Luigi (Lou) Pagnotti - An Old-Time Bufalino Crime Family Enigma

Arguably one of the most unique and significant mafiosi to ever exist and operate in the entire United States was a shrewd and shadowy mafioso by the name of Luigi (Lou) Pagnotti Sr.

Originally starting out as a bootlegger during the Prohibition era , Pagnotti eventually expanded into various illicit rackets like slot machines. But his claim to fame was his business and financial acumen and his expansion into the legitimate business world where his numerous holdings made him a multimillionaire.

Not only that, Pagnotti excelled in other ventures as well including making inroads as a local politician, a boxing promoter, and a philanthropist, among many other endeavors.

But nestled within all this success was his secret association with Pennsylvania's Russell Bufalino Crime Family - at that time known as the Santo Volpe Crime Family - in which law enforcement believed Pagnotti operated as a high-ranking member.

Lou Pagnotti - Beginnings

Lou Pagnotti - aka “Louis Joseph Pagnotti” and “Louis Pagnotta” - was born in Old Forge, Pennsylvania on July 13, 1894, to Rosario Pagnotti and the former Maria Gnatza. His parents hailed from a little town called Felitto, near Salerno, in the (Campania region) of southern Italy.

Rosario and Maria Pagnotti immigrated to the United States and settled in Northeastern Pennsylvania where they had family and “amici” from their hometown back in Italy.

But soon after Luigi was born, his mother became very ill and the Pagnottis decided to move back to Naples for her health. Once back in Italy, Maria’s health deteriorated even further and she died shortly thereafter.

Lou Pagnotti - 1920s

Over the next ten years, little Luigi would relocate back and forth between Italy and the United States with his father until Rosario passed away as well. Luigi, now named Louis, was brought back to the states and later adopted by some relatives who raised him.

Lou Pagnotti stood 5-feet 7-inches tall and had a medium build, weighing a mere 160 pounds. With greying side hair amid a mostly bald pate, brown eyes, and a dark complexion, he was anything but what a person would conjure up when envisioning a powerful racketeer.

Yet, that's exactly what he was! In fact, Pagnotti was, without a doubt, among the wealthiest and most influential Mafia members in the whole country.

He started out as a street racketeer during the “Roaring Twenties” as a top liquor bootlegger who operated a string of illicit alcohol stills that churned out liquor for his customers.

Later, after the repeal of Prohibition, he became a top distributor of slot machines across Northeastern Pennsylvania.

Yet, he had never been arrested or picked by the police for these activities, and both local and Federal authorities had no police record on him. None whatsoever!

In between his “street career,” he managed to take the time to get married and raise a family.

When he was twenty-two years old, he met and fell in love with a local girl named Mary C. Tedesco. They married on April 26, 1917, at Old Forge.

Lou and Mary would be blessed with six children: three sons named Ross, Louis Joseph Pagnotti Jr., and Joseph Ross Pagnotti, and three daughters named Maria, Sophia, and Eleanore.

Unfortunately for Lou and Mary, tragedy initially stuck the family. Their firstborn son Ross was believed to have died at birth. But they went on to have five more healthy children.

In 1923, Lou bought a piece of property in Old Forge where he personally built a colonial-styled home for his growing family. For many years to come, Lou and Mary would raise their kids in that home until they each had become adults and started families of their own.

The Pagnotti home was located at 603 Moosic Road. Lou and Mary lived there for the rest of their lives.

603 Moosic Road, Old Forge

A few years earlier, Lou had opened up a pool hall, the first of several he would eventually own.

In 1925, he opened up his first “recreation” hall which was a venue offering high-stakes poker and rummy games for profit. Ten years later, he expanded this business even further by redesigning a larger recreation hall building he had purchased for this purpose.

A Powerhouse of Revenue

After twenty years as a bootlegger and gambler, Pagnotti had reportedly become so financially successful in the rackets that he then seamlessly transitioned into legitimate business where he hit another series of home runs!

By the 1940s, he had purchased or opened a string of coal mining companies that would become among the largest and most prominent in all of Pennsylvania.

But that was only the beginning of Pagnotti’s long and illustrious legitimate career. Because In the coming decades, he would expand his holdings even further into a variety of successful industries and legitimate businesses.

He even ventured into the world of local politics.

Many of his companies became multimillion-dollar entities in and of themselves. But, collectively, they were a powerhouse of revenue for both Pagnotti, and, by extension, Pittston’s Mafia Family.

