribution of alcohol. The couple began bootlegging; using Starkman's business acumen and Perri's connections, they established a profitable enterprise. By this time the two lived in
Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Hamilton has a population of 569,353, and its census metropolitan area, which includes Burlington and Grimsby, has a population of 785,184. The city is approximately southwest of T ...
, and by 1920, moved into a larger home at 166 Bay Street South. In 1918, Perri began an affair with Sarah Olive Routledge, with whom he had two daughters; Autumn (born in 1919), and Catherine (born in 1921). After Autumn was born, Perri had refused to marry Routledge, but he did maintain a home for her in St. Catharines and paid child support. Their affair resumed in 1920. Perri's job as a macaroni salesman required travel across Ontario; he also used those trips to arrange the sale of
liquor Liquor (or a spirit) is an alcoholic drink produced by distillation of grains, fruits, vegetables, or sugar, that have already gone through alcoholic fermentation. Other terms for liquor include: spirit drink, distilled beverage or hard ...
. Starkman, busy running the finances for their organization, did not question Perri's outings. In February 1922, Routledge was falsely told by Perri's lawyer that he was already married to Starkman. Despondent, Routledge committed
suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...
by jumping from her lawyer's seventh-story office window of the Bank of Hamilton; her parents took custody of their children. In the 1930s, Perri asked to see his daughters on weekends, although their grandmother would always accompany them for fear that he would take them. Starkman was the head of operations and the duo's negotiator and dealmaker, until August 13, 1930, when she was ambushed at around 11:15 p.m. as she got out of Perri's car in the garage of the couple's home. Perri ran down the street after the assailants before retreating back to Starkman, who had been killed with two shotgun blasts. Police found two
double-barreled shotgun A double-barreled shotgun is a break-action shotgun with two parallel barrels, allowing two single shots to be fired in quick succession or simultaneously. Construction Modern double-barreled shotguns, often known as ''doubles'', are almost u ...
s and the getaway car without fingerprints. The investigation eventually resulted in no criminal charges being brought despite a $5,000 reward offered by Perri. However, it was thought that Calabrian compatriot Antonio Papalia, leader of the
Papalia crime family The Papalia crime family () also known as Papalia 'ndrina, is a 'Ndrangheta organized crime family based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, as well as Platì in Southern Italy and Buccinasco in Northern Italy. Another branch of the family is based in ...
and father of
Johnny Papalia John Joseph Papalia (; March 18, 1924 – May 31, 1997), also known as Johnny Pops Papalia or "The Enforcer", was an Italian-Canadian crime boss of the Papalia crime family based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The Papalia crime family is one o ...
, played a role in the murder. On August 17, about 20,000 people lined the street for the funeral cortege of hundreds of vehicles; Perri fainted at the gravesite. Starkman's headstone in Hamilton's Ohev Zedek Cemetery, commissioned by Perri, referred to her as "Bessie Starkman – Perri", but the "Perri" part was later removed by persons unknown. Part of Starkman's estate went to Perri, and the rest to her children. By 1933, Perri was living with another woman, Annie Newman, who helped him to improve his criminal enterprise. The couple profited from enterprises such as bootlegging and
drug trafficking A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via insuffla ...
. "Annie was just as corrupt and business-like as Bessie," according to one source. In 1943, Newman was imprisoned for smuggling gold.


