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| 1961 |
Nicholas 'Joe Bones' Bufanio was a member of the Genovese Family.
Born December 19, 1916 in Newark, New Jersey to Simplicio and Lena Toto Bufanio. Father from Nocera Inferiore comune of Salerno, Campania. Mother from Castelpetroso comune of Isernia, Molise.
The Bufanios resided at 89 Nichols St in Newark's Ironbound neighborhood. Simplicio worked as a candy maker a couple of blocks north on Monroe St.
Bufanio's first arrest came in February 1932, picked up as a juvenile offender for stealing gasoline.
At the time Nicholas was employed, probably with his father, at the Charms Candy Company.
On July 28, 1934 arrested for auto theft and hit and run. The case was dismissed the following month.
By 1935 the Bufanios had moved a few doors over to 119 Nicholas St. While Simplicio continued working at the candy factory, Nicholas began a decades-long career at Port Newark.
An arrest for gambling in May 1935, followed by two more in the first half of 1937, resulted in small fines.
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| 1937 |
Through the remainder of the decade Bufanio was arrested at least seven times on charges ranging from gambling to assault and battery. The cases were either dismissed or ended with small fines and suspended sentences.
By 1948 Bufanio resided at 196 Johnson Ave in the South Broad Street section of Newark. He caught his first and only major conviction that year.
On the night of January 21, 1948 twenty-five-year old Constantine 'Gus the Greek' Thomas was fatally shot at a tavern located on Broad St. Thomas was hit multiple times in the arm and back and died en route to City Hospital. George Uzzolino received a superficial scalp wound.
The next day Newark PD issued a warrant for Bufanio's arrest. Apprehended one week later, he and longshoreman Anthony Giantomasi were formally charged with murder and assault.
Bufanio ultimately resolved the case by pleading no contest to one count of manslaughter and received a two-to-four year sentence in June 1948.
He was released from the State Prison in Trenton on August 28, 1949.
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| Source: The Herald-News |
On November 30, 1949 thirty-eight-year old George 'Muzzy' Uzzolino was shotgunned to death while entering his car in Downtown Newark. The victim, wounded in the Thomas case that sent Bufanio to prison one year prior, was shot down by an assailant firing from a passing automobile.
By 1953 Bufanio resided with wife Vera at 1542 Everett Circle in Union, New Jersey. He worked as a machine operator for Lehigh Warehouse Incorporated at Port Newark.
The FBI later summarized an incident that occurred during a September 1955 meeting of dockworkers held at the Amvets Hall on Walnut St. The report noted: "Teddy Gleason, ILA General Organizer, was talking to the longshoremen when [Redacted] asked 'could you tell us Mr. Gleason why we're going on strike?' Nicholas Bufania turned and punched [Redacted] in the face."
By 1958 Bufanio was a made member of the Genovese Family and an influential figure at Port Newark.
On August 20, 1959 an FBI informant noted Bufanio's importance and identified him as an associate of Genovese Member Eugene 'Gene' Catena.
On January 12, 1960 an FBI informant described Bufanio as 'Gene Catena's man in the Port Newark area'.
He was then foreman with the Auto Terminal Corporation, overseeing the unloading and distribution of European cars to local dealerships.
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| Gene Catena (1960s) |
By 1963 Gene Catena, brother to Genovese Underboss Gerard, was a Family Capodecina headquartered in New Jersey.
Members of the Catena crew included Soldiers Ralph Belvedere, Nicholas Bufanio, Don 'Fats' Ferraro, Michael 'Mickey Gerard' Geralle, Angelo Lapadura, Peter LaPlaca, John Lardiere, Dr. Philip Noto, Joseph 'Joe Peck' Pecora, Thomas 'Timmy Murphy' Pecora, Daniel Polidori, Anthony 'Tony Nino' Saita, Robert Tarantino and Bufanio's uncle, Frank Carmen 'Fat Todd' Toto.
As a Soldier first under Catena and then Peter LaPlaca, who took over the crew following Catena's death in August 1967, Bufanio maintained influence over activities at Port Newark.
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| Bufanio (1960s) |
In addition to his role as foreman with Auto Terminal, he oversaw gambling operations and was later described by one source as the 'primary pick up man for numbers' at the Port.
The last mention of Bufanio in available documents is from March 1979, when an informant reported his presence in Miami the previous month.
By that time a rising power on the New Jersey waterfront was another of 'Fat Todd' Toto's nephews, recently inducted Genovese member Tino Fiumara.
Nicholas Bufanio died May 16, 1998 in Union, New Jersey.
