Frank Cotroni | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Francesco Cotrone 1931 Montreal, Quebec, Canada |
| Died | 17 August 2004 (aged 72) Montreal, Quebec, Canada |
| Other names | Le Gros ("the Big Guy") |
| Occupation | Crime boss |
| Children | Francesco Cotroni Jr. Paolo Cotroni |
| Parent | Nicodemo Cotroni |
| Relatives | Vincenzo Cotroni (brother) |
| Allegiance | Bonanno crime family Cotroni crime family |
| Conviction(s) | Drug smuggling (1975) Manslaughter (1987) Drug trafficking (1997) |
| Criminal penalty | 15 years' imprisonment; served four years Eight years' imprisonment Seven years' imprisonment; served four years |
Frank Cotroni (born Francesco Cotrone;[1] Italian: [franˈtʃesko koˈtroːne]; 1931 – 17 August 2004) was an Italian-Canadian crime boss of the Cotroni crime family in Montreal, Quebec.
Cotroni was born in 1931, in Montreal. His family, including his brother Vincenzo, had immigrated to Montreal in 1924, from Mammola, Calabria, Italy. His brother founded and headed the Cotroni crime family. Cotroni's principle illicit businesses were drug trafficking and labor racketeering, while he also worked at various times as a restaurateur, boxing promoter, owner of strip clubs in both Montreal and Toronto, ceramic manufacturer, and owner of a vending machine company. Cotroni had connections with the Bonanno crime family, and in 1975, was convicted in the United States of smuggling cocaine and sentenced to 15 years in prison. In prison, Cotroni met fellow inmate French-Canadian Réal Simard, and Simard would become Frank's driver and eventual hitman upon their release in 1979.
During the violent Mafia war with the Sicilian Rizzuto crime family in Montreal, Paolo Violi (who was acting capo for Vic Cotroni) and his brothers were murdered along with others through the mid-1970s to the early 1980s until the war ceased. The Calabrian faction continued to operate with Frank as acting boss for his ill brother after the early 1980s. In the early 1980s, Cotroni ordered Simard to commit several murders. In 1983, Simard and associate Richard Clément killed Mario Héroux, but unknowingly only severely wounded Robert Hétu, in their Toronto hotel room after they conspired to kill Clément. Hétu testified against Simard and Simard was arrested and convicted, until he became an informant against Frank Cotroni and the family; this resulted in an eight-year sentence for manslaughter against Frank, his son Francesco, and two associates in 1987. In 1989, Cotroni lost his court fight against extradition on narcotics charges in Connecticut that dated back to 1983, on the condition that he serve his time in Canada. In 1997, he was again charged on narcotics violations, and released from prison in 2002 after serving four years of a seven-year sentence. In the final two years of Frank's life, he released a cookbook, Cuisine des souvenirs et recettes (Kitchen of Memories and Recipes), published by a subsidiary of Quebecor Media. Cotroni died of brain cancer on 17 August 2004.