Criminal operations

Perri and Starkman survived financially in the few years after 1915 from his income as a macaroni salesman and the grocery store on Hess Street. After the ''Ontario Temperance Act'' was passed in 1916, making the sale of alcohol illegal, the couple started selling shots of
Canadian whisky Canadian whisky is a type of whisky produced in Canada. Most Canadian whiskies are blended multi-grain liquors containing a large percentage of corn spirits, and are typically lighter and smoother than other whisky styles.
on the side. Their bootlegging was done on a small scale, with their kitchen as the centre of operations. Bootlegging became a larger and more profitable enterprise when Prohibition was declared in Canada nationwide on April 1, 1918, and the Eighteenth Amendment that prohibited sale of alcohol in the United States in 1920. Through the 1920s, Perri became the leading figure in
organized crime Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...
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 ...
and was under constant surveillance by police. The government allowed for numerous exceptions, allowing various breweries and
distilleries Distillation, or classical distillation, is the process of separating the components or substances from a liquid mixture by using selective boiling and condensation, usually inside an apparatus known as a still. Dry distillation is the heat ...
to remain open for the export market. Perri specialized in exporting liquor from old Canadian distilleries, such as
Seagram The Seagram Company Ltd. (which traded as Seagram's) was a Canadian multinational conglomerate formerly headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. Originally a distiller of Canadian whisky based in Waterloo, Ontario, it was once (in the 1990s) the lar ...
and
Gooderham and Worts Gooderham and Worts, also known as Gooderham & Worts Limited, was a Canadian distiller of alcoholic beverages. It was once one of the largest distillers in Canada. The company was merged in 1926 with Hiram Walker & Sons Ltd., and the merged fir ...
, to the U.S., and helped these companies obtain a large share of the American market — a share they kept after Prohibition ended in Ontario in 1927, and the United States in 1933. He has also been linked as a distributor of Canadian whisky to
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
's
Frank Costello Frank Costello (; born Francesco Castiglia; ; January 26, 1891 – February 18, 1973) was an Italian-American crime boss of the Luciano crime family. In 1957, Costello survived an assassination attempt ordered by Vito Genovese and carried out by ...
and
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
's
Al Capone Alphonse Gabriel Capone (; January 17, 1899 – January 25, 1947), sometimes known by the nickname "Scarface", was an American gangster and businessman who attained notoriety during the Prohibition era as the co-founder and boss of the ...
, yet when Capone was asked if he knew Perri, he said "Why, I don't even know which street Canada is on." Other sources, however, claim that Capone had certainly visited Canada, where he maintained some hideaways, but the
Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; french: Gendarmerie royale du Canada; french: GRC, label=none), commonly known in English as the Mounties (and colloquially in French as ) is the federal police, federal and national police service of ...
states that there is no "evidence that he ever set foot on Canadian soil." Perri also sold trainloads of liquor into Chicago and
Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...
through
Niagara Falls Niagara Falls () is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the border between the province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York in the United States. The largest of the three is Horseshoe Falls, ...
and
Windsor, Ontario Windsor is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, on the south bank of the Detroit River directly across from Detroit, Michigan, United States. Geographically located within but administratively independent of Essex County, it is the souther ...
. During Prohibition, "The authorities were quite happy to turn a blind eye to bootlegging, and also to take payoffs ... and Rocco had all the important police in Hamilton ... on his payroll" according to author Trevor Cole. On May 10, 1922, the boss of the Scaroni crime family, Domenic Scaroni, was killed after being invited to a meeting of organized crime figures in Niagara Falls. His brother Joe Scaroni was killed on September 4, after being driven to a bakery by Perri associates John Trott and Antonio Deconza. Perri was linked to the murders, though no evidence was found. With the Scaroni brothers eliminated, Perri formed an allegiance with the Serianni crime family to keep the Ontario market out of the hands of the
Magaddino crime family The Buffalo crime family, also known as the Magaddino crime family, Buffalo Mafia, The Arm, the New York State crime family, the Upstate New York Mafia, and the Todaro crime family, is an Italian-American Mafia crime family based in Buffalo, N ...
in Buffalo, New York. Perri soon diversified into
gambling Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of value ("the stakes") on a random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy are discounted. Gambling thus requires three el ...
,
extortion Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence; the bulk of this article deals with such cases. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, ...
and
prostitution Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in Sex work, sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, n ...
. He and Starkman were also reported to have taken part in the narcotics trade as early as 1922, when the
Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; french: Gendarmerie royale du Canada; french: GRC, label=none), commonly known in English as the Mounties (and colloquially in French as ) is the federal police, federal and national police service of ...
(RCMP) suspected Perri of "dealing in narcotics on a large scale." On November 19, 1924, in an exclusive interview with the ''
Toronto Daily 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 ...
