“Triple Cities”

James “Jimmy Flip” DeFilippo (1906-1952) was a small-time Sicilian gambler/hoodlum who operates in the “Triple Cities” Binghamton, NY Endicott, NY and Johnson City, NY.

James was born in 1906 in Pennsylvania.

According to newspaper articles it says that James was known at various times as a professional gambler, hard-working construction laborer, a barroom brawler and a politician. James had a criminal record that goes back more than 20 years. James was first arrested in 1928 for attempted burglary at Charles Benedetto’s soft drink establishment. He pleaded guilty to the crime and was place on probation. In 1929 James was arrested for violation of probation and was sentenced to serve 4 years in Auburn Prison. On April 05, 1941 james was arrested for assaulting the then mayor of Binghamton, Charles W. Kress whom DeFilippo served politically. For that slugging, James was sent to jail for a year.

In 1948 James was questioned by sheriff’s men and Binghamton police as a suspect in the death of Binghamton gambler Martin “Marty” Agricola. Agricola body was found in a creek bed off the Powderhouse Road. According to newspaper articles it says that Agricola had been complaining that some gamblers were permitted to operate in Binghamton and that he wasn’t. He also had threatened to cause that gambling establishments to be closed.

DeFilippo was known to have aggravated members of the gambling fraternity many of whom referred to him as “big mouth” or “stool pigeon.” He was distrusted by some gamblers as a men who carried stories to the police.

On July 06, 1952 “Flip” was found shot to death beneath a culvert under the Erie Railroad tracks in Westover. He was shot once in the back and once in the temple His body was found by two boys searching for scrap metal. It’s believed that the murder were a mafia ordered “execution.” James was laid to rest at the Calvary Cemetery located in Johnson City, Broome County, New York.

Sources:

Press and Sun-Bulletin
Binghamton, New York, Saturday, July 05, 1952 – Page 1: https://www.newspapers.com/image/253399161/?terms=James%2BDeFelippo&match=2

James DeFilippo: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/86252725