Colorado crime family

Italian-American organized crime syndicate

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Criminal organization

Colorado crime familyFounded| c. 1920s

|

Founder|

* Carlino Brothers (BH)
* Giuseppe Roma (LCN)

Founding location| Denver and Pueblo, Colorado, United States
Years active| c. 1920s–2000s
Territory| Primarily the Denver metropolitan area and Pueblo County, with additional territory throughout Colorado, as well as Las Vegas
Ethnicity| Italians as "made men" and other ethnicities as associates
Activities| Racketeering, bootlegging, loansharking, extortion, drug trafficking, and illegal gambling[1]
Allies|

* Bonanno crime family
* Chicago Outfit
* Kansas City crime family
* Los Angeles crime family
* New Orleans crime family
* St. Louis crime family

Rivals| Various gangs in Colorado

The Colorado crime family, also known as the Smaldone crime family, the Denver crime family, the Arvada Cop Mafia, the Denver Mafia or the Mountain Mafia, was an Italian-American Mafia crime family based in Pueblo and Denver, Colorado. The family originated as a bootlegging organization headed by the brothers Pete and Sam Carlino, which was later taken over by Giuseppe "Little Caesar" Roma. Roma's organization evolved into the Denver branch of La Cosa Nostra, which became known as the Smaldone crime family. Roma expanded the family's criminal operations into extortion, loan sharking, drugs, bookmaking, and other rackets. It is believed by federal authorities that the Denver Mafia went defunct in the 2000s after the death of Clarence Smaldone.

## History

[edit]

### Carlino brothers

[edit]

Pete and Sam Carlino were prominent figures in southern Colorado's bootlegging scene during the early 20th century. Operating from 1922 to 1931, the Carlino brothers established a significant presence in the bootlegging territories south of Denver. As their influence grew, they expanded their operations to Denver, with ambitions to control the entire liquor trade in Colorado.

In an attempt to prevent an escalation of conflicts among various bootlegging factions, Giuseppe "Joe" Roma, a Denver bootlegger, organized a "Bootleggers Convention" on January 25, 1931. This gathering aimed to find a resolution and prevent a full-scale war between the Carlino brothers and other bootleggers. However, the convention was interrupted by law enforcement, resulting in the arrest of 29 attendees, most of whom had prior criminal records.

While Pete Carlino and others were taken into custody, they were eventually released. Notably, Giuseppe Roma, a key figure in organizing the convention, was not present at the meeting. This event drew attention to District Attorney Carr, who faced public criticism for his perceived lack of action in prosecuting the bootleggers, a sentiment that was further exacerbated by Mayor Stapleton's response to the situation.

On March 17, 1931, Pete Carlino's opulent home at 3357 Federal Boulevard exploded. Initially, police suspected it was members of rival gangs who had set the blast. Federal undercover agent Lawrence Baldesareli informed police that it had been Pete Carlino himself who had planned the arson, in order to collect the insurance money for the blast. His empire was flagging and he was quickly running out of money. Joe Petralia, Chris Murkuri, and Carlino's cousin Dan Colletti were convicted for setting the blast.

On May 8, 1931, Sam Carlino was killed in his home by Bruno Mauro. Carlino's cousin James Colletti was wounded in the attack but survived. Sam Carlino's wife and Colletti initially informed police that Mauro was the shooter. When the trial approached, Colletti had fled the area and Mrs. Carlino refused to testify in court against Mauro for fear of her family's lives.

After his brother's assassination, Pete Carlino went into hiding. According to police testimony on an unrelated matter, Lucille Crupi claimed that she met Carlino while in Milwaukee in early June 1931. She claimed that he was dropping off a shipment of booze and was picking up another load to return to Colorado. On June 19, 1931, Carlino was captured hiding in his cousin's farmhouse outside Pueblo. On June 25, 1931. Joe Roma posted Pete Carlino's $5,000 bond, using his house as collateral. Contrary to popular belief, Roma and Carlino were not enemies; rather, they had a working relationship that spanned over eight years.

On September 10, 1931, Pete Carlino was killed, shot twice in the back and once in the head at close range. He was on his way to visit Joe Petralia at the prison in Cañon City. Carlino's body was placed under the Siloam Road bridge just outside Pueblo. After two days, the body had not been discovered, so the killers returned and dragged it onto the road. An anonymous phone call made to Carlino's wife informed her where the body could be found. This ended the Carlinos's reign of control of the Colorado bootlegging era.