'', he stated, "My men do not carry guns ... If I find that they do, I get rid of them. It is not necessary. I provide them with high-powered cars. That is enough. If they cannot run away from the police it is their fault. But guns make trouble. My men do not use them." He also did not view himself as a criminal, believing that that Prohibition was "a law that people did not want". Perri typically shipped his illegal alcohol into the U.S. overland, but also owned a boat for crossing
Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York. The Canada–United States border sp ...
. He had a limited business relationship with bootlegger Ben Kerr, who also owned a home on Bay Street. Kerr was described by the some as "King of the Lake Ontario rum-runners" (smugglers who typically used boats). Kerr was operating within Perri's territory, but the latter required Kerr to smuggle raw American alcohol into Ontario, and may also have allowed Kerr to sell alcohol in a certain part of
New York State New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...
in return for the payment of a commission. These ventures enabled Kerr to expand his operations and to remain a solid customer of distilleries such as Gooderham & Worts and Corby's. Kerr and his boat ''Pollywog'' disappeared in February 1929; weeks later, his body and some wreckage from his boat were found on the shore of Lake Ontario near Colborne. Based on his research, author C.W. Hunt theorized that Perri was likely responsible for Kerr's death, perhaps using his own, more effectively-armoured boat, the ''Uncas''. Hunt conceded that there were two other possible causes: "misadventure" (a marine accident) as stated by the coroner, or an act by the Staud brothers with their well armed/armoured boat. One report estimates that in the mid-1920s, Perri and Starkman were generating C$1 million per year through criminal endeavours and had a hundred employees. In that era, Perri was a "big spender" and the couple lived an opulent lifestyle. Nonetheless, Perri paid only $13.30 in
income tax An income tax is a tax imposed on individuals or entities (taxpayers) in respect of the income or profits earned by them (commonly called taxable income). Income tax generally is computed as the product of a tax rate times the taxable income. Tax ...
based on employment as a macaroni salesman and his "export/mailorder" business in 1926; Starkman, who claimed to be supporting him, paid $96.43. At about that time, some reports indicated that she had between $500,000 and one million in deposits at various banks. That same year, Perri faced criminal charges in the death of 17 people who died after drinking illegal liquor, but was
acquitted In common law jurisdictions, an acquittal certifies that the accused is free from the charge of an offense, as far as criminal law is concerned. The finality of an acquittal is dependent on the jurisdiction. In some countries, such as the ...
of the charges. In 1927, Perri was compelled to testify at the Royal Commission on Customs and Excise inquiry, focusing on bootlegging and smuggling, and also at a hearing on
tax evasion Tax evasion is an illegal attempt to defeat the imposition of taxes by individuals, corporations, trusts, and others. Tax evasion often entails the deliberate misrepresentation of the taxpayer's affairs to the tax authorities to reduce the taxp ...
charges against Gooderham and Worts. Later that year, at the Gooderham and Worts tax evasion hearing, Perri admitted to buying whisky from the distiller from 1924 to 1927. Gooderham and Worts was convicted of tax evasion in 1928 and ordered to pay a fine of $439,744. Perri and Starkman were charged with
perjury Perjury (also known as foreswearing) is the intentional act of swearing a false oath or falsifying an affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to an official proceeding."Perjury The act or an inst ...
after their Royal Commission testimony, but in a
plea bargain A plea bargain (also plea agreement or plea deal) is an agreement in criminal law proceedings, whereby the prosecutor provides a concession to the defendant in exchange for a plea of guilt or '' nolo contendere.'' This may mean that the defendan ...
, the charges were dropped against Starkman; Perri served five months of a six-month sentence and was released on September 27, 1928. On August 2, 1930, Perri and Mike Serge were charged with illegal possession of 10 gallons of liquor, but nine days later, both men were acquitted. Starkman was murdered on August 13, 1930. Between 1937 and 1939, Perri owned a brewery on Fleet Street in Toronto. In 1938, two attempts were made to kill Perri: on March 20, his
veranda A veranda or verandah is a roofed, open-air gallery or porch, attached to the outside of a building. A veranda is often partly enclosed by a railing and frequently extends across the front and sides of the structure. Although the form ''veran ...
was destroyed by
dynamite Dynamite is an explosive made of nitroglycerin, sorbents (such as powdered shells or clay), and Stabilizer (chemistry), stabilizers. It was invented by the Swedish people, Swedish chemist and engineer Alfred Nobel in Geesthacht, Northern Germa ...
that had been placed underneath it, and on November 23, a bomb under his car detonated. Perri was not injured in either attempt. In 1940, Perri and his brother Mike were arrested and sent to
internment Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simpl ...
at Camp Petawawa as part of the
Italian Canadian internment Italian Canadian internment was the removal and internment of Italian Canadians during World War II following Italy's June 10, 1940, declaration of war against the United Kingdom. Through the ''War Measures Act'', the government of Canadian Prime ...
, as potentially dangerous
enemy aliens In customary international law, an enemy alien is any native, citizen, denizen or subject of any foreign nation or government with which a domestic nation or government is in conflict and who is liable to be apprehended, restrained, secured an ...
with alleged connections to
Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...
's
fascist regime Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy an ...
; he was released on October 17, 1943. During this internment, Perri served some time with Antonio Papalia, who was released two years before Perri. Papalia then began to expand his enterprise with his son Johnny, who had some relationship with the Buffalo crime family.


