The Black Hand was allegedly extinguished from the Scranton area in the 1920s. In fact, the 1934 obituary for one county detective, Michael Rafter, painted him as the man to all but stamp out the organization. But that didn’t mean that crime stopped. Crime is said to be like air in a balloon. If you squeeze the balloon in one area, the air just moves somewhere else.
During prohibition, the “air” moved to alcohol. New gangs formed to continue the supply of hooch to the thirsty region. The gangs were expanded to include more than just Italians. Virtually all nationalities were represented in the next generation of criminals. I had previously written about bootleggers in Arkansas and the trail of bodies left by one man, Charlie Fischer. Still, Italian and Jewish men seemed to dominate the leadership.
It was during the 1920s when Al Capone and his Chicago Outfit garnered much of the attention – and the term “gangland” was born. Capone and his men were notorious for their ruthless control of the alcohol supply. Violence in the Windy City skyrocketed, and it was reported that 729 people were murdered “gangland style” during the years of prohibition.
At the end of prohibition, the criminal gangs were still operating, but their cash cow of booze had all but dried up. They needed to look for new revenue streams. Sophisticated, high-profile robberies were the next iteration for the gangs. Jobs would include raiding poker rooms, where cash was plenty, and the players were already breaking the law. Other times, they would raid speakeasies and rob everyone of their cash and jewelry. And others would include robbing tractor-trailer loads of goods that would later be fenced for profit.
The men at the top orchestrated the jobs, and the underlings would execute on their behalf. The ill-gotten gains were passed back to the organization, and a fee was paid to the men that carried out the job. The gangs were large, multi-state organizations. In Scranton, they would work with teams of people throughout Northeast PA and would include regional leaders in the area that likely reported to leaders in New York City.
Before long, the men executing the jobs either knew too much or got too greedy, leading to some ugly outcomes.
March 26, 1934
On March 25, 1934, two decomposed bodies were found by Joseph Hosker, a fire boss for The Pittston Coal Company. The bodies were located at the base of the 250′ deep abandoned Carbon Hill mine shaft near Hoover Streets in Old Forge. The remains were frozen and estimated to be there for about three months. Initial reports said their “heads were badly crushed.” Based on their fashionable attire, it was theorized that the men were small-time racketeers and had been “taken for a ride” – a term used to refer to the modus operandi of the gangs.
Investigators had to use dynamite to free the men from their icy tombs. One man was covered with an astonishing four feet of ice. At the coroner’s office, it was determined that one of them had been attacked by rats – his face completely eaten away to one ear. There was no identification found on either man, but the quality of the suits was noted, along with a pack of cigarettes. Fingerprinting would have to wait until the bodies thawed sufficiently to see if the men were known to the police.
As the bodies were thawing, it was reported that an ankle fell off of one of the men. Don’t ask me how this works. It was presumed that it was severely damaged during the fall down the shaft.
March 26, 1934
Investigators believed that there was a local tie to the killings based on the location of the bodies. The shaft had been abandoned for over thirty years and was tucked away from the main street – about 1500 feet off Moosic Rd along a cinder path. It was reported that a man, Frank Pagnotti, committed suicide in the area a year earlier – leaving many to avoid the area as it’s believed to be haunted.
Outside of the mine, a reporter found a pair of gold-framed eyeglasses and handed them over to the police.
March 26, 1934
One of the men had a gold ring on his finger, and that, too, was taken by investigators. And a crowbar that was believed to be part of the murder was found about thirty feet down the shaft.
Detectives immediately thought the murders could be connected to the sting that State Police executed in January in Old Forge. In the raid on two locations, The Brown Derby and The Babylon, thirty-five men and women were arrested on various charges, including counterfeit, liquor laws, larceny, and more.
A few other clues were uncovered as the bodies thawed. A laundry tag on one of the shirts gave an indication of one of their hometowns. And a cigarette lighter was found. Then the coroner determined that one body was littered with at least five bullet wounds from a .38 caliber revolver- the other, only one.
March 28, 1934
With the numerous clues taken from the bodies, it didn’t take long to identify the two men – Gene George Mitchell, 28, and Joseph Mariano, aka Joseph Moran, aka Joseph Morano, 35. Both men, Scranton residents, were identified through fingerprints – meaning they already had a police record. Morano was a fugitive after not showing up for a hearing on robbery charges filed against him a year ago.