They also provided him a platform by which to boost his public persona as both a wealthy businessman and a local philanthropist who constantly worked for the betterment of his local community.

It would eventually turn Pagnotti into a multimillionaire many times over as well as elevate him into a much revered and respected local persona and community leader.

A Mob Politician

On January 4, 1930, local newspapers across northeastern Pennsylvania reported that four new “burgesses” took office in various Lackawanna County boroughs. And in a fifth county, an incumbent candidate was held over the pending final disposition of an election contest.

One popular daily periodical, The Tribune, wrote, “Newly installed winners included John A. Evans, a former council chairman, who succeeded John A. Powell, a well-known banker, to become the new burgess of the Taylor section. Evans had an easy fight for the elected office because he was assured of the berth at the primary level when he won both nominations.

In the town of Olyphant, John Kilcullen succeeded burgess George Chylak. Kilcullen, a former burgess, was elected in one of the most bitter election contests in the history of the borough.”

The article then went on to say, “Incoming Old Forge burgess Louis Pagnotti went right to the wire in the November election although he was unopposed in the primary. Pagnotti was both the Republican and Democratic nominee and enjoyed a race without opposition that September.

A stump ticket was preempted for the general election against Louis Simony, a popular Old Forge World War veteran, for burgess candidate after Pagnotti won out by a margin of 800 votes. But only after a hard-fought battle.”

The newspapers further reported that “Burgess Frank Berger will be without opposition in Old Forge for the office of County Tax Collector. Nevertheless, Old Forge’s political pot will be close to the explosion point with the race for burgess.

Candidate Louis Pagnotti, unopposed at the primary, and Peter Simony, candidate on the citizen’s ticket, are competing for the office of the burgess. Pagnotti is a school director from the Third Ward who has been a strong political power for years in the down valley borough.

Simony is a World War veteran and is making his debut in the political ring. He was leader of the 109th Infantry band during the war.”

During these elections, residents also voted for their choice of several Deputy Sheriffs. Incoming Sheriff Fred Fabretti defeated the same candidate twice the previous fall. Fabretti won both nominations over Alfonse Warney.

The Mafia Sends a Message

As a side note, the previous November, newspapers reported about a host of different political contests in various towns and boroughs for the posts of burgesses, tax collectors, the deputy sheriff, and other elected offices.

But an important race worth taking particular note of was a hotly contested race for the position of burgess in Dunmore between four candidates: Republican Frank Clemens, Democrat James Beardell, and stump ticket candidates M.J. O’Rourke, and Wesley J. (Wes) Webber, a tax collector.

They were all fighting to win the same office.

Webber had organized a very effective following of district leaders and was carrying an independent fight for the office. He had originally been defeated by another Republican nominee named C.F. (Dick) Elmore at the primary level. So, Webber soon decided to announce his candidacy on the Citizen’s Ticket.

Almost immediately after Webber’s announcement, his garage was dynamited. Police also found another dynamite charge planted directly under his residence. But it had failed to explode only because of a defective fuse.

Webber claimed the dynamite attack was a political reprisal.

In a statement to the public, Webber said he had received several anonymous threatening letters urging him to get out of the race or suffer dire consequences.

Could these bombing incidents have been the work of the local Mafia? The Pittston-Scranton Family, then headed by boss Santo Volpe, seems to have been the most probable and viable culprits.

First elected in 1925, Pagnotti was continually reelected to serve as Old Forge Burgess. This was just one of several public posts that he enjoyed over the years in that township. He dabbled in politics for over twenty years.

During that time he served variously as the Town Constable and as the local councilman. He was also later elected to serve many terms as the School Director of Old Forge.

A Breathtaking Array of Enterprises

The following laundry list of companies and industries Lou Pagnotti either started up, bought into, or controlled during his lifetime is simply staggering!

This man was a true visionary and an unstoppable “force of nature” who knew no financial boundaries. There was no mountain so insurmountable, regardless of its size, that Lou was afraid to climb.

Lou Pagnotti - 1950s

And these businesses were just the smattering of his financial acumen and business savvy that I was able to uncover during my research into his background and life story.

At one time or another, Lou held ownership in a breathtaking array of enterprises.

