Merlino's Luck

Joey Merlino, the flashy former boss of the Philadelphia crime family, is one of the luckiest mobsters in the mafia.  Merlino has survived numerous assassination attempts and gotten away with murder.  He has done a lot of time, but none that took him off the streets for good.  He has lived a charmed life with lots of toys.  

He was out in Los Angeles and even made it on TMZ at the airport with Howard Stern wack packer Johnny Fratto. I wonder if he actually got one of these wannabe Hollywood types to buy his life’s rights?

Merlino might have hit the prosecutorial lottery in his latest case.  Merlino, along with 46 other members and associates of the mafia, were picked up on charges ranging from illegal gambling to medical fraud in 2016.

The problem is with the informant in the case, John Rubeo, a former Genovese associate.

John Rubeo recorded over 800 conversations with various mobsters including Merlino.  

The problem is, John Rubeo erased a lot of the conversations.  

I have nothing for respect for the FBI.  All the agents I ever had dealings with were consummate lawmen.  They were all by the book and kept their word to me.

I wore two wires most of the time, really small MP3 recorders hidden in things like my watch. It only had an on switch and there was no speaker.  I recorded and dropped them off and then was given new ones everyday. All my calls I recorded through their system and I had no access to the system.  My car was wired, and again I only had an on switch.  I had to meet my handlers and there were always two of them, a couple times a week.  They would debrief me and write it down for 302’s.  I used to forward text and emails via email daily.  I wonder how was it possible for Joph Rubeo to delete any conversations.  How did they not properly debrief him?

Two agents and their supervisor are in hot water over the lapses.

It is possible that Merlino and the 46 others including a Genovese underboss and capo could walk free.  It does leave a huge hole in the case, because as defendants they are entitled to all the evidence even that which maybe exculpatory.

If evidence has been destroyed, how could they possible have a fair trial?

Joey Merlino may actually walk on this case and his life rights could turn into another really bad Hollywood mafia movie.

NYPD Assistant Chief Edward Delatorre, is one of the best real estate investors in New York.

This guy is so good that he was able to get four properties that belonged to various Bonanno family members, including Vinny Basciano and Dominick Cicale, located in the Bronx, at below market rates.

I wonder why he even bothers to work for the NYPD anymore.  A company owned by his wife bought a lot that at one time had a home on it where the Bonanno’s had an initiation ceremony.  The home belonged to Cole's mother.  The home is gone and the lot had a 990,000 dollar loan against it.  Delatorre's wife’s company bought it and sold it to an LLC owned by Delatorre.

Much like many of today’s political elite, these people are excellent investors!  Just look at some of the people in Congress and Senate who never hold a private sector job, yet leave office with millions in the bank.  Why do they not share their investment secrets with us regular people?

The Purple Gang and Michael Meldish

There have been few hits ordered or carried out by any of the five new york Families in the last few years.  They had a moratorium on murder because of all the heat it causes.

Vinny Basciano as temporary boss of the Bonanno family ordered  Randolph "Randy" Pizzolo murdered and it caused him all kinds of trouble.  The Boss Joey Massino wore a wire on him and got him to admit his part in it.

Michael Meldish controlled a group of crazy thugs called the Purple Gang that were aligned with the Lucchese, Genovese and Bonanno families.  They took their name from the Prohibition Era gang also known as the Purple Gang or the Sugar Gang that operated in the Detroit area. A lot of former members have been absorbed into some of the five families. They controlled a lot of the drug trade in Harlem and the Bronx during the 1970-80’s. Meldish was also believed to have carried out at least 10 hits during that time.  Others talk about his involvement in many more murders.

It can be no surprise that Michael Meldish was murdered after getting out of prison and returning to his old ways.  He was found shot to death in his car in November 2013 in the Throgs Neck section of the Bronx. He was in the passenger seat after being executed by a passenger.  

The list of people who wanted him dead is long because he pissed off many powerful people over the years.  It is being said that the underboss of the Lucchese family Matty Madonna may get wrapped up in this murder.  Michael Meldish was said to run errands for him, but they had a falling out.  I hear Michael Meldish didn't care what anyone said and he wanted to do his own thing.  It is all about cocaine and who controls Westchester and Bronx cocaine territory. It is being said that it was being mostly run by (westside) Genovese guys at this point.  

What I have heard is that the Lucchese family got the Genovese family's okay to take out Michael Meldish. The only problem is the guy who is charged, Christopher Londonio, killed him only a block away from where some Genovese guys like Ralph Balsamo, Patty Falcetti and others hang their hats.  The Genovese might have given their blessing, but no way did they want it around them.  Sounds like Londonio might have some problems if he gets out of this situation.  

Londonio is going to have to use all the good will he has with Matty Madonna if he is ever on the street again.

