Agency: FBI
Originator: FBI
From: SAC, SF
To: DIRECTOR, FBI
Document date: 03/22/1968
Document type: PAPER, TEXTUAL DOCUMENT

## Page 1

Released under the John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act of 1992 (44 USC 2107 Hote).

DATE: 11-14-2017

JFK Assassination System

Date:

5/20/201

Identification Form

Agency Information

AGENCY :

RECORD NUMBER :

RECORD SERIES :

AGENCY FILE NUMBER :

FBI

124-10290-10379

HQ

92-6054-2297

Document Information

ORIGINATOR:

FROM:

TO :

TITLE:

FBI

SAC, SF

DIRECTOR, FBI

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

DocId: 32306739

Page 1

17

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## Page 2

Released under the John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Aot of 1992 (44 USC 2107 Hotel.

DATE: 11-14-2017

3/22/08

AIRIEL

AIR MAIL • RECISTERED

TO:

DIRECTOR, FBI (92-3434) 692-8054)

FROM:

SAC, SAN FRANCISCO 182-1245 DESaCtOr, JAMES H. SALE

JOSEPH CERRITO, aka.

00: San Francisco

- LA COSA NOSTRA

AR

- CONSPIRACY

00:

New York

to

San Francisco airtel, 3/11/69, and San. Francisco telephone calls

Assistant DireotOr JANES R. CALE, 3/20 & 21/68.

Per our convarsation, folloving are the rasults of contact with

Sau Francisco inforuants and sources reflecting the repercussions

tron the article entitied

"The Mob"

appearing in the March 15th

issue of "life

magazine.

Appropriate dissemination of this data vill be made to pertinent

offices by separate communication.

3

Bureau

(AN- RM)

(3

- 52-3434)

{3 - 92-6059)

San

Francisco

(1

32-124)

(1

92-5923

(1

32-635)

CAD: j8b

(9)

ST. 114

RET 92-6054-2247

NOT RECORDED

202 APR 3

1968

ORIGINAL FILED IN

DocId: 32306739 Page 2

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## Page 3

leased wider the John F, Kennedy Assassination Records ColTection Aot of 1992 (41 USC 2107 Note).

DATE: 41-14-2017

SF-92-124

CNH: jab

On 3/14/68 SF-2583-C advised that a copy of the "Life" magazine

containing 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 SAL MARINO discussed the

article with JAKE

MACEK, Production Manager, and EARLM&MURTY, the new office manager.

According to informant, SAL MARIND expressed the opinion that the

article was very unfair in its attack on CERRITO -and made the

had never been arrested and had never shot anyone.

Informant stated

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 articles

alluding to a member of the LCN connected with a cheese company in

San Jose and that McMURly made the comment

referring to the priola Cheese Cordans Inorant sweed proteiy

there was no reaction shown by

others present when MCMURTY made

this comment.

Investigation OF JAMES JOSEPH LANZA has revealed that he and his

brother,

ANTHONY NALANZA, retired from business on 2/29/68 and

left their former office at 559 Washington Street, San Francisco it

ANTHONY N. LANZA, who is a licensed insurance broker, turned over

his insurance accounts to Strong and Co:, Inc:

58 Sutter Street!

San Francisco, for handling.

According

to a PCI, ANTHONy told him

would have a small office at the new location and he planned col

on going to the office about one or two days a week, unless he had

to handle a special claim. All of the other matters would be

handled by employees of Strong and Co. No mention was made that

JAMES LANZA would have anything to do with the new set-up.

0п 3/15/68 Mr. FRANK KILMARTIN, Attorney, 465 California Street,

Merchants Exchange Building, Room 415; telephone number DO. 2-0684,

yadvised that he had received a call from his client, plIGHt

STRONG,

Inc. ; who became greatly

In the March 15th issueret "Life"

magazine 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

are in and out.

When ANTHONY is out, JAMES is in and they both

use the phone

freely. STRONG stated that JAMES makes himself at

home, putting his feet on the desk, smoking his cigar and has the

*

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## Page 4

#eLeased under the oohn F: Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Aot of 1992 (14 USC 2107 Hote).

DATE: 11-14-2017

SF-92-124

CNH : jab

and requested that the district attorrey 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 law 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

conrected 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 not 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 advised that since

the article names him prominently as the one who

allegedly

"bungled"

the matter with HAROLD

Will be looiing for a "patSy, SR., JOE CERRITO and his "Ehunkie"

and the sole blame "for bringing the

bad publicity to the San Jose family will be placed on 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" äs

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

that he never threatened

to kill HAROLD SMITH, SR. Or his brother,

RAYMOND SMITH, as a result of his failure to collect the $100,000.00

or any p

est of it.

SR. did threäten

DocId: 32306739

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