These included Pagnotti Enterprises Inc., which became the overall holding corporation. Based in Lucerne County, the company eventually owned at least seven major independent coal mining companies located throughout the Old Forge, West Pittston, Wilkes Barre, Tremont, Hazelton, Shenandoah, Pottsville, and Jolliet sections of Pennsylvania.

Through the years his companies either owned outright or entered into long-term leasing contracts for control of the Lehigh Valley Mine, Dorrance Colliery and Breaker, Hazelton Colliery and Shaft Breaker, Spring Mountain Colliery, Harry E. Colliery, Mammoth Colliery, Anthracite General, Pagnotti Colliery, Breaker Mine at Swoyersville, Indian Head Mine, and the Franklin Colliery.

Included among the dizzying array of corporations he operated over the years were the following:

• Pine Colliery (his first venture into coal mine stripping, first opened in 1932) • Anthracite Coal Company (Pittston) • No. 9 Coal Company (Hughestown) • Number 6 Colliery • Pagnotti Coal Company (Old Forge) • Clear Spring Coal Company (West Pittston) • Forty Fort Mines Company (Forty Fort) • Sullivan Trail Coal Company (West Pittston) • Mineral Springs (Parsons) • Bird Stripping Company • Number One Construction Company (Delaware)

He was also a hidden force within District #1 of the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) which was utilized by the Mafia to control various mobbed-up labor union officials.

Collectively, Pagnotti was said to have employed anywhere from 5,000 to 10,000 mine workers at any given time at his various coal mine-stripping companies.

Into the World of Boxing

During the 1920s, Lou also became a major boxing matchmaker who promoted hundreds of major prizefights that brought in lucrative profits for over a decade.

In fact, Pagnotti is credited with having brought the first championship fight ever held in the State of Pennsylvania when he promoted the Mickey Walker-Pete Latzo bout in Scranton in 1926,

Local boxing hero “Thundering Pete” Latzo won that boxing crown to become the new Welterweight Champion of the World.

Over the next decade, either on his own or in partnership with others, Lou utilized several local venues he owned to conduct various boxing matches including the Armory Athletic Club (Armory A.C.) and New Recreation Center, both in Old Forge.

He also owned and operated Pagnotti’s Recreation Center located at 102 Main Street in Old Forge. This was a popular sports venue that had well-attended card games, billiard tables, and bowling alleys offered to the public.

Through the years, Pagnotti had several partners as matchmakers. Two of the most prominent were Jim Frawley, and later, Nat Strauss. They put on top-ranked prizefights between many popular boxers.

These bouts were originally held at the Town Hall Athletic Club (T.H.A.C.) which Pagnotti and Frawley controlled. Later, Pagnotti and his partners advertised various fight cards at the Armory Athletic Club and the New Recreation Center, both of which were properties Pagnotti owned.

Among some of the up-and-coming boxers and champions who fought under their sponsorship and promotion were such popular crowd pleasers as American Fly-Weight Champion Frankie Genaro, Billy Kelly, World Welterweight Champion Pete Latzo, former welterweight champ Mickey Walker, hard-hitting Eddie McCarthy, Jerry Dundee, top welterweight contender Jack Zivic, Willie Harmon, Harry Greb, “Caveman” Fisher, Bobby Tracey, Johnny Ceccolli, Tony Perry, Mike Chapin, Pep O’Brien, Johnny Halstack, Jimmy McNulty, Billy Pollock, and Willy Greb.

But a few of Pagnotti’s fight cards came with controversy.

The fight game started out a bit rocky for him after a suspicious bout held on January 1, 1924, when Pete Latzo allegedly sent Patsy Haley to the canvas and into the “land of dreams” - as local newspapers reported at the time.

It was the opening show of the Town Hall A.C. and Frawley and Pagnotti controlled the Adams Avenue arena at the time. Frawley as the promoter, Pagnotti as the matchmaker.

An interesting side note is that during his early years, Pagnotti promoted many major boxing matches featuring boxers from across a variety of cities and states including a Brooklyn-based featherweight prizefighter named Paolo (Paulie Doyle) SanFilippo.

Years later his son Paul, who also went by the nickname of Paulie Doyle, was listed as a reputed “soldier” in the Simone DeCavalcante Crime Famil y of New Jersey.

The Public Servant, Banker, and Philanthropist

Through the decades, Pagnotti was a very busy man, indeed. He had a seemingly insatiable drive.

As though all the aforementioned companies and businesses weren’t already enough for any one man, Lou had the vision, foresight, and tenacity to expand his horizons even further.