Londonio could always blame it on the guy who law enforcement claim pulled the trigger, Terrance Caldwell, an associate.  Caldwell is also charged with shooting a Bonanno guy,  Enzo “The Baker” Stagno, in the chest, but he lived.

These guys were active and brought in cash for the family.  Look at the price drugs cost everyone.  You deal with low lifes and loose cannons that go to guns and start slinging lead at the drop of a hat.

The future of the Mafia is with crimes like gambling, loan sharking and fraud.  

Crimes that draw less attention.  The headlines are not so big when it's just a gambling bust with no bodies.

Nicky the Mouth: Bonanno Capo

Nicky Santoro has had a long run in the Mafia.  He was part of the Sonny Black crew that was taken down by FBI Special Agent Pistone aka Donnie Brasco. He has been part of the Bonanno crime family for decades as an associate, made guy, capo and underboss.  Today he is an inmate with the state of New York awaiting trial.  He has gotten away with a lot over the years, but something he can’t get away from has caught up to him: father time.  He is in a hospital bed,  on a no bail hold, and he has filed a lawsuit against the New York City Department of Corrections for negligent and malicious treatment.

I was down at BaMonte's in Brooklyn one Saturday many years ago, and I met Nicky in the parking lot with a loud mouth Colombo guy.  Nicky gave us some NFL jerseys.  Soon after that he was made a capo, then back to a soldier and finally after the boss Joey Massino flipped, he was briefly the underboss of the family.

He has been locked up on a number of charges in the past, but now he is just old and sick.

The state case of enterprise corruption ended in a mistrial last year after two months of trial.

The state is going to retry it, but they want to keep Nicky locked up.

The heart of the case revolves around an online gambling book and the selling of prescription drugs. This is hardly like the Tommy “Shots” Gioeli case. The problem is he has gotten away with a lot in the past.

In 1994 Genovese associate Michael D’Urso and his cousin Bonanno associate Sabatino Lombarti were playing cards at San Giuseppe social club in Greenpoint, Brooklyn when Giancarlo “John” Imbrieco shot D’Urso in the head and then shot Lombardi.  D’Urso survived the hit, but his cousin was killed.

He went to his Genovese capo Rosario Gangi, who told him not to retaliate.  The shooting went down because another Genovese associate owed them $60,000 for a gambling debt.  D’Urso tried to get one of the people involved in the hit, but failed twice.  He was warned by Gangi that if it was him who was behind the failed attempts, he was in big trouble.  So D’Urso went to the FBI and started wearing a wire.  He wore it for three years and took down at least 60 guys, including two bosses of the Genovese family.

It seems John Imbrieco who is now more than 15 years into his 20 year plea deal has asked the judge who sentenced him to give him some leniency.

Imbrieco wrote Judge Leo Glasser and told him that he was a changed man.  He has been a model prisoner, taking plumbing classes and even spin class.

Imbrieco noted that his coconspirator had their case overturned. The Judge asked prosecutors to work out a timed served deal.

The family of Sabatino Lombarti are outraged.  Lombarti might have been a loan shark, but he didn't shoot two people in the back of the head for money.

Once again more drama in the mafia world. I wonder, since most of these guys are getting up in years, if they will find a litigator to keep on retainer who specializes in mafia “slip and fall” civil suits?

Sonny Franzese will be 100 this year and he has not filed one yet.

2016 Year End Mafia Wrap Up

This year closes with more mafia busts. You can see with the new indictments that the Mafia has changed along with the times. It has become a more secretive operation concentrating more on crimes that bring in a lot of profit and without risking as much prison time.  Gambling and loan sharking are the lifeblood of the mafia.  Other Italian crime groups are much more involved in the drug trade.

If they keep up with this low profile the FBI will stay busy with Islamic terror organizations and maybe the mafia will rebuild.

The reckless boss of Philadelphia, Joey Merlino, was taken down by the FBI.  He was involved in a multi-family gambling, loan sharking and medical fraud operation.  The FBI intercepted a Genovese wiseguy telling another member that Merlino was a boss.

Meanwhile, Joey Merlino was on the books as employed at a restaurant in South Florida.  This is the same Joey Merlino who visited Los Angeles and was caught by TMZ (not the FBI) with Howard Stern personality Johnny Fratto.

The video is online for anyone to watch.  Hey, maybe Merlino was visiting his relatives in Los Angeles.

There has been a lot less activity in Los Angeles since Pete Milano died.  Joe Isgro, the Gambino family man who used to be in Mikey Scars’ crew, was arrested for gambling and money laundering.  Isgro was a successful record promoter and producer.  He also produced movies like Hoffa.  I know some day he will produce the Lucky Luciano movie.  This time he was able to get out of the gambling charges with a misdemeanor plea, which was much better than his loan sharking charges in Los Angeles years ago.

