Released under the John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act of 19927 (44 Use 2107 Hote). DATE: 11-14-2017 JFK Assassination System Date: 5/20/201 Identification Form “Agency Information AGENCY: FBI RECORD NUMBER: = 124-10290-10379 RECORD SERIES: HQ AGENCY FILENUMBER:  92-6054-2297 Document Information ORIGINATOR: FBI 7 FROM: SAC, SF TO: DIRECTOR, FBI TITLE : DATE: 03/22/1968 *PAGES: 9 SUBJECTS : LCN, ARTICLE, THE MOB, LIFE, MEMBERS, CRIMINAL ACT, LIBEL SUIT DOCUMENT TYPE: PAPER, TEXTUAL DOCUMENT CLASSIFICATION: — Unclassified RESTRICTIONS: 4 CURRENT STATUS: — Redact DATE OF LAST REVIEW: = 07/13/1998 OPENING CRITERIA: INDEFINITE COMMENTS : ————— v9.1 Docld:327306739 Page 1 17
JTéased under the John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act of 1992 (44 USC 2107 Hote). DATE: 11-14-2017 3/22/68 AIRTEL AIR MAIL ~ REGISTERED "0: DIRECTOR, FRI (92-~2494)(92-6054) Att; Assistant Direeter JAHES H. SALE FROM: SAC, SAK FRANCTECG™ X82-T2RYCSZ-SSST CRY JOSEPH CERRITO. aka. AR a 00: San Praneizes tA GOSA. HOSTRA AR ~ CONSPIRACY CO: New York , Fe San Franeiseco airtel, 3/11/88, and San Prancises telephone calle to Assistant Director JAMES H. GALE, 3/20 & 21/68, er our conversation, following are the rasults ef contact with oan Pranciges informants and sources reflecting the eee eaten ‘rom the article entitled “The Mob” appearing in the March 15 ch ssue of “Life” magazine. my of oat Appropriate disseminatien of this data will be made to pertinent offices by separate communication. PO <= ‘6 + Surean (AM-EM et NE A ar (3 ~ $2-3u34u) Si. 3+ REA 2G!) = | (3) - 52-608) “Pa - O05 ¥ — AG “f —_ | 3 + San Francis ; x = s Ci 1d) NOT RECORD a | CL - 32. $23) 202 APR 3 1968 =. & ‘ 7? DoclId; 32306739 Page 2?
leased under the John F > ‘Kennedy RESaSeliatron Records Correct ran, Act “or” Tyr (aE UST: “S107 Hote). DATE: ai -14- -2017 a a as ae oy: a a ar, ‘ a 7A : vs nd) & a SF-92-124 CNH:jab On 3/14/68 SF-2583-C advised that. ca copy of the "Life! magazine oe containirg the: current article concerning JOE CERRITO was brought ; to the office of the California Cheese Company . during the afternoon . of 3/14/68 and that “SABAMARINO~dd cussed. “the article “with. 1. JAKE © "NMACEK, “Production } Manager, and EARLADRSMURTY 5 “the new. office’ me manager. “According to informaht, SAL- MARINO. expressed the opinion that. the | J article was very unfair~in its attack on CERRITO -~and made: the | . _ comment that/he (MARINO) had been: in the rackets for’ ‘twenty. years, - ; had never been arrested and had never shot anyone. . Informant stated © :° that MARINO did not elaborate on. this comment, but ‘the inference. was that CERRITO had never been (so. involved and was a victim of an unjust attack. . Informant stated that there was some comment , ,concerning ‘the articl es alluding to a member-of the LCN connected with a cheese company in of San Jose and that McMURTY made- the comment that they were ‘probably . . 7 referring to the Priola Cheese Co any.” Informant. stated | wthat — | there was no reaction shown .by o#hers present when: McMURTY made this comment. _ ° . : Na An Investigation~of JAMES JOSEPH. LANZA~has.. pevealed that he and his. 7 brother, ANTHONY Weer \NZA, retired from business on 2/29/68 and Ue left their former office at’ '559 Washington Street, San. Francisco (it ; ANTHONY N. LANZA, who is a licensed insurance broker, ¢ “turned over. os his insurance’ accounts to Strong and Coe, Inc.’ 58 “Sutter wotreet, | San Francisco, for handling. “According to a Pct, “ANTHONY told him gf * “Hé™would have a small office at the new. location and, he