### Joseph Roma

[edit]

Giuseppe Roma became Joseph Roma. In the prohibition era from 1920 to 1933, crime families formed all over the country to profit from bootlegging. Operating from his grocery store as a front business, Roma became the de facto boss of criminal activity in Denver.

### Smaldone Brothers

[edit]

The three brothers, Eugene, Clyde, and Clarence owned and operated Gaetano's Italian restaurant, a popular spot in North Denver, for years. The rise of the family began in 1933 after crime boss bootlegger, Joe Roma, was found riddled with seven bullets in the front parlor of his North Denver home. Six of the shots were to Roma's head. His wife, Nettie, found him slumped in his favorite overstuffed chair.[2] The Smaldone's were questioned but not charged.

#### Clyde Smaldone

[edit]

Clyde was born in 1906; his lengthy criminal record began with a burglary charge in 1920. He served 18 months in Leavenworth for bootlegging in 1933. Three years later he served time for the attempted bombing murder of a local man named Leon Barnes. Paroled in 1949, he confessed to paying protection money for his Central City gambling enterprises.

In 1953, Clyde and Eugene made headlines after a publicized raid of one of their gambling dens in Brighton, Colorado. Later that year both brothers were found guilty of jury tampering, fined $24,000 each, and sentenced to 60 years in prison. After spending 13 months in jail, the brothers received a new trial. Clyde pleaded guilty to a lesser tampering charge and was sentenced to 12 years and fined $10,000. He was paroled in 1962. In 1967, Clyde and several others, including Eugene's son, were arrested on gambling charges and for running a $100,000-a-week bookmaking operation.

Clyde died at The Cedars Nursing Home at the age of 91, in January 1998. His son told reporters that despite his father's criminal past, he had a soft side and donated to local orphanages, churches, and schools.

#### Eugene Smaldone

[edit]

Eugene was recognized as Northern Colorado's leading crime figure and described as the patriarch of the Denver Crime Family. Although suspected of taking part in several killings, Eugene was never indicted for murder. Eugene's arrest record showed entries for auto theft, bootlegging, and income tax evasion. A local law official described Eugene as, "...the schoolteacher type. He wore glasses. Very polite. Very civil." His final prison sentence was in 1983. The charges were for operating a loan shark business out of Gaetano's. Eugene along with Clarence, and a nephew, Paul Clyde "Fat Paulie" Villano, pleaded guilty to the charges which also included illegal gun possession. Eugene Smaldone died in March 1992 of a heart attack at the age of 81. After Eugene's funeral, a relative wrote to the Denver newspapers complaining of the pain the media had caused the family and pleaded to be left alone.

Beginning in 1973 or earlier, the Colorado family partnered with the St. Louis crime family in skimming profits from the Riviera hotel and casino in Las Vegas. Anthony Giordano, the boss of the St. Louis family, held ultimate control over the Colorado family.[3]

#### Clarence "Chauncey" Smaldone

[edit]

Clarence Smaldone was considered the underboss of a two-member mob family. On August 10, 1971, he was acquitted of federal loansharking charges.[4] Clarence served eight years in a Fort Worth prison hospital for the 1983 loan sharking conviction. He was released in 1991.

By 1990, the Colorado family consisted of a single "made" member, according to the FBI.[5]

Clarence Smaldone died of natural causes on October 16, 2006, at the age of 82.[6]

### Current status

[edit]

Following the death of Clarence Smaldone, the last surviving Smaldone brother, in 2006, Dick Kreck of The Denver Post wrote "After 60 years and the death of Chauncey Smaldone, the Smaldone family is no longer organized crime".[6]

## Historical leadership

[edit]

### Boss

[edit]

* 1928–1931 – Pete Carlino
* 1923–1933 – Joe "Little Caesar" Roma
* 1933–1950 – Charles Blanda
* 1950–1969 – Vincenzo Colletti
* 1969–1975 – Joseph "Scotty" Spinuzzi
* 1975–1992 – Eugene "Checkers" Smaldone
* 1992–2006 – Clarence "Chauncey" Smaldone

## See also

[edit]