The Bonanno family had a better year after last years Christmas party was monitored by the FBI.  Some of their men may face a retrial on charges.

The mafia is fairing much better because they are killing less. The “no murder policy” has done well, because juries are hard pressed to convict on big charges when there are no bodies.

There may be some fireworks coming up with the Genovese family’s Bronx crew for a murder.

Michael Persico, the “good son” of Carmine “The Snake” Persico and brother of “Allie Boy” Persico, managed to put off his sentencing again until 2017. I am amazed because others like Eddie Garofalo are already out from the case.  Teddy Persico Jr., his cousin, has a bit more time, at least until 2020.  Steve Marcus flipped and soon Michael Persico will be going bye bye.

The Montreal wing of the Bonanno family is still in turmoil and they continue to blast each other.

A member was convicted this year for taking part in killing former acting Bonanno boss Sal “The Ironworker” Montagna who was deported by the Feds to Canada.

The staples of the mafia: gambling, loan sharking, garbage, untaxed cigarettes, unions and construction will keep it in the money for some years to come.

Have a great 2017!

I’m sure there will be more to write about for years to come.

Rudy Giuliani

Rudolph W. Giuliani has been in the news lately because of his support of Donald Trump.  Most people know him as the mayor of New York City during the  9-11-2001 attacks by Islamic terrorists.

Rudy, as he is known, was the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

He would become famous for prosecuting Wall Street insiders Ivan Boesky and Michael Milken for insider trading.

One of the more famous cases was the Mafia Commission case.

The Mafia Commission was formed by Charles “Lucky” Luciano and the other heads of families in 1931.  They did it to stop the fight over who would be the boss of bosses.  The Commission approved who was boss of a family and set rules.  They also controlled a concrete club that took a peice of any building project that used more than two million in concrete.  

It was called the concrete club.  When a new boss took over the family they would send word to the Commission.  In 1981 when the boss of the Los Angeles family went away, Pete Milano became acting boss.  In 1984 he assumed the boss position and named his brother Carmen underboss. Carmen had worked in Cleveland as a lawyer and he knew all the guys in New York.  Carmen went to New York with some other Los Angeles guys to let the Commission know that Pete was the boss.  They approved it.  

Every boss had the same power, but the commission would settle disagreements between families. They also ordered murders like Bugsy Siegel, who stole money while building the Flamingo casino in Las Vegas.

They had a few moments when they were exposed.  One of those was the Apalachin meeting in 1957 that was raided by the local police.  

Rudy decided to crack down on the Mafia leadership instead of just settling for a few of the lower ranking members.  He used the RICO Act to bring them down.  The FBI had been able to infiltrate the Bonanno family with Donnie Brasco aka Special Agent Joseph Pistone.  He saw the civil war in the family from the ground level.  

They also were able to bug Paul Castellano, the boss of the Gambino family's home.  They bugged the Palma Boys Social Club where the front boss of the Genovese family, Fat Tony Salerno, held court every day.  They were able to bug the boss of the Lucchese family, Tony “Ducks” Corallo, in the car he was driven in everyday.  

They struck gold.  Fat Tony was heard talking to a soldier from the Cleveland family and another from the Buffalo New York family about settling a dispute over the boss of Buffalo.  He used the words, “The Commission.”

They also were able to place a bug in Jerry Langella, the acting boss of the Colombo family’s favorite table in Casa Storta in Brooklyn.  That bug gave them enough evidence to bug Colombo Ralph Scopo’s Union office where he discussed the Concrete Club business.

Rudy even subpoenaed retired boss Joe Bonanno who write the book, “A Man of Honor” about his life.  They were going to use what he wrote about the formation of the Commission to take down the Commission.   

The took down eleven defendants who would all be charged in the Commission's case.

He won a conviction against the eight defendants who made it to the end of the trial.

Rudy would retire from the US Attorney’s Office with a record of 4,152 convictions and only 25 verdicts were reversed on appeal.

As a US Attorney, Rudy Giuliani cleaned up Wall Street and brought down the Commission. As a result he had a large impact on the mafia family’s strength across the US.

A Capo Conversion and an Unchanged Boss

It would seem like every week there is something new in the papers about the mafia.  This week Joey Merlino was back in the news because the guy who wore a wire on him was revealed.

It turns out that the main informant was John Rubeo, a Genovese family associate who was with Genovese capo Patsy Parrello.  Rubeo found himself in trouble and was facing major time, so he went to team USA. In the age where bosses, capos and soldiers are flipping on those below, why wait to get flipped on?  He was kept busy because the government has over 800 hours of taped conversations.  He may have even taped Parrello looking to seek revenge on an Albanian gangster he thinks murdered his son.  