Disappearance and aftermath

Rocco Perri was last seen alive in Hamilton on April 23, 1944, at the home of a cousin, Joe Serge, on Murray Street West. According to a ''
Maclean's ''Maclean's'', founded in 1905, is a Canadian news magazine reporting on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, and current events. Its founder, publisher John Bayne Maclean, established the magazine to provide a uniquely Canadian perspe ...
'' magazine report from June 15 of that year, Perri was then "working as a doorman in a Toronto theatre". Before lunch, he complained of a headache and went for a walk to clear his head but never returned. Perri's body has never been found, though it is speculated he was murdered by being fitted with cement shoes and thrown into
Burlington Bay Hamilton Harbour, formerly known as Burlington Bay, lies on the western tip of Lake Ontario, bounded on the northwest by the City of Burlington, on the south by the City of Hamilton, and on the east by Hamilton Beach (south of the Burlington B ...
—a practice known colloquially as the ''
lupara bianca ''Lupara bianca'' (; "white ''lupara''") is a journalistic term for a Mafia murder done in such a way that the victim's body is never found. Typical ways to carry out a lupara bianca include burying a victim in the open countryside or in remote p ...
''. It is believed Antonio and Johnny Papalia, along with Stefano Magaddino of Buffalo, played a role in Perri's disappearance to gain better control of the Canadian alcohol market. The
Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; french: Gendarmerie royale du Canada; french: GRC, label=none), commonly known in English as the Mounties (and colloquially in French as ) is the federal police, federal and national police service of ...
concluded in 1954 that they "won't find his body until the Bay dries up". After Perri's disappearance, three of his former lieutenants, in addition to Papalia and
Giacomo Luppino The Luppino crime family, () also known as the Luppino-Violi crime family, is a 'Ndrangheta organized crime family based and founded in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, in the 1950s by Giacomo Luppino. The Luppino family is one of three centralized Maf ...
, began answering to Magaddino in Buffalo: Tony Sylvestro, Calogero Bordonaro and Santo Scibetta, known as the "three dons".Schneider, 200
p.285-286
In 1992, evidence into Perri's disappearance was uncovered by
Mafia "Mafia" is an informal term that is used to describe criminal organizations that bear a strong similarity to the original “Mafia”, the Sicilian Mafia and Italian Mafia. The central activity of such an organization would be the arbitration of d ...
expert
Antonio Nicaso Antonio Nicaso (; born 1964) is an Italian author, university professor, researcher, speaker and consultant to governments and law-enforcement agencies originally from Caulonia, Calabria, Italy, now based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.Lejtenyi, Pa ...
. A letter shared with him by Perri's cousin in Italy, dated June 10, 1949, and translated from
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...
, read, "Dear cousin, With this letter, I will tell you I am in good health. Let them know I'm fine if you've heard the news." It is signed Rocco Perri. Perri's cousin also claims that the gangster died in 1953 in
Massena, New York Massena is a town in St. Lawrence County, New York, United States. Massena is along the county's northern border, just south of the St. Lawrence River and the Three Nations Crossing of the Canada–United States border. The population was 12,8 ...
. In 2018, Perri's relatives from Hamilton and Australia, during an attempt to collect on the late mobster's estate, claimed that he had lived in Massena under the name Giuseppe Portolesi before dying of natural causes in 1953. The group's Andrew Monterosso said that he had made a good living through legal ventures such as the ownership of properties in the U.S. and in Mexico. In 1998, a
will and testament A will or testament is a legal document that expresses a person's (testator) wishes as to how their property ( estate) is to be distributed after their death and as to which person ( executor) is to manage the property until its final distributi ...
from 1930 surfaced; it was purported to be that of Perri, but there is doubt that he was ever declared dead. A
CBC News CBC News is a division of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the news gathering and production of news programs on the corporation's English-language operations, namely CBC Television, CBC Radio, CBC News Network, and CBC.ca. ...
report in 2012 stated that "there's no death certificate out there for Rocco Perri". The group attempting to access the mobster's estate said in 2018 that there was no Social Insurance Number or death certificate, and that the
Canada Revenue Agency The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA; ; ) is the revenue service of the Canadian federal government, and most provincial and territorial governments. The CRA collects taxes, administers tax law and policy, and delivers benefit programs and tax credit ...
had transferred the funds from Perri's estate to Italy in 2008.