* Crime in Colorado
* List of Italian Mafia crime families

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Smaldone, Denver's Mob Family".
2. ^ Smaldone, The Untold Story of an American Crime Family, by Dick Kreck
3. ^ FBI Says Denver, St. Louis Mobs Share In Illegal Casino Deal Ronald J. Lawrence, St. Louis Post-Dispatch (December 14, 1981) Archived May 14, 2024, at the Wayback Machine
4. ^ Jury Finds Smalldone Is Innocent of Loansharking Casper Star-Tribune (August 12, 1971) Archived May 13, 2024, at the Wayback Machine
5. ^ A Battered and Ailing Mafia Is Losing Its Grip on America Selwyn Raab, The New York Times (October 22, 1990) Archived April 22, 2024, at the Wayback Machine
6. ^ a b Denver's Brother Hoods Dick Kreck, The Denver Post (November 3, 2006) Archived January 17, 2023, at the Wayback Machine

## External links

[edit]

* Denver Crime Family on AmericanMafia.com
* Article in Rocky Mountain News
* Denver's Brother Hoods
* Smaldone, Denver's Mob Family, by Matt Masich, Sept./Oct. 2012.
* Denver Home Conceals Booby-trapped Secret Mobster Hideaway Denver 7 The Denver Channel

* v
* t
* e

Italian-American Mafia

* List of Mafia crime families
* Mafia bibliography

Families|

| Five Families of
New York City|

| Bonanno|

* Calabrian group
* Motion Lounge crew
* New Springville Boys
* Sicilian group

|

Colombo|

Colombo

Gambino|

* Baltimore Crew
* Ozone Park Boys

Genovese|

* 116th Street Crew
* Broadway Mob
* Greenwich Village Crew
* New Jersey faction
* Springfield faction

Lucchese|

* Brooklyn faction
* New Jersey faction
* Tanglewood Boys

East Coast|

* Buffalo
* DeCavalcante (Northern New Jersey)
* Patriarca (New England) (Angiulo's Boston crew)
* Philadelphia (10th & Oregon Crew)

Midwestern/Western|

* Chicago
* Detroit
* Kansas City
* Los Angeles

Mostly defunct|

* Bufalino (Northeastern Pennsylvania)
* Cleveland
* Colorado
* Dallas
* Genna (Chicago)
* Lanzetta (Philadelphia)
* Morello (Italian Harlem)
* D'Aquila (Little Italy, Manhattan)
* New Orleans
* Milwaukee
* Pittsburgh
* Rochester
* Rockford
* San Francisco
* San Jose
* St. Louis
* Trafficante (Tampa)

Structure|

| Chain of command|

* The Commission
* Boss
* Underboss
* Consigliere
* Caporegime
* Soldato
* Associate

|

Members (made men)|

* List of Italian-American mobsters
* List of Italian-American mobsters by organization

Terms|

* Initiation ritual
* Made man
* Bagman
* Black Hand
* Black Hand in Chicago
* Vendetta
* Capo dei capi (boss of bosses)
* Mustache Pete
* Omertà
* One-way ride
* Sixth Family
* Zips

Events|

| Meetings|

* Atlantic City Conference (1929)
* Havana Conference (1946)
* Apalachin meeting (1957)
* Palermo Mafia summit (1957)

|

Hearings|

* Kefauver Committee (1950–1951)
* Valachi hearings (1963)

Wars|

* Mafia–Camorra War (1914–1917)
* Castellammarese War (1929–1931)

Trials|

* Pizza Connection Trial (1985–1987)
* Mafia Commission Trial (1985–1986)

Closely related
and affiliated
organizations|

| Active|

* Luppino crime family
* Musitano crime family
* Papalia crime family
* Jewish Mafia
* Philadelphia Greek Mob
* Rizzuto crime family
* Sicilian Mafia
* Inzerillo Mafia clan
* Stidda
* Velentzas Organization

|

Defunct|

* Broadway Mob
* Bugs and Meyer Mob
* Bumpy Johnson gang
* New York Camorra
* Colacurcio Organization
* The Corporation
* Cotroni crime family
* The Council
* Cuntrera-Caruana Mafia clan
* Dutch Schultz Mob
* East Harlem Purple Gang
* Five Points Gang
* Forty-Two Gang
* Italian-American National Union
* Maceo Organization
* Marat Balagula gang
* Murder, Inc.
* National Crime Syndicate
* New Springville Boys
* Rudaj Organization
* South Brooklyn Boys
* Tanglewood Boys
* Unione Corse
* Westies
* Winter Hill Gang