One thing is for sure: he recorded Joey Merlino a lot because they were together often.  Rubeo was sent by Parrello to work with Merlino in the prescription fraud, sham pain cream business.

Once again Merlino is done in by his own greed. He once told another associate that he would like to move to Florida not to get out of the Mafia, but to run a crew there.

The man he said that to was a criminal just like he was at the time.  Bobby Luisi Jr. was a capo under Merlino.  So much has changed in the decade since.  The two men both did prison time and yet they are now on different paths.

Luisi was arrested in a sting for selling 3 kilos of cocaine to an undercover agent in Boston, where he was running the Philadelphia family crew.  The informant was sent to Luisi from Philly by Merlino.  Luisi was running a large enterprise of gambling, shylocking and drug dealing.  He was kicking back $10k a month to Merlino from his Boston crew.

Some time in 1998 Luisi felt the needed for change in his life, and he found God. At the time what could he do? Tell the guys in the family, “Hey, sorry, I’ve had a change of heart.”  That would have put him on the fast track to a shallow grave.  As he was trying to figure out how to straighten out his life, he was arrested for selling cocaine and ended up in prison with a 15 year sentence.

It was while in prison he studied and earned his theology diploma.  He started a Bible study for inmates.  Once released, Luisi was relocated to Memphis Tennessee where he worked as a plant foreman until he became a full time minister.  Today he uses his experience as a criminal gangster to help others find a personal relationship with God.   

On the other hand, when Merlino was released he moved to Florida where he was charged for violating his parole for associating with a made member of the Philly family.  Merlino is looking at another decade in prison or at least a few hundred grand in legal bills and another case.  

Take Down 46

Another week in the life, and this week the FBI took down 46 guys from a number of families for various racketeering charges.  The names you will recognize, because these guys just never seem to learn.  

Jimmy Caci, who was the street boss of the Los Angeles family, told me a few months before he passed away that the life was not what it was supposed to be. It had gotten out of control and there was no honor or loyalty anymore. This was after my first book Breakshot had come out.  

So here we were, sitting at a diner and he is speaking to me.  I felt sorry for him because he was a relic from the past and his time had passed.  Jimmy was originally from Buffalo, New York and he knew the long time boss Stephan Maggadino.  He was on good terms with all the guys in the family when it was at it’s peak.  Jimmy grew up in a different time.  A time when Italians were looked down upon. Boxers used Irish names to get fights, and most policemen were Irish.  The mafia served a purpose then, but now it may be one more thing, like Sears, we do not need.

You can read more about Jimmy in Breakshot, which has been re-released.

Joey Merlino was the one time boss of the Philadelphia family.  He may still be boss, but he is in custody again. Merlino has spent more than half his life locked up. He is the son of former underboss Sal Merlino and is also nephew to soldier Lawrence Merlino, both of whom are now dead.  

Merlino has gotten away with murder but he just cannot seem to go straight.  Some guys just never get it.  

In better times Joey Merlino was out in Los Angeles with Johnny Fratto getting chased by TMZ. Merlino was out to speak about selling his life rights to a well known movie producer.  Maybe this story will go into the new Johnny Fratto book that Randazzo is working on.

The new indictment charges many of the guys with bookmaking.  They again used offshore websites, but did business here in the US under the name Costa Rican International Sportsbook. One of those charged was Daniel Marino Jr., a friend of Colombo Craig Marino and son of a Gambino heavy weight.  Many years ago Daniel was hiding out at Joe Dente's home in Los Angeles.

This time the indictment has a couple of crimes we have not witnessed in an indictment in a few years.  Healthcare fraud: where they had doctors prescribing an expensive compound and charging insurance companies.  They were also smuggling untaxed cigarettes into the New York area, where they were worth three million dollars.

They had a casino style gambling spot in Yonkers where they hosted poker and other card games.

John Lembo, a name that was well known to those around back in the stock fraud days, was busted for setting up credit card skimmers.  Lembo was a friend of Eddie Garofalo and Craig Marino.  

The FBI had an undercover agent deep inside that worked with Genovese guys and Joey Merlino.  They also had a cooperator wired up the whole time.  How many more will flip is still to be seen.  The majority of those arrested face up to 20 years, but this indictment seems to be missing the normal murders and other violence.  They are charged with assaulting a homeless man who was bothering patrons of a restaurant on Arthur Ave.  They did threaten to choke a guy out, but it does not read as bad as the others I have read.  I bet everyone pleads out for a lot less time.

One guy arrested is Ralph Balsamo, a Genovese guy.  Why he does not just run his family's funeral homes I have no idea.  I bet Balsamo has some more problems that are going to come up soon.  Stay tuned.