He would eventually wear the hat of a local politician, a bank director, a government official, and a philanthropist.

Some of his many accomplishments are as follows:

• Old Forge Bank - Board of Directors • Old Forge Discount and Deposit Bank - Board Director. After serving in this capacity for 10 years, in November 1956 he was elected to the presidency of the bank. • West Side Hospital - Board of Directors • Old Forge Committee of the Lackawanna United Fund - Co-chairman • Old Forge Lions Club - Longtime member • Cancer Crusade of Lackawanna County - Committee chairman • Victor Alfieri Club - Co-chairman • Pittston Chamber of Commerce - First Vice President and board director • Pittston Lodge of Elks - Member • The American Legion Post #542 - Named “Man of the Year of Greater Pittston” in 1964 • Prince of Peace Parish, Old Forge - Longtime member

By the late 1940s, Lou was doing so well financially that he even bought his own private airplane, a sleek Twin-Beech aircraft. He then set about hiring a personal pilot to fly him around as his commitments required.

Very Shady Characters, Indeed

On his more shadowy side, Pagnotti was considered a big wheel and an important figure within Pittston’s underworld. And it seems that both the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Federal Bureau of Narcotics (FBN) felt the exact same way.

Pagnotti was listed in their records as a “ranking member” of the Pittston-based Family headed by the iconic “Capo Famiglia” Santo (King of the Night) Volpe.

In fact, Lou was a close friend and intimate of Santo Volpe himself. Further investigation revealed that he was also closely connected with nearly every other top mafioso of the Volpe Crime Family.

Santo Volpe

He numbered among his closest associates such men as hierarchy bosses Giovanni (John) Sciandra, Giuseppe (Joe the Barber) Barbara Sr. , Calogero (Charlie) Bufalino, his nephew, Rosario (Russ) Bufalino, Vincenzo (Dave Osticco) Sticco, and top caporegimes such as Angelo J. (Sandy) Sciandra, Angelo Polizzi, Burgio (Billy) Medico, his brother, Philip Medico, and Dominick (Nicky) Alaimo.

Another close associate was soldier Angelo Medico, who was the brother of Billy and Phil.

Side Note: In 1954, Pagnotti came under scrutiny from Federal Agents and New York State Liquor Authority investigators probing the finances of then-Family boss Giuseppe (Joe) Barbara. Lou was one of a group of suspected Mafia members who reportedly lent Barbara large sums of money years earlier to finance the purchase of an Upstate-New York Canada Dry soda bottling plant.

Company records showed that Louis Pagnotti had loaned the company $10,000 which was a sizable sum of money back in the 1950s. The other “lenders” in this transaction were listed as Santo Volpe, $10,000; Calogero (Charlie) Bufalino, $25,000; Luigi (Lou) Consagra, $5,000; and Angelo Polizzi, $15,000.

Collectively, Barbara’s “friends” had loaned him a whopping $65,000. Investigators said the “entire transaction appeared to be a device to deceive (the liquor authority) or to deceive a bank as to the true financial condition of the corporation or both.”

Lou also worked “hand-in-glove” with several top union officials and labor racketeers including Mafia “soldier” Nicholas Benfanti; “soldier” Johnny Salvo, who was a union official at Number #14 Colliery; and August J. Lippi, longtime president of District #1 of the United Mine Workers Union of America.

Caporegime Nicky Alaimo was another key labor official of the United Mine Workers Union - that is - until he was indicted on labor racketeering charges.

Additionally, in private social settings and in business, Pignotti often interacted with other wealthy Pittston-area industry leaders such as the aforementioned Medico brothers and the Correale family, who were very prominent local businessmen headed by family patriarch Frank Correale Sr.

In later years, Lou remained close to Frank’s sons Frank Jr., Fred, and Palmer Correale.

Strong-Arm Tactics, Bombings, and Extortion

Despite all these underworld connections and suspected racket activities, earlier in his career, Pagnotti had never been arrested.

In fact, aside from innuendo and unsubstantiated suspicion, one of the few times Lou’s name ever surfaced in connection with Mafia activities was back in June 1929 when he figured into an investigation of a series of bombing around the Scranton district over a period of several years.

Twenty-two separate dynamiting incidents destroyed various buildings, structures, and businesses. This created a great mystery for Lackawanna County authorities, Dickson City Police, and the Pennsylvania State Police who eventually came to suspect that these bombings were the work of the local “Mafia” and “Black Hand.”