Other topics|

| Government
operations|

* Collaborations between the United States government and Italian Mafia
* Operation Family Secrets
* Operation Old Bridge
* Operation Solare
* Operation Underworld
* Operation Wasteland

|

Crimes|

* French Connection
* Hired Truck Program
* Lufthansa heist
* Saint Valentine's Day Massacre
* Rochester bombings

Related articles|

* Barrel murder
* Buster from Chicago
* Cement shoes
* Shotgun Man

Category

* v
* t
* e

Organized crime groups in the United States

African-American|

* 31 Gang
* 39ers gang
* Bailey Boys
* Black Disciples
* Black Guerrilla Family
* Black Mafia
* Junior Black Mafia
* Black Mafia Family
* Black P. Stone Nation
* Bloods
* Black Spades
* Bloods
* Black P. Stones
* Bounty Hunter Watts Bloods
* Cedar Block Piru
* Crenshaw Mafia Gangster Bloods
* Elm Street Piru
* Fruit Town Piru
* Mob Piru
* Nine Trey Gangsters
* Pirus
* Sex Money Murder
* Tree Top Piru
* United Blood Nation
* Byrd Gang
* CBL/BFL
* Chambers Brothers
* The Council
* Crips
* Grape Street Watts Crips
* Kelly Park Compton Crips
* Nutty Blocc Compton Crips
* Rollin' 30s Harlem Crips
* Rollin' 60s Neighborhood Crips
* Rollin' 90s Neighborhood Crips
* South Side Compton Crips
* Venice Shoreline Crips
* D-Block Boys
* D.C. Blacks
* The Family
* Four Corner Hustlers
* Fruit Belt Gang
* Gangster Disciples
* OutLaw Gangster Disciples
* Hidden Valley Kings
* KUMI 415
* Lenox Street Boys
* LRGP
* Lucerne Street Doggz
* Metz Gang
* Miami Boys
* Mickey Cobras
* Orchard Park Trailblazers
* Savage Nomads
* Schuele Boys
* Somali Outlaws
* Supreme Team
* Vice Lord Nation
* Westmob
* Young Boys Inc.

East and
Southeast Asian|

* Asian Boyz (Southeast Asian)
* Bahala Na Gang (Filipino)
* Born To Kill (Vietnamese)
* Fullerton Boys (Korean)
* Menace of Destruction (Hmong)
* Satanas (Filipino)
* Tiny Rascal Gang (primarily Cambodian)
* Tokyo Boyz (Japanese)
* Yakuza (Japanese)

Chinese and
Chinese-American|

* Bamboo Union
* Big Circle Gang
* Black Dragons
* Chung Ching Yee
* Flying Dragons
* Four Seas Gang
* Fujianese organized crime
* Snakeheads
* Ghost Shadows
* Jackson Street Boys
* Ping On
* Tongs
* Bing Kong
* Four Brothers
* Hip Sing
* Hop Sing
* On Leong
* Suey Sing
* Ying On
* Triads
* 14K
* Sun Yee On
* Wo Hop To
* Wah Ching
* White Tigers

Hispanic and
Latin American|

* 10th Street Gang (primarily Hispanic, also African-Americans)
* 7th Street Gang
* Almighty Saints (primarily Hispanic, also Whites)
* Barrio Azteca (Mexican)
* The Corporation (Cuban)
* Dominicans Don't Play
* Fresno Bulldogs (Mexican)
* Ghetto Brothers
* Hermanos de Pistoleros Latinos (primarily Mexican)
* Jheri Curls (Dominican)
* La Raza Nation (Mexican)
* Latin Counts (Mexican)
* Latin Eagles
* Latin Kings (Mexican / Puerto Rican)
* Maniac Latin Disciples
* Marielitos (Cuban)
* Mexican Mafia
* Mexikanemi
* MS-13 (Central American)
* Ñetas (Puerto Rican)
* Norteños (Mexican)
* Nuestra Familia (Mexican)
* Puro Tango Blast (Mexican)
* Savage Skulls
* Los Solidos
* Spanish Cobras
* Spanish Gangster Disciples
* Sureños (Mexican)
* 18th Street gang
* 38th Street gang
* Avenues
* Azusa 13
* Barriox13
* Culver City Boys
* El Monte Flores
* Florencia 13
* Logan Heights Gang
* OVS
* Playboys
* Puente 13
* Santa Monica 13
* Toonerville Rifa 13
* Varrio Nuevo Estrada
* Venice 13
* Vineland Boys
* Westside Locos
* White Fence
* Temple Street
* Texas Syndicate (primarily Mexican)
* Tren de Aragua (Venezuelan)
* Trinitarios (Dominican)
* Vatos Locos
* Young Lords