Bonanno Crime Family

The Feds and the NYPD are busy working terrorism cases and trying to slow down the flow of drugs from the cartels. This gives the battered Bonanno crime family time to rebuild.  

The Bonannos have come back a few times after they were written off as finished.  

Plagued by internal fights, they were kicked off the Mafia Commission in New York.  Then Joey Massino consolidated power and set the family on the right track.  They were proud of the fact that no made family member had flipped.  They closed their social clubs and made all kinds of rules to avoid detection.  The FBI was busy with others, and they grew in the shadows.   Joey became known as “the last godfather” because he was the only family boss free.  He even threatened death to anyone who said his name. It all came apart when his capos and his brother-in-law underboss turned.  He went through trial and was found guilty.  He then not only made a deal but also wore a wire on the acting boss Vinny Basciano while they were locked up.  Joey Massino became the first sitting boss to flip.  

The Bonannos have had a rough couple of years with boss after boss going away.  

It seems now they are in the process of rebuilding the family.  

The new street boss was once a teamster-working foreman who had a great job on sites checking driver’s union cards for local 282. He was pulling down a cool $100k a year when he was 25 years old.  The FBI spoke to the teamsters, and he was out.  

He was supposed to take care of a wayward Genovese associate who threatened a family member but failed to find him.   

Joseph Cammarano Jr. is the new underboss/street boss of the family while the boss Mikey “Nose” Mancuso is away.   He has moved to consolidate power.  He had a number of capo meetings that were closely watched by the Feds and the NYPD.

The largest meeting took place on a Sunday inside a Staten Island Barber shop.  All the movers and shakers in the family showed up.  They called it on a Sunday because they figured the FBI would not be working.  They even tried to run counter surveillance, but to no avail.  

Its really hard when the FBI has sources in your crew.  It's a lot harder today because if 4 guys get together there is a good chance 1 or 2 has flipped and is giving intel to law enforcement.

He then called a Christmas party at Bocelli's Restaurant on Staten Island that lasted for 6 hours.

It cost him 3 capos who were still on Federal parole.  They were all picked up for associating with people on the non-association list.  A judge denied them bail.

So for now the former Naval Submariner can rest in his home on Long Island.  One thing he can be sure of - law enforcement is watching his every move!

Battista “Benny” Geritano

Battista “Benny” Geritano is a long time Gambino Family Associate and a real tough guy who comes from a long line of wiseguys.  He once had a problem with a young made guy from the Lucchese Family.  The guy came to see him and the guy started telling him he had better watch the way he spoke.  Benny looked at him and said, “Why? Who are you? You got guns?  I got guns. Get lost.” This is how Benny felt towards guys who for one reason or another got inducted into a family and then thought they could throw their weight around.  He would respect you if you were a tough guy and laugh in your face if you were not, regardless of your status.

Alphonse "Allie Shades" Malangone was a Capo for the Genovese Family and a huge money maker.  He ran the Fulton Fish market and controlled a lot of the private carting industry. He also had restaurants and nightclubs in Brooklyn. His status as a money maker never stopped Benny from messing with Allie Shades’ girlfriend, Margo. He was told to stop and he kept it up.  Allie Shades banned him from the Brooklyn night spots Pastels and Turquoise. Benny didn't care and he would show up at the clubs anyway with the rest of his friends until the guys running the clubs would beg his friends to leave so they wouldn’t have trouble.  Margo and Benny eventually had a falling out and she ran to Allie Shades, who went to the Gambinos for a sit down over it.  Nothing happened to Benny though.

Benny’s stepfather Anthony "Shorty" Mascuzzio was once one of John Gotti’s inner circle.  That is, until he went to shakedown Bedrox  (a Mid-town disco) where he began pistol whipping the owner who then took his gun away from him and shot him dead. Benny’s stepbrother, Anthony Mascuzzio Junior is a Gambino who went away until this year for being part of a marijuana trafficking group. He also used a baseball bat on some black thugs that tried to steal his Rolex once.  

Preston J. Geritano was Benny’s uncle and a Genovese associate.  He was stabbed to death by his brother-in-law, Genovese mobster Andy Gargiulo, aka Andy Wilson, in front of Amici’s in Brooklyn.

Preston J. Geritano Junior was arrested for money laundering.  

Benny was part of what would be called the Night Drop Crew by the Feds.  The crew robbed banks by prying open the night deposit boxes and taking the deposits.  They developed remote controlled drills and used fishing gaffs to retrieve the cash.  

They all had walkie talkies and police scanners.  They got away with it from 1993 to 2003.

Benny ended up with a 71 month sentence for his part in the 10 year crime spree.

He went away and did his time.  He was busted for smoking weed when his urine test came back dirty.

An FBI Agent testified at his parole hearing that he was a suspect in four separate murders.  

