User:Molitord/Frank Coppola (mobster)

Frank Coppola (born Francesco Paolo Coppola), known as Frank Three Fingers (1899 in Partinico – 26 April 1982 in Aprilia), was an Italian-American mobster and crime boss from the Sicily region of Italy. He became a mafia man at a young age in Sicily, then spent a number of years in the American mafia before returning to Italy, where he was an influential figure in the heroin trade.

Background

Frank Coppola was born on 6 October 1899 in Partinico, Sicily to a peasant family. From a young age, Coppola became involved with the mafia in the area and began working with them. At the age of 20, he was a suspect in the murder of a man named Antonio Lupo, and was in hiding for three years before being arrested. Over the next few years, Coppola, became a suspect in many other mafia related crimes, including several murders. Coppola made the decision to leave Sicily, and Italy in general to avoid prosecution and made his way to the United States.

Time Away From Sicily

In 1926, Coppola left his wife and daughter behind in Sicily, allegedly because he was being “crucified” by the fascist party. He emigrated first to Marseille, then to Cuba, and finally illegally entered the US in Florida. Coppola was thereafter active in illegal businesses all across the United States. He had business ties with New York capo Frank Costello, was active in Detroit for quite a while, and it seems he was active in St. Louis and New Orleans as well. He had two pseudonyms, Jimmy Barbera, and Frank La Monde. He was labeled by the FBI as a smuggler of narcotics and a hitman, and was considered by them to be associated with Salvatore Vitale, Salvatore Mancuso, and John ‘Papa John’ Pri’ziola, a member of the Detroit Partnership. He also had known ties to Lucky Luciano, the famous mobster of the Genovese family.

While active in the US, Coppola was involved in various crimes. In 1934 he was questioned, and eventually released, in the murder of a Deputy Constable in St. Louis County, and had strong ties to St. Louis mobster Anthony “Tony” Giordano. In New Orleans, he was a business associate of narcotics racketeer Sam Carolla, and later bought an interest in the Louisiana Novelty Co., which distributed slot and pinball machines. At some point in this time, he lost two of his fingers, and claimed in an interview with the Italian Antimafia Comission in 1971:

“My shotgun exploded. To someone who goes around robbing banks, it can happen that he loses his fingers.”

In 1945, Immigration authorities discovered that Coppola had entered the US illegally. This led to him being eventually deported in 1947, and then again in 1949. He very much wanted to stay, contributing $2,000 to Missouri government campaigns in 1948, and told friends that he would give his right arm to return.  Following his expulsion, he headquartered in Tijuana, with a visa from the Mexican government for “agriculture and mining.” He was discovered there in 1950, along with several other influential gangsters. Among these was Tony Lopiparo, an associate of Tony Giordano, who was arrested near the Tijuana hotel while driving a Cadillac owned by Giordano. On April 5 of 1950, Charles Binaggio, who Coppola had extensive ties to, was murdered in Kansas City, and all of the mobsters present promptly fled Tijuana, perhaps fearing a hit against them next.

Drug Trafficking

Coppola was known to reside in cities across the United States, including Detroit, Mi, Kansas City, Mo, Los Angeles, Ca, and Rock Island, Il, and is suspected to have been involved in drug trafficking in all of these locations. He was a major drug trafficker with strong ties to the Detroit Partnership with Angelo Meli and the St. Louis crime family, particularly Anthony “Tony” Giordano. Coppola was mostly involved in the importation and distribution of heroin in the U.S. as well as in sicily. The heroin trade was practically nonexistent, it wasn’t until after the war that Coppola’s business of drug trafficking really picked up. He worked with many mafiosi in the U.S. to build his drug business.  In 1937, A large-scale distribution network across multiple major U.S. cities was uncovered and many prominent mafia figures fled to avoid prosecution, including Coppola. Later on Coppola also worked closely with Serafino Mancuso, another notorious drug trafficker from Italy. Together they trafficked large amounts of heroin around Italy and into the United States. The operation was believed to have been headquartered in Tijuana, Mexico for some time in the late 1940's, a location where Coppola spent a considerable amount of time. In 1947 there was a warrant issued for Coppola’s due to him accumulating a large criminal record due to his drug trafficking. Coppola decided to leave on his own at that time, eventually coming returning to the states illegally later. He was deported again in 1949, this time he first went to Tijuana to continue working in the drug trade before finally returning to Sicily. In Sicily he continued to traffic drugs for the Sicilian mafia and the American mafia. 

Return to Italy

Upon his return to Italy, Coppola does not appear to have missed a beat in terms of mafia activities, and wielded influence within a short time of his return. He settled in Partinico, and letters gathered that were sent to him during this time already show requests for favor, in one case with a man asking him for help in becoming deputy. He did not only wield political influence, but was actively involved in the heroin trade, with six kilos of heroin being seized by police from his property in 1952. For this, he was sentenced to two years imprisonment, and a year later, he was a suspect in the kidnapping, blackmail, and murder of Gaspare Lisi, but was acquitted in 1954. Also around 1952, he moved away from Partinico, to Pomezia, near Rome, where he would remain for the rest of his life. In 1965, he was again a police suspect, this time of criminal association, in the drug trafficking business involving the Sicilian and American mafia, but was acquitted. Along with his illegal activities, he also became active as a building contractor starting in 1962, through the company Reina Marchese and companions, attaining important contracts such as a shuttle from Rome to Palermo.