These dynamite bombs had injured dozens of townspeople. Authorities said that these bombs were relatively sophisticated with electric timing devices.

In one incident, proprietor Joseph Sabatelli was hurled across the street when the dynamite charge wrecked his store. Sabatelli insisted he had no idea who bombed him or why anyone would even want to. But the police believed he knew exactly who bombed him but that he was reluctant to say because he feared violent reprisal.

Law enforcement authorities said the same sort of silence on the part of other bombing victims over the years is what stymied them from solving these crimes.

One police official said, “The Mafia, or Black Hand, is strong and swift with vengeance toward squealers.”

He went on to say, “This secret organization has been blamed for many murders, dynamiting, and other crimes of violence.”

The Attempted Assassination

The police said they were trying to connect any other incidents in Sabatelli’s background which might point to Black Hand ramifications.

Police noted that back in 1926, Sabatelli was operating a delicatessen shop in Old Forge where the then thirty-two-year-old Lou Pagnotti, a local politician and successful promoter of the Pete Latzo-Mickey Walker welterweight championship fight held in Scranton, was shot and seriously wounded by a local Italian man in Sabatelli’s store.

Lou’s assailant was a volatile hoodlum named Antonio (Tony) Venturiello, who had once served a 10-to-20-year sentence for murdering another Old Forge man named Pasquale (Patsy) Marsico during an altercation they had in a local saloon.

Antonio Venturiello

Venturiello had used a .22 caliber revolver to shoot Pagnotti twice, once in the back, and a second shot that luckily only creased Lou’s head.

Pagnotti was immediately rushed to State Hospital in serious condition. Doctors said the wounds were very serious and that Pagnotti was in grave condition. His prognosis was not good. He was close to death and over the next several days he tittered back and forth, his life hanging in the balance.

It seems that the first bullet had lodged directly in the center of his back, between the third and fourth lumbar vertebrae.

Doctors J. Norman White and John J. Lottus, the attending surgeons, initially decided not to even try and remove the bullet, preferring to wait to see how things would develop with the young and otherwise healthy victim.

They later brought Lou in for a successful surgery, and he eventually made a full recovery.

His would-be assassin, Venturiello, was caught almost immediately after the shooting and detained by the police. He was later charged with attempted murder.

But Venturiello was eventually deemed unfit to stand trial by the presiding judge and was committed to a mental institution.

Side Note: Shortly after the shooting, Sabatelli’s store was completely burned down in an obviously suspicious arson fire. Revenge for the Pagnotti shooting maybe?

In another incident that occurred around the same time period, another local hoodlum named John LaTempa planted three bombs that destroyed Pagnotti’s garage. LaTempa then attempted to extort $6,000 from Lou, whom the shakedown artist viewed as a wealthy man.

Another Side Note: With plenty of dynamite comparatively accessible at the coal mines and stores in the Scranton region, police say persons holding grudges against individuals or organizations found the explosive a very effective weapon for revenge.

Newspapers, factories and plants, churches, roadhouses, retail stores, and various other businesses and homes had all been wrecked in successful dynamiting attacks. There were also many other attacks that failed because of the crude methods used in “planting” the dynamite charges, setting them off, or because someone discovered the bomb before it could be detonated.

One of the most notable explosions took place at the Scranton Sun Newspaper plant which was completely wrecked by a dynamite blast at exactly midnight on New Year's Eve in 1928.

A second major newspaper plant, La Voice Italiana of Scranton, was also badly damaged by dynamite bombs.

Of all the aforementioned bombings, only one person was ever caught and prosecuted for a dynamiting. Frank Condurso, of Pittston, was convicted of attempted dynamiting and was given a long prison term.

Bootlegging Rackets

The following year in May 1930, Pagnotti figured prominently in another investigation. This time around for bootlegging liquor and manslaughter.

At the time, he was serving the public as “burgess” for the City of Old Forge when he was repeatedly brought in for questioning by the Berks County Police and Federal authorities as to his knowledge about a multimillion-dollar “alcohol plant” that had operated “alky-stills” churning out thousands of gallons of illicit booze weekly for several years.

Police said that back in February 1929, they first started probing Pagnotti’s reported connections to a reputed multimillion-dollar bootleg liquor ring operating between Scranton and Philadelphia.

At that time, he was questioned at length by the famous Quaker City “Rackets Grand Jury.”