Then Benny got into a fight in April of 2011 on Court Street in Brooklyn with Mark Iacono, owner of Lucali pizzeria. He was soon stabbing him on the sidewalk until both men were bloody.  Benny took off from the scene and was later found at a hospital with stab wounds including some in his back.  Benny and Mark both declined to press charges or testify in front of a grand jury.  Benny however did tell the court during his parole hearing some strange stuff.  He told the court he had been a Gambino associate and that members of a crime family wanted him dead.  He then told the court that he was trying to go straight.

The same FBI agent who claimed he was the suspect in four murders told the court that Benny was also a suspect in a bank burglary in Bensonhurst Brooklyn that took place over a holiday weekend.

The FBI had him under surveillance but failed to keep track of him.

Benny managed to get away with that stabbing but he was soon in trouble again.  This time on the night of December 23, 2012 he went to Nouveau bar in Brooklyn. He must have been in a foul mood because when a guy named Nunzio Fusco bumped into him Benny went crazy. Nunzio apologized to him and went to the bar for some drinks.  Benny followed him and Nunzio told him again he was sorry and did not want any trouble.  Benny shoved Nunzio’s girlfriend and Nunzio jumped to her defense.  Benny and Nunzio were soon trading punches until bouncers broke it up.  Benny took off and Nunzio noticed he was bleeding.   He had been stabbed three times.  Twice in the gut and once in the shoulder.  Detectives went to the bar owner who turned over a video of the incident.  The video showed Benny with the knife.  A few days after turning over the video to the police the bar owner was shot on Staten Island. He lived but he claims to not have seen the shooter.

Benny went to trial on the stabbing charges and was found guilty.  The judge gave him 12 years in prison.  He will be be 50 when he gets out and he will still be plenty tough.

Local 580 & Murder

John  Morrissey was the business agent for Local 580 of the Architectural and Ornamental Ironworkers Union. He helped the Lucchese Family and three other New York families steal millions of dollars in kickbacks from replacing windows for the Housing Authority.  They would rig the bids so they controlled the millions of windows that required replacing every year.  The Mafia would get 1-2 dollars per window replaced by the companies they controlled.  If an outside company replaced windows they would break them or send unproductive Union workers to do the work.   The Mafia families all profited off this scam for over a decade until a Genovese associate named Peter Savino who handled the scam started working for the FBI.

John, also known as Sonny or Sonny Blue, was a tough Irish Union man.  He was a longtime Lucchese associate and helped his friend Vic Amuso, the new boss of Lucchese family, get up to speed with the scam.  The problem was that Sonny Blue worked closely with Peter Savino for years.

Savino had done more than a dozen hand-to-hand payoffs, all observed by the FBI, with Sonny Blue.  When I was working with the FBI and we had to exchange cash or payoff someone we would pick the place if possible.  If the target picked it, I would relay that to the FBI and they would thumbs up or thumbs down.  I would say can we meet someplace closer blah blah.  The FBI would ring the area with surveillance vehicles and agents.  Then they would get it all on tape.  If the area was too crowded they would use vehicles with remote cameras.  I would try to do the hand off in the open or in a place where they could get confirmation.  This would seal guys (like Uncle Manny Garafolo) fate.   Then again, he was only given a very light sentence.

Back to the Lucchese Family.  Under Vic Amuso and the crack head Gaspipe Casso, they operated the family through fear.  That is no way to run any business.  Nobody felt they were on solid ground. So when Vic and Gas got confirmation from the other families that Savino was an informant, they had to take action.  They could not get Savino because he was in WITSEC, so they started murdering people who they felt were weak and would lead to them.

This put the tough Irishman Sonny Blue in their sights, even though he was never close to flipping.   They gave the contract to Capo Fat Peter Chiodo, a man who could weigh between 450-550 lbs and was 6’5”.  They told him: Sonny is talking, make him disappear.

Fat Pete grabbed his associate Tommy Irish to drive Sonny Blue and himself way out to Morris County, NJ, where they were building a housing development to meet with Vic Amuso.  Sonny Blue was happy to see his friend, so he was very relaxed.  Once they arrived at the site they all walked into a model home they were using as an office. Once inside, Fat Pete left to find Vic and then another associate walked up behind Sonny Blue with a silenced pistol.  Sonny Blue turned and saw what was happening and he yelled, “I Am not a rat!”  The man fired and then the pistol jammed. Sonny Blue lay on the ground in pain saying it hurts, hit me again.  The backup shooter removed a snub nose pistol and fired 4 times but it did not kill Sonny Blue.  He was still in pain until the man cleared the silenced pistol and finally killed him.  They used a backhoe to dig a hole out behind the home and they dropped Sonny Blue in it.  He would not be found until Fat Pete flipped.  He missed the windows case.  

