Feb. 16, 1996

 

Douglas Gow

 

RE: Ray Pocino

 

Dear Doug,

 

Recently Ray Pocino entered into a lease arrangement with Matrix Development Corp. of Cranbury New Jersey. 3600 sq. ft. of office space at 104 Interchange Plaza in Cranbury has been set aside. The space will be shared with the New Jersey Employers Cooperation and Education Trust, N.J. Laborer's Health and Safety Trust and the N.J. Laborers Political Action Committee.

 

Matrix Development Corp. is quite large and owns vast parcels of property in the Philadelphia area. This may be purely coincidence but Matrix has LCN connections with Philly and New York City.

 

Ron Jowarski, the ex-Philadelphia Eagle quarter back is an associate and friend of Brian (LNU) a Matrix rep and Ron's brother Billy has been a close associate of Joe Cardinale and is an old Scarfo friend.

 

I am quite sure that Phil Leonetti would have more knowledge.

 

Let me know if you want me to follow up on this.

 

#0100

 

New York - New Jersey Training Funds and the Upstate New York District Council

 

History:

 

The concept of state wide training funds arose around early 1985. Victor Sansanese and Joe Todaro Jr. witnessed the regional training programs conducted in other areas including the New England Training fund under James Merloni, and the southern California training fund directed by Robert Harris. Realizing that numerous jobs could be created at the training center and the influx of additional funds they approached me and asked how to go about establishing a State wide program with Victor Sansanese as its Director.

 

1. At that time the only training programs that existed in New York State were in Buffalo, Albany, Local 17 in Poughkeepsie, and at Local 66 in Long Island.

 

2. Approval would be necessary from the International Union and they would have to direct local unions to participate.

 

3. The five New York city families would have to be pacified and approve it. ( I was quite sure this was going to be the stumbling block.)

 

4. A trust agreement would have to be drafted and the trustees for the many different trusts would have to sign participation agreements. (Dick Lipsitz did in fact draft a state training fund trust agreement.)

 

5. Transportation and boarding would have to be made available for the union members when they attended programs at the training site.

 

After pointing all this out as well as many additional problems that would have to be over come including locals not wanting to come on board and its ramifications. I was told to start the wheels turning and contact Arthur Coia Senior and let him know that we (Vic Sansanese and Joe Todaro Jr.,) told you to talk to him.

 

I started talking to Jim Merloni and Coia Sr., about how to go about it. While I was doing this Joe Todaro Jr., and Victor Sansanese some how got the New York City families to go along with the concept. I cannot recall who told me about the approval it probably was Vic Sansanese and Joe Todaro Jr., but it very well may have been Arthur Coia Sr., or Mike Lorello. I do remember being told that the concept was approved and that I was to help John Riggi set up a state wide program for his son. (remind me about this because it also involved Richard Tesesserie and Ray Pocino.)

 

1. The State Fund would be headed by Victor Sansanese, (I cannot remember but he was going to have to bring on some N.Y.C. people.).

 

2. The fund's main office would be located somewhere between Buffalo and Rochester N.Y.

 

3. The Albany fund would remain in tact and would be utilized by the state fund for that region.

 

4. A site was to be established in Westchester N.Y, or on Long Island. (no mention of Local 66 at that time)

 

5. Coia Sr., Mike Lorello and me were supposed to make this a reality as far as the International was concerned.

 

Together with Dick Lipsitz, we prepared the Fund documents and participation documents. A problem arose with Mike Lorello, in that he kept procrastinating. He kept telling me that we should wait for the national convention and then he would tell everybody. He also wanted Riggi in place first then we can do New York. Explaining this to Todaro Jr., and Vic Sansanese, they would respond and tell me that Lorello was already told to go ahead.

 

At the 1986 LIUNA convention at the Fountainbleu Hotel, Todaro Jr., and Victor Sansanese had a discussion with Arthur Coia Sr., in my presence and told him Mike Lorello was stalling. Telling Coia that Lorello was told to go along with the program. Coia stated that Mike Lorello is going to do it but you know Mike or words to that effect.

 

NOTE:

 

(The words that I am using in this document are mine and reflect what I remember. My 1985-1986, 302's that contain numerous references to this subject are not in my possession and I am recreating this topic from memory alone.)

 

At the convention, most of the New York City locals that I talked to were already told about the State Training Program. Mike La Barbara and Peter Vario of Local 66 were the only ones to voice concern with me (excluding New Jersey and the Riggi problem he had with Rich Tissesserie and Ray Pocino) and telling me that they thought things have changed since this program was approved. I asked them what would have caused it to changed and did not get a response. (I believe that they may have been talking about the killing of Paul Castellano in the winter of 1985) Concerned about what was going to happen their on-going training program, I told them that I would have Joe Todaro Jr., and Victor Sansanese talk to them. (I do not remember how Victor Sansanese was allowed to attend the convention because he was not a delegate, He was probably allowed to attend as an observer.) Joe Todaro and Victor told him that this was approved and no one has disapproved it. Mike Lorello was eventually grabbed by Joe Todaro Jr., and Victor Sansanese and Lorello told them that he was in fact taking care of the New York Region and the only reason that he didn't was because he was worried about the convention. (At this time Mike Lorello was acting quite senile and he would ramble from the topic to his step son Dannny Costello to that ****ing Angelo Fosco.).

 

After Arthur Coia Sr's., stroke and the death of Mike Lorello the program took a different twist. The state fund was now going to limited to Upstate New York, and Joe Todaro Jr., and Vic Sansanese wanted to know how to create it. I told him that with New York City out of the way, that they may have a problem with deciding what locals would come under the training fund. (At the time Joe Todaro Jr., was concerned about the future of his Brother-in Law Peter Gerase and his being exposed to prosecution because of Federal scrutiny with Local 210 as well as the lack of Local 210 funds in the Union.)

 

Todaro Jr., and Victor wanted to also gain control of many of the weak locals throughout the region and gain control of them via the District Council, I pointed out that Butch Quarcini would be opposed to it and he could swing Sam Agati with him. They brought up that Danny Sansanese Jr., can handle Agati, and Sam Fresina has control of many other locals. The discussion continued me pointing out the different locals in the area (They didn't know.) and what had to be done by the International Union. I drafted a breakdown and my original draft excluded Binghamton N.Y. Todaro Jr., told me that he wanted Guv Guinari's local (Pete Pavelsek) under his region.

 

1. The District Council would have two training sites, one in Buffalo and one in Albany

 

2. The Buffalo Training fund would include locals in Buffalo, Niagara Falls, Jamestown, Olean, Massena, Elmira, Geneva, Oswego, Binghamton, and Rochester.

 

3. The Albany training fund would include Albany, Schenectady, Troy, Syracuse, Rome, Utica, Plattsburg, and Poughkeepsie.