The following year he was again questioned by Berks County authorities and Special Alcohol Enforcement Agents of the U.S. Treasury Department as to his knowledge and possible ownership involvement in the Reading alcohol “cooking” plant that had exploded months earlier in February 1930.

The blast wrecked a three-story brick building covering almost half a city block and resulted in the death of two men and the injury of seven others.

No initial action was taken after repeatedly grilling Pagnotti as to his knowledge and involvement, but District Attorney Oliver M. Wolff, who was in charge of the questioning, said that a special conference was being held in Reading to determine whether criminal prosecution of Pagnotti might be started.

Six other bootleggers that were captured at the Reading alcohol-cooking plant were arrested and under bail packages. They were charged with involuntary manslaughter as well as criminal conspiracy and alcohol-tax violations (Federal Prohibition Laws.)

Prosecutors said that in the event that the hidden owners of the place were arrested, similar charges would be placed against them. They said the plant was being used as a cooking spot for re-distillation of denatured alcohol which was later distributed to the illicit liquor trade through bootlegging rings.

Authorities also said they had first questioned Pagnotti the previous Saturday morning at Hamburg, about twenty miles outside of Reading. Pagnotti, accompanied by his chauffeur, was reportedly quizzed for over four hours. Police later said that he supposedly had furnished some valuable leads in the case.

Representatives of the Pennsylvania Railroad Police told the grand jury that they had traced several liquor shipments of the ring’s finished product from Reading to Lackawanna County. Special County Detectives, Federal Law Enforcement Agents, and D.A. Wolff were all present when the Old Forge burgess was questioned.

Since the explosion of the still and subsequent discovery of the plant, which was said to be one of the largest alcohol-still bootleg operations in the Northeastern part of the United States, undercover Federal Tax Agents had been conducting an intense investigation trying to determine who actually held ownership of the plant. Agents were searching through the wreckage of the plant trying to unearth clues to that end.

The agents reportedly learned that Pagnotti and two other local men were in the plant at the time of the blast but had somehow managed to escape injury and detection. Two other men killed in the blast were not connected to the bootlegging plant. Both victims were passing by the building when the explosion occurred and the building walls collapsed onto them.

In the ruins of the building, agents said they secured letters that gave them the name of the chemicals expert in charge of running the alcohol stills.

Continuing in their probe, the officers later learned the exact cause of the fatal blast. They said the explosion resulted from the chemist mixing the wrong compound into his “alky” making process.

Pagnotti’s name was first mentioned in conjunction with the bootleg rackets the previous year when he and John Bushko, who served several terms as the Old Forge Borough tax collector, and other local men were linked with the sensational grand jury investigation opened in Philadelphia in regards to another gigantic liquor-bootlegging operation.

Pagnotti, Bushko, and the other suspects went before the jury and were questioned by District Attorney John Monaghan regarding huge cash deposits that the alleged “rum ring” had in various Philadelphia banks.

Numerous “ghost” accounts in downstate banks of suspected members of the illicit alcohol ring totaled over $10,000,000 dollars. D.A. Monaghan was attempting to learn the true identity of the millionaire bootleggers heading up this syndicate.

During questioning it was brought to light that Bushko had made deposits of more than $1,000,000 in cash at various local banks between 1920 and 1927. He was quizzed at length as to the manner in which he obtained that kind of money.

In March 1930, Bushko was catapulted into the limelight once again when the Federal Government filed a $38,421.01 tax lien against him and his wife for alleged irregularities in filing his 1926 income-tax returns.

Slot Machine Racketeer

After Prohibition was repealed in 1933, it is alleged that Pagnotti then turned his attention to the fast-growing illicit gambling rackets.

It has been alleged by both law enforcement and informants alike that, within a short time, Lou had secured himself a lofty place within the local underworld as a “behind the scenes” gambling kingpin.

Using his influence and power as a respected city official who had important connections to local government officials and law enforcement, Pagnotti was suspected of having helped set up and later protect an extensive underworld slot-machine racket.

The racket placed and operated “one-armed bandits” throughout Old Forge and across several other neighboring towns as well.

Over the years, it is suspected that Pagnotti used his position as an important public servant and a wealthy local businessman to indemnify his slot machines from police seizure. It also protected him and his underworld associates from gambling investigations and arrests.

Doing this allowed the racket to continue operating smoothly and secure its great success for a number of years.