This is another example of the poor leadership of Vic and Gas.  The decline of the Mafia starts in the leadership and then trickles down.

Genovese War Heroes

I thought I would write about legendary Genovese Capo Matty “The Horse” Ianniello, because it’s Memorial Day.  Matty, like many of those his age, stepped up when America needed them and served in World War Two.  He enlisted and quickly made corporal in the Sixth Army, where he was an artillery gunner in the Philippines fighting the Japanese between 1943 and December 1945.

He was in an artillery position when it came under machine gun fire. The problem was that it was another American unit doing the firing.  Matty crawled under the fire to alert the machine gunners of their mistake.  He earned a Bronze Star for that incident.  Matty’s artillery unit was charged by some grenade-wielding Japanese who were determined to stop the big guns from firing.  His unit used their small arms to kill the Japanese but not before several grenades were thrown.  Matty was wounded by the shrapnel and he was awarded a Purple Heart.  

Once home, he moved to Long Island and worked in Manhattan.  He was in the restaurant business, but he was not listed as the owner.  He came up frontman to deal with the State Liquor Authority. He was still known as Matty “The Horse,” a childhood nickname he was given after an altercation where onlookers said, “That kid is stronger than a horse.”  He was an imposing figure, but he also had a quick mind.  He started running with the Genovese Family and he was soon inducted into the family with the help of Funzi Tieri.

He then gained control of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters of Bus Drivers local 1181.  This gave him a lot of power to dictate which companies could bid on which jobs.  At one point Matty controlled over 80 bars and restaurants in New York.  He was made a Capo in the 1970’s.  Times Square was full of sex clubs and Matty controlled them.  As a side note, the Mafia also ran gay bars, which were illegal at the time.

The night that Joe Gallo was killed in Little Italy at Umberto’s Clam House, Matty was reportedly working in the kitchen.  Joe was said to say hello to him.  Joe would end up dying that night in the street right in front of the restaurant.

Matty, along with partner Benjamin Cohen, used straw owners very successfully to control bars, nightclubs and restaurants until their 1982 indictment.

They controlled the Mardi Gras in which they skimmed over two million dollars.  Some of the others were the the Peppermint Lounge, the Haymarket and the Grapevine.  In Little Italy he controlled Umberto’s Clam House. The FBI had wires up and were able to catch them but it only slowed Matty down for a few years.  

In 1995 Matty was free once again and he stepped up to take over for the imprisoned Chin Gigante as acting boss.

He moved even deeper into labour racketeering, working with carting companies hauling garbage and even gravel.  

He earned millions until the FBI took him down in 2005.  He pleaded guilty in 2006 and was sentenced to two years in Federal Prison.  He was released in 2009 and lived under the radar until his death in 2012.  Matty was not the only Genovese war hero.  Venero Frank "Benny Eggs" Mangano, who is now acting boss at 93, is also a hero.  He was a tail gunner on a B-29 and flew 33 missions racking up a number of prestigious medals.  If any of you have ever been in a B-29, you know this is impressive, because being in the small gunners turret in the rear is crazy!  There are only a few B-29s left in the world, and they tour around the country visiting small airports.  I highly recommend checking them out when they are in your area, and you can experience Benny Eggs (and so many other war heroes) seat of bravery for yourself.

Genovese Family - Tony D

Anthony Palumbo known as Tony D is a long time Genovese Family Soldier who at times was an acting Capo in the family.  Tony D was in the crew of Jimmy “Nap” Napoli who as a Genovese Capo ran the largest numbers game in the country.  He also had the biggest sports book, he was a bookie’s bookie.  When Jimmy Nap passed away on December 29, 1992 Tony D was tapped to take over the crew.  Vincent “The Chin” Gigante made Tony D the acting Capo of the Brooklyn crew. Tony D had inherited a very important crew that was deeply involved in the Gas Tax scam with members of Russian Organized crime.  They were extorting millions from the many Russians based in Brooklyn participating in the scam.

This is the way the scam went: everytime you go to a gas station to fill up your tank there is a tax on every gallon of gas. The tax is both state and federal and today in New York it is 63.49 cents.

When the organizations first got involved in the gas tax scam, individual stations would pay the tax for each gallon they sold.  So each station started selling their gasoline and keeping the tax.  They would sell the stations on paper before the taxman started looking for their tax.  This brought in good money but its was small cash transactions.  Then the Government decided that they would change the laws and make the gasoline wholesale distributors responsible for the tax.  This was great news for the Mafia because now they could steal the taxes on a grand scale much easier than from individual stations.  The Mobsters came up with what would be called a, “daisy chain.”  They would open up corporations and Company A would sell the gas to Company B who would sell it to Company C but the gas itself would never move.  It was all on paper.

