The Nevada Gaming Commission will review whether to remove William Cammisano Jr. and Peter Ribaste from Nevada’s List of Excluded Persons, or what is more commonly known as the Black Book. Both men, now deceased, were mob figures with ties to Kansas City and were previously barred from Nevada casinos.
Nevada Gaming Commission Might Remove the Mobsters from Its List
The Commission’s standard practice is to remove individuals from the list following their death. Cammisano died in 2023, while Ribaste passed away in 2021, both men reportedly succumbing to Covid. Cammisano was added to Nevada’s Black Book in January 1997 after the Nevada Gaming Control Board cited reports that Las Vegas authorities had identified multiple visits to the city by alleged Kansas City organized crime figures.
Meanwhile, regarding Ribaste, a 1998 Las Vegas Sun article outlined Ribaste’s longstanding connections to the Kansas City mob. The news outlet alleged that Ribaste once operated under the direct authority of Kansas City crime boss Carl Civella and underboss Carl DeLuna.
Now that both men are dead, the Nevada Gaming Commission is considering removing them from its list of personas non grata. While the Commission does not have a fixed schedule or quota for discussing who to remove or add from its list, such decisions occur occasionally. The last time the Commission updated its Black Book was in April, when the regulator made a rare decision to ban an illegal bookmaker.
Who Exactly Were the Two Mobsters?
The son of Kansas City mob enforcer William “Willie the Rat” Cammisano Sr., Cammisano was added to Nevada’s Black Book in 1997. According to a 1989 Associated Press report, Cammisano was accused of killing two organized crime figures, one in a bombing and another in a shooting, to maintain his standing within the Kansas City syndicate. The report also alleged that he met with members of the Chicago Outfit to discuss the Kansas City family’s share of proceeds from the sale of four Argent casinos. Furthermore, Cammisano apparently made money from illicit activities, including skimming operations at Las Vegas casinos.
Ribaste, who worked directly for Kansas City mob boss Carl Civella, moved to Las Vegas’ upscale Spanish Trails development in 1989, according to the Associated Press. He later entered the local automobile business by acquiring an ownership stake in the Carriage Car III dealership on South Decatur. The purchase was financed in part by a $100,000 loan from Horseshoe Club co-owner Ted Binion. Interestingly, this transaction contributed to gaming regulators’ later decision to revoke Binion’s gaming license.
Ribaste’s ties to organized crime persisted in the years leading up to his placement in the Black Book. One year before being listed, he was seen in Las Vegas riding in a car with a made member of the Kansas City crime family.