Editing Vito Genovese (section)

===Support for Mussolini and Fascist Ties === 
Before the Allied invasion, Genovese cultivated ties with Mussolini’s regime, donating 2 million lire (equivalent to $100,000 in 1940s dollars) to Fascist causes and befriending Galeazzo Ciano, Mussolini’s son-in-law and foreign minister. He also ran a construction company in Nola, allegedly to curry favor with Fascist officials. Gangsters and Goodfellas by Henry Hill and Gus Russo (2004), speculate that Genovese provided U.S. intelligence with insights into Fascist operations, leveraging his high-level contacts. His 1943 murder of Carlo Tresca, an anti-Fascist Italian-American journalist in New York, allegedly ordered by Genovese from Italy, is cited as evidence of his dual role—serving Fascists while positioning himself for Allied cooperation.

The Tresca murder, attributed to Galante under Genovese’s orders, is documented in FBI files. Genovese’s Fascist donations were reported by The New York Times in 1945.