So this gas tax scam and the bookmaking brought in a ton of cash to the Genovese Family and the man keeping it flowing was Tony D. Tony D was part of a group made up of members of the Gambino, Genovese, Colombo and Lucchese Family.  This group was known as “the association” and they would get their share of the gas tax scam from the Russians and other crime groups. They were an extortion Cartel for the Mafia.   A Russian Gangster named Victor Zilbert who was a big player in the Gas Tax scam went to Tony D to have a hitman that worked for him killed.  The plan was for Tony D to lure the hitman to a Bronx Social club and murder him.  He was never killed because the Feds took everyone down.

A Genovese associate named Angelo Sangiuolo was ripping off the gambling business run by Tony D.  Tony D went to the boss Vincent the Chin Gigante and asked for him to be murdered.

The Chin ordered Angelo’s cousin to set him up.  Angelo Prisco was a powerful Capo in the family so he had two associates carry out the murder.  He told his cousin that the two men were going to settle a beef he was having with someone.  Angelo got into the backseat of a van in the Bronx driven by Paul Gaccione. Seated in the passenger seat was a man named John Leto and when the drove under the elevated train track a train rumbled by on the tracks. John Leto turned around and shot Angelo multiple times.  Paul then drove to a McDonalds at 1515 Williamsbridge Road in the Bronx and left the van and Angelo’s body.

Sometime later at the the Russian Club Rasputin in Brooklyn, John Leto and Paul Gaccione were introduced by Angelo Prisco to Tony D as the guys who took care of the Angelo Sangiuolo problem.

The feds put together a RICO Case and on May 5 2011 Tony D was sentenced to 10 years behind bars along with three years of supervised release.

Sports Betting Fuels the Mafia

Sports betting is the lifeblood of the Mafia.  Just last week, the state of NJ arrested a group of Genovese men for gambling.  The Genovese crew brought in 12 million dollars in sports betting revenue and they cashed millions more in checks.   They take down one gambling group and the next day it is business as usual because people love to bet.  This is another example of wasting our tax dollars, stopping people from providing a service the public wants. The families then use this cash to fund their other enterprises.

One Genovese soldier that was well known around Bay Ridge, Brooklyn was Andy Wilson aka Andrew Gargiulo.  Andy was a bookmaker who ran a huge online book but could be found most days at a real estate office in Bay Ridge.  

Andy was close to Fat Gigi Inglese and I had dinner with the two of them when I lived in Brooklyn.

Andy was a nice soft spoken man who dressed well, so I was surprised to see a few years ago that he was arrested for murder.  

The man he killed, Preston Geritano, was his wife’s brother and at one time was a Gambino associate.  Geritano had an ongoing feud with Bartholomew “Bobby” Boriello and Bobby had even taken shots at him on the streets of Brooklyn but had failed to kill him.

Bobby was very close to John Gotti, in fact he was a favorite driver of the boss of the Gambinos. He would later be assigned to Junior Gotti’s crew and eventually the Capo.

This is where we come full circle because Bobby is another victim of the Mafia Cops.  Vic Amuso and Gaspipe Casso wanted to send a message to John Gotti Sr. So they put Louis Eppolito and Stephen Caracappa on his tail.  They supplied information to Gaspipe who gave the contract to Frank Lasterino.  Lasterino ambushed Bobby in front of his Brooklyn home, shooting him two times in the head and five times in his torso.  The Gambino family immediately blamed Geritano who they had wanted dead.  After Bobby took his shot at Geritano, he went to his friends in the Genovese Family.  There was a sit down between the Gambinos and the Genovese family because Geritano was a Gambino associate.  The Genovese went to bat for him and a deal was struck.  The deal was that Geritano would be released to the Genovese Family and that he would drop the feud with Bobby. If Geritano ever took up the feud again, the Genovese were sworn to kill him themselves.   So when Bobby was killed everyone blamed Geritano.  John Gotti sent Junior Gotti to a sitdown with the Genovese Family.  Junior Gotti met with Barney Bellomo, the Genovese street boss, and demanded that they keep their word.

This is where Andy Garguilo comes into the picture.  Andy owned Amici’s restaurant in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn and Geritano came into the restaurant with a stickball bat and hit Andy with it.  The fight spilled out onto the sidewalk where they were rolling around on the sidewalk.  Geritano was stabbed five time with a hunting knife that Andy carried and was killed.  After his death it would come out that he didn't kill Bobby after all.  Andy would get 20 years for the self defense killing, I guess his luck had ran out.  He had forfeited 1.5 million when he was busted for bookmaking but this time he was really going away.  A side note: Amici’s had been owned by Sammy the Bull at one time.

The Mafia and bookmaking will continue to go on no matter how many men are busted and sent away.