In popular culture

In July 2014, the first performance of a one-woman play about Starkman's life, ''Bootlegger's Wife'', was staged at Theatre Aquarius in
Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Hamilton has a population of 569,353, and its census metropolitan area, which includes Burlington and Grimsby, has a population of 785,184. The city is approximately southwest of T ...
. The creator and star was Victoria Murdoch; while the Perri character does not appear, "voiceovers" provide his comments. The play was staged again in mid-March 2019 and at intervals between those dates.


See also

*
List of people who disappeared Lists of people who disappeared include those whose current whereabouts are unknown, or whose deaths are unsubstantiated. Many people who disappear are eventually declared dead ''in absentia''. Some of these people were possibly subjected to enfo ...


References


Further reading

* "King of the Mob: Rocco Perri and the women who ran his rackets" by
James Dubro James "Jim" Dubro (born July 12, 1946) is a crime writer of many books, articles and investigative television shows. Early life Born in 1946 in Boston, Dubro earned an undergraduate degree (Phi Beta Kappa) from Boston University. He received hi ...
and Robin Rowland (Toronto)-1987. * ''Rocco Perri: The Story of Canada's Most Notorious Bootlegger'' by
Antonio Nicaso Antonio Nicaso (; born 1964) is an Italian author, university professor, researcher, speaker and consultant to governments and law-enforcement agencies originally from Caulonia, Calabria, Italy, now based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.Lejtenyi, Pa ...
. John Wiley and Sons, Toronto, 2004. * Rocco Perri Scrapbook (Hamilton Herald Newspaper articles) 12 April 1927, 14, 16, 18 August 1930 * Hamilton Public Library clippings, Hamilton, Famous and Fascinating, Thomas Melville Bailey and Charles Ambrose Carter. * Allen, Everett S. ''The black ships: Rumrunners of Prohibition''. Little, Brown. 1979. . * Carse, Robert. ''Rum row''. * Cohen, Daniel. ''Prohibition: America Makes Alcohol Illegal''. Millbrook Press. 1995. * Frew, David. ''Prohibition and Rum Running on Lake Erie (The Lake Erie Quadrangle Shipwreck Series, Book 4)'' Erie County Historical Society; 1ST edition (2006) . * Gervais, Marty. ''The Rumrunners: A Prohibition Scrapbook''. Biblioasis. 1980, Revised & Expanded 2009. . * Hunt, C. W. ''Whisky and Ice: The Saga of Ben Kerr, Canada's Most Daring Rumrunner''. Dundurn Press. 1995. . * Mason, Philip P. ''Rumrunning and the Roaring Twenties: Prohibition on the Michigan-Ontario Waterway''. Wayne State University Press, 1995. * Miller, Don. ''I was a rum runner''. Lescarbot Printing Ltd. 1979. * Montague, Art. ''Canada's Rumrunners: Incredible Adventures And Exploits During Canada's Illicit Liquor Trade''. Altitude Publishing Canada. 2004. . * Moray, Alastair. ''The diary of a rum-runner''. P. Allan & Co. Ltd. 1929, Reprint in 2006. * Steinke, Gord. ''Mobsters & Rumrunners Of Canada: Crossing The Line''. Folklore Publishing. 2003. . . * Willoughby, Malcolm F. ''Rum War at Sea''. Fredonia Books. 2001. . * Yandle, Bruce. ''Bootleggers and Baptists: The Education of a Regulatory Economist''. ''Regulation 7'', no. 3. 1983: 12. {{DEFAULTSORT:Perri, Rocco 1887 births 1940s missing person cases 20th-century Canadian criminals Bootleggers Canadian male criminals Canadian gangsters of Italian descent Depression-era gangsters Italian emigrants to Canada Italian emigrants to the United States Missing gangsters Missing person cases in Canada People from Hamilton, Ontario People from the Province of Reggio Calabria Prohibition-era gangsters Year of death unknown