Olean and Bradford Murders Including Joseph Barber
JOSEPH BARBER MURDER
AND REVIEW OF AREA KILLINGS: Olean & Bradford
Bradford, Pa. Tuesday, May 5, 1931. McKean counties authorities today snapped together two links in the chain of evidence leading up to the murder of Joe Barber and Olean, neighboring New York State city, again was the center of gangland investigation.
Police were attempting to find out just who called County Detective Jack Allison on the morning of the murder of Barber. One thing was definite known to them. The telephone call was made from a public pay station in Olean.
BELIEVED SLAIN IN NEW YORK STATE Weaving together the bits of evidence, authorities reached the conclusion that Barber was slain in New York State early Monday morning. They also believe that the killers then drove to the point on Red Rock Hill where the body was found and after disposing of the alleged gangster and bootlegger�s body returned to Olean where they informed the McKean County official of their act.
Allison was aroused from his bed about 4 o'clock Monday morning by a mysterious phone call. A voice, which he was unable to recognize, informed him that a friend of his would be found at the spot where the body was discovered by two road workmen.
Olean has long played a part in the feud between Italian gangsters in this section. More that a dozen men have been killed either in the vicinity of Olean or Bradford during the warfare, which for a long time was attributed to a vendetta with its roots in the old country.
At one time the New York State city was alleged to have been the headquarters of a band of Italian Blackhanders. Unsolved murders doted police records for several years.
CLIMAX CAME IN 1935
The climax to the open warfare in Olean came with the murder of John Barber, brother of Joe Barber, on May 21, 1925. Conviction of the man identified as the killer of John led to the apparent breaking up of the activities in Olean. The killer, who was alleged to have been brought from Youngstown, Ohio, to get Barber because of a feud in the old county was sentenced 20 years to life.
Movements in the Italian underworld shifted to Limestone and Bradford. Frank Fedele of Bradford was killed at Limestone while visiting with Midgie Delguidce.
Olean had not reached the end of its wave of crime, however. The wave of murders continued. Michael Scordo was found murdered at Emporium. Next two Olean Italians, Vincent Tillini and Dominic Pisano were slain as they sat in the front of their automobile behind the brewery in Bradford, with two supposed friends in the back seat.
Dominic Scordo of Olean was shot to death while sitting at the kitchen table in his home. Tony Minetti was killed at the corner of Spruce Street and Forrest Avenue. These killings took place within a year or two after John Barber was murdered. In September of 1927, Joseph Scutella, an Olean grocer, was found stabbed along the Allegany River.
Frank Femia of Bradford and Thomas Delguidice of Limestone were tried for that murder and acquitted. (Femia left the area and moved to Allentown, where he sat up a supposed restaurant in 1928, but was closed down by the authorities. His whereabouts were a mystery until he returned to Olean and was found slain along Rock Cut near Allegany in 1936.)
Midgie Delguidice's home was peppered with gunshot but only his wife was home not unharmed. He continued on with his bootleg buddies and his establishment was raided several times.
The murder of Capito, whose body was found at Cherry Hill in Olean, was the next to follow Scutella's demise. The following years, an attempt by Rotundo was made to murder Capito's cousin James Caputo at Cherry Hill, but he was able to escape death because of hunters in that vicinity. Rotundo than left Olean headed for Pennsylvania.
The body of Patsy Lopresto was found on a back road near Limestone in March of 1929. It was said that he was hired as a hit man, but instead he was stabbed to death. This became know as the 'Frog Murder.'
An attempt was made on the life of Al Ritchie in September of 1929 as he exited the Christopher Columbus Lodge on Union Street in Olean. Although he was wounded, he survived, moved to Bradford where he became a snitch with an badge for the District Attorney of McKean County.
During 1930 Al Richie along with Joe Barber and Tony Mussari, who was shot and wounded, were placed on the 'spot'.
Sam Nicolletti of Brooklyn came to Bradford in 1930, met with John Santore on the Davis Street Bridge to discuss the next murder. Instead Nicolletti was shot and killed by Santore after an argument as to the payoff for the murder to be committed by Nicolletti. It was said that Joe Barber was the man who brought Nicoletti to Bradford to kill Ritchie. In the meantime, the body of John Arlia, of Bradford was found beside a church in Buffalo. He had been stabbed and shot, reason for his murder was that he talked too much.
After three unsuccessful attempts were made to kill Barber, he then fled to Punxsutawney. Santore was jailed at Smethport, Pa. awaiting his trial.
On February 1, 1931, Joe Valentino and John Cook, both of Salamanca were found murdered, their bodies were discovered at Tuna Crossroads. Some years earlier, Valentino had shot and killed William Lamphere of Salamanca in Bradford. Valentino was tried and claimed self-defense as Lamphere was attempting to enter Valentino's home.
Then on February of the same year, Liberatore Fraterangelo was shot at the intersection of Wayne and First Streets in Olean while he was on his way home. He escaped injury but one side of his car was shattered.
In March, Francisco Barbaligi, who was another important witness in the Santore trial, disappeared. His body was found in a ravine near Bells Camp on the Rock City Road.
The murder of Joseph Barber took place less than two months later. He had been shot four times at close range, filling his powder stained cap with blood.
Al Ritchie and Tony Maccio were murdered just a month later at Bradford. The following year a John Minnito was shot and killed in Olean in the vicinity where John Barber was murdered. For a year and a half the guns were quiet, until Sam Maduri was slain in Bradford as he slept in his bed.
The death of Frank Femia, that was a mystery to all, until I discovered his demise while doing my research about Olean. For more stories about these murders see Black Hand Stories under Crime and Accident Reports copyright 2007 Eileen McCartan Smith
Olean and Bradford Murders Including Joseph Barber