March 29, 1934
Mitchell, originally from Wilkes-Barre, was also a fugitive for short time but was captured and spent three months in jail for burglarizing a store on Franklin Avenue.
The two men were known to travel between Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, and New York City. It was said that after they stole from local businesses, they would head to NYC and hide out for a while. Several other crimes were attributed to the two men, but they were never tried for their involvement.
After identifying the bodies, police now believe that the key to solving the murder is the pair of glasses that were found outside the mine shaft. Since neither man was known to wear glasses, it was initially believed they belonged to the killer.
That theory quickly changed. The glasses were traced back to Scranton, and the optometrist identified the owner, Lester Levenson of Prescott Avenue in East Scranton. When police went to detain Levenson, he was nowhere to be found, and his last reported sighting was from two months ago. He was known to be an acquaintance of Mitchell. Police are now concerned for Levenson’s safety.
March 29, 1934
Officials plan to revisit the mine for a thorough search. Given the amount of ice that had accumulated at the bottom of the shaft, it’s possible they may have missed the third body.
Meanwhile, a young boy found a .38 caliber revolver near the mind shaft – about 100 yards away near the cemetery. The weapon was turned over to the police, and the serial number was sent back to the manufacturer to see if they could identify the owner.
A bit of good news came out of the death of Morano. His father had put up his home on Scranton Street as collateral for his son’s release on bail. Since Joseph skipped out on his trial date, his father’s home was set to be forfeited in February 1934. The father petitioned to have an extension and implored local detectives to find his son so he wouldn’t be forced to give up his home. The extension was granted until October 14, 1934. With the discovery, the father loses his son but won’t have to forfeit his home.
March 30, 1934
Another attempt to locate Levenson’s body fails. The ice is too thick, and the conditions too difficult. Officials ask for $150 in funding to totally remove all of the debris that sits at the base of the mine shaft. The County is hesitant because of the liability associated with the dangerous job.
Captain William A Clark of the Pennsylvania State Police is tasked with tracking the killers. He claims they are working through a half-dozen leads and asks for patience as they work every possible aspect of the case.
March 31, 1934
While negotiations over clearing the mine shaft continue, authorities turn to New York in the search for Levenson. The missing man had been known to be somewhat of a wanderer – living in different parts of Scranton as well as New York. A tip came in that said he was alive and well and living in NYC. Based on that, searching the mine was postponed until they could rule out the NYC lead.
Finally, on April 5, the search resumed, and eleven days after recovering the bodies of his associates, Lester Levenson, 25, is found in the mine shaft twenty feet above where his associates were found. He had been shot in the head from behind with a .38 caliber weapon. Another five shots were fired into his body from the front. Several broken bones were reported, and his face and head were eaten away by rats. Like Mitchell and Morano, Levenson didn’t have any cash on him, so police believed all of the men were robbed before being thrown down the shaft – but they don’t believe that robbery was the motive.
One of Levenson’s brothers, Leo, identified the body. The clues were his ring with his initials and his shirt that was initialed “L-Lev.”
One oddly reported fact was that Levenson had recently had a manicure – his nails painted a deep red color that “glistened brightly” once his gloves were removed. His hairline also indicated that he had just received a haircut as well. Investigators will be looking into this lead for clues as to the day the men were killed.
April 6, 1934
Recovery workers delayed removing Levenson’s body from the mine until after the 3:30pm shift of mine workers arrived. It’s said that workers will not enter the mines if they see a body being taken out, so out of respect for the workers, the recovery was delayed until 4:30pm.
June 4, 2017
Now, detectives believe all three men were killed gangland-style by a New York or Brooklyn gang that has connections to the area. It’s the first time there was a triple-slaying since Patsy Stallone gunned down three men in his Old Forge business in 1922 over an election dispute.
They are also convinced that the three men were mobsters. Several other robberies have since been attributed to the trio. It was assumed that the bosses of the underworld were orchestrating the robberies, and the men would execute on their behalf. They believe that the men were taken out by professional killers who were brought to the area by the local arm of the mob. Likely from a dispute over the proceeds of their haul.
Each man was shot at least once in the back of the head, then additional shots into the front of their bodies – indicating there were at least two killers.
It was reported that while Levenson didn’t have a criminal record, he was known to be an associate of the two other men. He was also known to hang around the tenderloin district and was friendly with two women there.
Two other leads are now being pursued by investigators. They were made aware of another missing man and are working to determine if he is tied to this crime. At the same time, it was learned that Morano’s automobile is missing.