It was later thought by Federal law enforcement authorities that Pagnotti had operated in this manner for quite a number of years, accumulating millions of dollars in annual profits for himself, and the mob, in the process.

By the time he had retreated from the gambling rackets, he was said to have added substantially to his already burgeoning fortune, reinvesting his illicit profits further into legitimate industries.

La Musica E'Finita! The Final Years and Beyond

Luigi Giuseppe Pagnotti passed away on April 10, 1966, after a short illness. He was 72 years old. He was buried in the local cemetery - a dedicated hometown boy right to the bitter end!

Postscript: One of several obituaries published at the time of his death was titled, “Prominent Industrialist Dies In PA.”

The article went on to say, “Louis Pagnotti, of Old Forge, a one-time newsboy who became owner of a giant anthracite domain, died Sunday in University Hospital in Philadelphia where he had been a patient for 16 days. He was 72. His Pagnotti Enterprises, Inc., embraced seven coal companies employing 5,500 persons. He also operated a road-building firm, Number One Construction Co., of Delaware.

Pagnotti’s obituary

In addition to his successful business career, Pagnotti had served as burgess of Old Forge, council chairman, and a school board director. Also active in the financial investment field, he was president of the Old Forge Discount and Deposit Bank from 1956 until his death.

Pagnotti was a native of Old Forge. He lost both his parents at an early age and sold newspapers as a youth before he ran a candy store. As a young man, he turned fight promoter and in 1926 staged the second welterweight title bout between Pete Latzo and Mickey Walker in Scranton. In the early 1940s, he became owner and operator of the anthracite complex which includes the Mammoth, Indian Head, Lehigh Valley, Anthracite General, Dorrance, and Harry E. Coal companies.

Among the honors bestowed on him was the Italian government’s “Star of Solidarity.” It was presented in 1953 in recognition of his efforts toward “cementing relationships between the United States and the Republic of Italy.” The Veterans of Foreign Wars honored him for his humanitarian work, and the Pennsylvania Department of the American Legion presented its distinguished service certificate and medal to him for promoting the American way of life.

Pagnotti is survived by his widow, Mary; two sons, Louis Jr. and Joseph; and three daughters, Eleanor, Sophia, and Mrs. Robert Fidatti. A Solemn Requiem Mass will be celebrated Wednesday at St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church. Burial will be in Old Forge Cemetery.

Post-Postscript: As young adults, his two sons joined the family business. His namesake Louis Pagnotti Jr. eventually rose to become the public face of his fathers enterprises. And although he didn’t quite “fill” the extremely large shoes his dad had worn, Lou Jr., nonetheless, carried on the Pagnotti name with honor and great pride. No doubt his dad would have been very proud of him! Louis Pagnotti Jr. passed away on December 20, 2020. He was 94 years old.

Louis J. Pagnotti Jr.

Post-Post-Postscript: In 2008, the son of Lou Jr. and grandson of Louis Pagnotti Sr., Louis III, was himself indicted and later convicted of perjury charges after a plea agreement was worked out with the Federal Prosecutor and the Judge hearing his case. Louis Pagnotti III was sentenced to serve 20-months in federal prison for false testimony he gave after he was caught lying under oath to prosecutors who were then investigating a huge money-laundering operation being conducted through several of his legitimate companies. He was accused of washing drug money for a known narcotics dealer.

The fifty-three-year-old grandson, of West Pittston, was arrested along with codefendant Frank Pavlico and charged in 2005 with funneling money from a drug dealer through a coal company owned by Pagnotti as well as several other businesses owned by others. Authorities later also charged reputed Bufalino Family “acting boss” William (Big Billy) D’Elia with participating in the scheme.

Pavlico pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering and was sentenced to 10 months in prison. The following month, D’Elia also pled guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering and witness tampering. But before he could be sentenced, D’Elia ended up becoming a Federal informant to escape a prison term.

Prosecutors alleged Pagnotti, for a fee, deposited drug proceeds and then paid the money out as bogus consulting fees in an attempt to make it appear as though the funds were legitimately earned. The money-laundering charges against Pagnotti were later dismissed after the judge ruled prosecutors had improperly used testimony he gave before a grand jury while under a grant of immunity to build the case against him.

Until next time…”The Other Guy”

Luigi (Lou) Pagnotti Sr. – A Pittston Millionaire Businessman, Politician, Philanthropist…and Mafioso

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