planned C4¢Z ( on going to the office about one or two days a‘ week, “unless: he had arn \ to handle a special claim. All of the other matters would \be oS , handled by employees of Strong and. Co. No mention was made. that. : vw JAMES LANZA would have anything to do with the new set-up. : i On 3/15/68 Mr. FRANK’ KILMARTIN, Attorney, 465 ‘california Street, 4 Merchants Exchange. Building, Room. 415, telephone number DO.. 2- 0884, ‘advised that he had received a call from. his client, DWIGHT. Ve STRONG, President of Strong and. EDs. inc. ,’ who. became “greatly - “apset after “reading the article “in the March 15th issue of "Life™ agazine concerning "The } Mob", in: ‘which the name and photograph of JAMES LANZA, San Francisco, appear. He said that. STRONG ‘advised him that since. 2/29/68, both “ANTHONY: ; and JAMES LANZA have been at the office most every day and’ they. B . - @re in and out. When ANTHONY is out, JAMES is’ in and they. both. od use the phone freely. STRONG stated “that JAMES makes himself at” _ , _home,. putting his. feet on the desk, smoking his cigar and has the Docld: 32306739 Page 3
‘DATE: QL : vie te. - SF-92-124 CNH: jab and - requested that the district attorney: initiate a civil libel - action against "Life" magazine in-connection with the article concerning CERRITO appearing in the March 15th issue of that magazine. ... . Sheriff PRELSNIK advised that. ‘Mr. ! BERGNA questioned the’ source of some of the allegations set forth in the article and wondered | how a magazine would obtain such information when it is not generally available to all’ lew enforcement agencies, including ' his own office. Sheriff PRELSNIK stated: that he commented to the district attorney that the article itself set. forth that the information, at least in part, “had been obtained. by "Life". from some undisclosed source connected with President JOHNSON's Commission on Law Enforcement. and Administration of Justice and suggested that perhaps the | district attorney could get such “information from the same source. Sheriff PRELSNIK stated that Mr. BERGNA did ‘hot indicate any contemplated action in connection with the matter at this time. No effort is being made to contact BERGNA concerning this matter. In the event the district attorney contacts the San Jose Resident Agency concerning the article, the information will be immediately furnished. On 3/20/68 SF-2745-C-TE was contacted at his home in Richmond, California, by SA's RUDOLPH H. MANCINI and RICHARD VITAMANTI at which time he related that he had read the article and: said, _ "It puts me right in the middle." -Informant adviséd that. since. the article names him prominently as the one..who allegedly "bungled". oo the matter with HAROLD SMITH, $R., JOE:CERRITO and his "flunkies” will be looking for a. "patsy". and the sole blame” for ‘bringing the bad publicity to the San Jose family will be.placed*cn his shoulders. Informant said that CERRITO will: not take into account that he "started the whole mess" with his libel ‘suit against "Life" magazine. | | Informant advised that, in addition, he did not tell CERRITO to . go to Italy and get "fouled up" as he did. “Informant advised that the facts pertaining to the "Smith matter" as set forth in the. magazine article regarding him were "inaccurate." “Informant advised ‘ thate-h; never threatened to kill HAROLD SMITH, SR..-or his.brether, ‘ ¥ as a result of his failure.to. collect the -$100,900.60 Orit, Informant advised,.however, that HAROQLD-SMITH, SR. did ‘threaten ito kill him-if- “he- decided to "back out" of the Docld: 32306739 Page 4 recs . py e