Thomas Burke and Murray Borden
Finally, on April 16, after three weeks since the first bodies were recovered, police in New York City get a break in the case. Two plainclothes detectives were watching over a vehicle that was reported to be that of Joseph Morano. Two men were seen dragging an unwilling man into the car at 2am in Greenwich Village.
April 16, 1934
The two men are arrested at gunpoint and taken in for questioning. Murray Borden, 32, and Thomas Burke, 25, both from New York City, have long criminal records. When police inquired about the registration of the vehicle, it came back as being owned by Joseph Mano of Syracuse. After talking to Syracuse PD, it’s believed that Mano is another alias for Joseph Morano.
May 9, 1934
The men both state that a man named Mano loaned them the car about ten days ago so they could go on a double date. When police search the car, they come up empty with any evidence that might indicate it was used in the murders. They did, however, find that the back seat of the Studebaker was modified to have a compartment below the seat – likely a place to hide guns.
May 9, 1934
The men are detained for a violation of the Dyer Act for being in possession of a stolen automobile but attempts to have them extradited back to Scranton to face questioning are thwarted because of lack of evidence. Investigators in Old Forge are forced to gather more support for their case.
In January 1935, in an attempt to build their case, several acquaintances of the murdered men are questioned. Morano’s wife, Nettie, says that her husband did, in fact, own the car and registered it under a false name, Jospeh Mano, because he was wanted by authorities. The coroner testified to the grand jury that Morano could not have loaned the car to Burke and Boden ten days prior to their capture because Morano was ruled dead over a month prior.
Still, there’s not even evidence to bring murder charges against the two men.
Borden is later convicted on a robbery charge, and Burke was questioned almost 10 years later in yet another murder case.
Aurelio Gonzales
On April 20, 1934, just days after nabbing Burke and Border, police arrested Aurelio Gonzales, 31, of Plymouth. Gonzales confesses to committing several robberies with Mitchell and Morano. He emphatically denies any involvement in the killings but welcomes his time in the Lackawanna County jail – presumed to be a safe haven from the mob.
In May 1934, Gonzalez pleads guilty to robbery and was sentenced to 10 to 20 years in prison.
While being investigated, Gonzales implicates Rocco Carey in the robberies but falls short of testifying against him in court.
Rocco Carey
Carey, 33, a labor leader from Old Forge, is now wanted by police for questioning in connection with the robberies and the murders.
July 12, 1935
After four months on the run, in August 1934, New York police detained Robert C Carey, thought to be Rocco Carey. Detectives from Old Forge make their way to New York to question the man. It’s determined that it is, in fact, Rocco Carey from Old Forge. Carey initially fights extradition but eventually agrees to go back to Lackawanna County to face charges of burglary. He denies any knowledge and involvement in the triple murder.
Carey is later sentenced to jail for a prior DUI conviction. Prosecutors use this tactic to keep him in jail while he awaits trial for the robbery and simultaneously try to build a case against him for the murders. He’s ultimately sentenced to 6-12 years in jail, but again, no charges are brought up for the murders.
Joseph Hornstein
In July 1934, over in New York City, Joseph Hornstein, formerly of Scranton, is detained by police, wanted in connection to several robberies in Scranton, including one where he tied up nine patrons with wire while an accomplice stole their money at a Nick Ross’ Spruce Street speakeasy. He’s also listed as a potential link to the murders. Hornstein is ultimately brought to Scranton and held for trial.
July 18, 1934
After several delays and continuances, Hornstein is found guilty in connection to the speakeasy robbery, but there are no charges filed in the murder. Hornstein is transferred to Eastern State Penitentiary in June 1935 to serve 7-1/2 to 15 years for the robbery.
Summary
Investigators are convinced the triple murder was a gangland killing as leads dry up. To this day, justice has yet to be served to those responsible for their deaths. Other “gangland-style” murders occurred during this time and were also linked to the slayings, but there was no movement to identify the killers or the leaders of the criminal gangs.
Morano left behind a wife and five children, along with his parents and several brothers and sisters. He was given full military honors for his service in the first World War.
Levenson was single and left behind his parents and two brothers. He’s laid to rest in the Dalton Jewish Cemetary.
And finally, Mitchell’s body, to my knowledge, went unclaimed and was allegedly buried in the Old Forge Cemetery.
Gangland violence continued for some time before it became known as La Cosa Nostra, aka “The Mafia.”
Stay tuned for more…
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