White American|

* Chicago Gaylords
* Dead Man Incorporated
* Dixie Mafia
* State Line Mob
* Popes
* Simon City Royals (primarily White, also Hispanics)

European-American|

* Albanian mafia
* Albanian Boys
* Rudaj Organization
* Greek mafia
* Philadelphia Greek Mob
* Velentzas crime family
* Polish Mob
* Russian mafia
* Serbian mafia

Irish-American|

* Irish mob
* Charlestown Mob
* Egan's Rats
* Gustin Gang
* Hogan Gang
* K&A Gang
* Mullen Gang
* North Side Gang
* Westies
* White Hand Gang
* Winter Hill Gang

Italian and
Italian-American|

* American Mafia
* Bufalino crime family
* Buffalo crime family
* Chicago Outfit
* Cleveland crime family
* Colorado crime family
* D'Aquila crime family
* Dallas crime family
* DeCavalcante crime family
* Detroit Partnership
* Five Families (New York City)
* Genna crime family
* Kansas City crime family
* Los Angeles crime family
* Lucchese crime family
* Milwaukee crime family
* Morello crime family
* New Orleans crime family
* Patriarca crime family
* Philadelphia crime family
* Pittsburgh crime family
* Rochester crime family
* San Francisco crime family
* San Jose crime family
* Seattle crime family
* St. Louis crime family
* Trafficante crime family
* 10th & Oregon Crew
* Broadway Mob
* Camorra
* New York City
* East Harlem Purple Gang
* Jousters
* Murder, Inc.
* 'Ndrangheta
* New Springville Boys
* Sicilian Mafia
* South Brooklyn Boys
* Tanglewood Boys

Jewish-American|

* Jewish Mob
* Bugs and Meyer Mob
* Eastman Gang
* Lenox Avenue Gang
* Murder, Inc.
* Odesa mafia
* The Purple Gang
* Yiddish Black Hand
* Zwi Migdal
* Israeli mafia
* Abergil crime family
* New York divorce coercion gang

Polynesian and
Native American|

* The Company
* Native Mob
* Red Skin Kingz
* Sons of Samoa
* Tongan Crip Gang

West and South Asian|

* Armenian Power
* Chaldean mafia
* Independent Soldiers
* Israeli mafia
* Punjabi mafia
* Turkish mafia
* VVT (Tamil)

West African|

* Cape Verdean organized crime
* Nigerian mafia

Outlaw motorcycle gangs|

* Bandidos
* Breed
* Brother Speed
* Devils Diciples
* Diablos
* Dirty Dozen
* El Forastero
* Free Souls
* Galloping Goose
* Grim Reapers
* Gypsy Jokers
* Hells Angels
* Red Devils
* Highwaymen
* Iron Horsemen
* Mongols
* Outlaws
* Black Pistons
* Pagans
* Sons of Satan
* Sons of Silence
* Vagos
* Warlocks (Florida)
* Warlocks (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
* Wheels of Soul

White supremacist|

* 211 Crew
* Aryan Brotherhood
* Aryan Brotherhood of Texas
* Aryan Circle
* Aryan Nations
* Aryan Republican Army
* Atomwaffen Division
* Combat 18
* The Covenant, the Sword, and the Arm of the Lord
* European Kindred
* Hammerskins
* Keystone United
* Lynwood Vikings
* Manson Family
* Nazi Lowriders
* The Order
* Public Enemy No. 1
* Soldiers of Aryan Culture
* Spook Hunters
* Universal Aryan Brotherhood
* Volksfront

See also
Gangs in the United States
List of gangs
Organized crime groups in the Americas
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