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Joseph Zerilli (born Giuseppe Zerilli; Italian pronunciation: [dʒuˈzɛppe ddzeˈrilli]; December 10, 1897 – October 30, 1977) was an Italian-born American gangster who rose to power in the crime family known as the Detroit Partnership, leading from the 1930s through much of the 1970s. He immigrated to the United States from Sicily in 1914 at the age of 17.
The Detroit Partnership (also known as the Detroit crime family, the Detroit Combination, the Detroit Mafia, the Zerilli crime family, and the Tocco–Zerilli crime family) ( Italian pronunciation: [dzeˈrilli]) is an Italian-American Mafia crime family based in Detroit, Michigan. The family mainly operates in the Greater Detroit area, as well as in other locations including Windsor, Ontario ...
Anthony (Tony) Joseph Zerilli was born in Detroit, Michigan on October 24, 1927, to Josephine (Finazzo) and Joseph Zerilli. At the time of Tony's birth, his father was an up-and-coming member of the Eastside Mob under the direction of Angelo Meli and his cousin and brother-in-law Vito William Tocco .
In 1979, Jack Tocco assumed leadership of the Detroit Partnership following the death of Joseph Zerilli. [1] Tocco inherited a decimated organization with several key members facing prison. Tocco also lost a valuable resource with the death of Papa John Priziola, one of the last original ruling dons from the Partnership's inception in 1931. Around this time Jack's cousin Anthony Zerilli was ...
In 1928, Tocco married Rosalia Zerilli, sister of Joseph Zerilli, [3] and they purchased land in Grosse Pointe Park where they raised their seven children, including Jack Tocco, who would become a feared Detroit mafioso. [1] Tocco's success in bootlegging earned him respect from Mafia families nationwide.
Once the Detroit Partnership was established, Meli became the first and longest serving consigliere. He was considered to be one of the five members of the Ruling Council of the Partnership, along with Joseph Zerilli, Peter Licavoli, Black Bill Tocco, and John Priziola. [20]
After a 1956 Commission meeting, however, the crime families of Philadelphia and Detroit, headed by Giuseppe “Joseph” Ida and Giuseppe “Joseph” Zerilli respectively, were added to The Commission, establishing the Philadelphia crime family as its own organization independent of control by New York crime families.
Gaspar Milazzo. Gaspar Milazzo (April 25, 1887 – May 31, 1930) was a major organized-crime figure in Detroit, Michigan, during the Prohibition era. He had earlier been a member of the Brooklyn -based gang that would later become known as the Bonanno crime family .