Colombo Family: The Daily Grind

Last week I wrote about Joey “Caves” Compietello who gave such a valuable compelling look inside the Colombo Family. He has the classic tale of mob life that shows that the Mafia is far from dead.  The question is why in 2014 would anyone still strive to become a made guy?

Those who have reached middle management or at least stable status in the Mafia were born in the late 1960’s or the early 1970’s.  This was a time that the Mafia had a strong presence in many neighborhoods across the US.  The FBI was just starting to understand how it worked and how to use the RICO laws.

Many young up and comers never went past the 9th grade and dropped out of high school.  This does not mean they are stupid by any measure.  Many are smart but were bored by school and the lure of the streets was strong.

The 1980’s was a time in Brooklyn where many of those young men started stealing cars.  Many older Mafia members owned junk yards or auto repair places.  So these young high school dropouts could earn very good money by stealing and dropping off these cars to them.  

They would be chopped and parted out or tagged.  Tagging a car means they would buy a car that had been wrecked beyond repair that the insurance company sold as totaled. Once owning this frame they would remove the VIN ( Vehicle Identification Number) then steal the exact car and install the totaled cars “tags” on the stolen car. This was a huge money maker because they could buy a wrecked car for mere hundreds and sell the tagged car for thousands of dollars.

Once many of these young expert car thieves made some cash they would find their own spots to “Chop” or disassemble stolen cars. Many parts from a car are valuable and there is no way to trace them so they can sell the parts.

Money and greed are why many were killed by those around the Mafia.  The Mafia does not pay for killing.  Those around or inside the Mafia take part in murder to advance their position.

It is one of those unpleasant byproducts of the life.

Those who ran the Chop shops kicked up money to whatever Mafia guy they were “around” or “with”.  The more money they kicked up the more status they had.  They also wanted the cash so they could just live, so anyone stealing from them was literally taking food from their mouths.

Joe Meech or Joe Miccio was working with Joey Caves and others in a Chop Shop.  Dino Calabro was not made but he was “with” Tommy “Shots” Geoli, meaning he was kicking money up to him.  Joe Meech was selling parts from chopped cars and keeping the cash for himself.

Joe Meech was picked up by a guy nicknamed “Tigger” one day to take care of some car business when they stopped to also pick up Joey Caves.  Once in the car Joey Caves pulled out his pistol and shot Joe Meech in the head.  They drove to 17th and Shore Parkway where Joey pushed Joe Meech out of the car and shot him three more times to make sure he was dead.

In the book “Mob over Miami,” the author made it seem like Carmine Gargano was murdered by those around the Bath Ave Crew or Jimmy “Frogs” Galione cocaine crew.  Carmine was murdered because he was involved with Dino Calabro in a chop shop business and he wanted more money from it.  He was lured to a chop shop off MacDonald Ave where he was shot in the head and smashed with a hammer.  They buried him under the floor of the shop but his family came there looking for him.  They moved him out to the Colombo graveyard in Farmingdale Long Island where others would be buried.  The FBI would never find his body but they found hair and other traces of him in the MacDonald Ave chop shop.

The Colombo war in the 1990’s tore the family apart and life long friends were out looking to kill each other.  The older made Colombo members used the young thugs to scout out and kill others because they were not known.  The young guys would “Sit” on targets houses or businesses so they could get their routines down.  

Joey Caves “sat” on Joe Baudanza’s home and Joe Scopo’s home.  Joe Baudanza is a Colombo Capo who was part of the ruling panel that ran the family because boss Carmine “Gimpy” Persico is away for life.  Joe is also the brother of Carmine Baudanza a Colombo soldier and the Uncle of John Baudanza a Lucchese Capo.  Joe Baudanza was inducted, made or as the Colombo’s put it “Coming to the house” in a home on Long Island. I know because my friend Joe Campy was made at the same time and place.  

John Baudanza and Little Craig Marino were drivers and bodyguards for Joe Scopo.  They must not have been good because Joe was shot in front of his house after Teddy Persico Jr came home on a prison furlough for his grandmother's funeral.  Teddy was kneeling next to her body when he gave the order to murder Scopo.  Joey Caves did not murder Scopo but he sat on his house.  Joey would be made in Brooklyn by among others Joe Baudanza and at the same time as little Craig Marino.

The Colombo’s were aware that the FBI and others were always watching or listening to them so they adopted some new tactics. A thumb across the cheek was how they referred to a made guy and a thumb across the back was their way of indicating a Capo. All the families used methods close to this, in Los Angeles they would point to the chest for a soldier, the shoulder for a Capo and the sky for Pete Milano the Boss.  

The stories and the methods are the same all over the US in the Mafia families. Chicago is the same, just not as “Cowboy” as the rest of the families.  All the the families now have a good chance of continuing on because the FBI is busy with terrorists.  

The information they got from men like Joey Caves, Joey Massino, Sammy Gravano, Andrew DiDonato, Mikey Scars, Philip Leonetti, Al D’Arco and so many more is priceless and provides a glimpse into a secret criminal world that few on the outside can understand.

Hollywood will keep churning out their mindless gangster flicks with stars who carry a new pistol with designer gloves on their hands. Most of these will fall short of the life but all you have to do is look at the trials of the real deal.

Joey Caves should get a sentence like Sammy Gravano or any of the others that came before.  He has helped team USA in the fight against Organized Crime.

Joey Caves (Joseph Compitello) Colombo Takedown

Joe Waverly aka Joel Cacace is a wretched little man who will most likely die locked up.

He was a storied Colombo Gangster.  He owned a Sheesphead Bay Florist shop, and one time some thugs attempted to rob him and he wound up shot in the chest.  He fought off the robbers, taking one of their pistols and killing one of them.  He then drove to the local police station with the robber’s dead body. On the one hand he was tough, but he was also often a coward who hid behind his crime family connections.

Carmine “Gimpy” Persico, the Colombo Family Boss, was sent away for life in 1987.  He decided to have the Federal Prosecutor George Aronwald murdered.  So he sent word to Joe Waverly that he wanted it done.  Killing anyone in law enforcement is forbidden by the rules of Cosa Nostra.  But that didn’t stop the honorless Gimpy Persico or Joe Waverly.  Joe Waverly then has the two Carini Brothers kill Aronwald, only they made a mistake and they kill his father who shared the same name.  He then had the  brothers killed for their troubles and marries one of their widows.   If that was not enough, he then had the men who killed the Carini’s killed also.   He then ordered the killing of Police Officer Ralph Dols, because he married Waverly’s ex wife the same one he married after he had her husband killed.  Yet another blatant violation of Cosa Nostra rules.

Joe Waverly was targeted for murder a number of times including by some Gambino Mobsters that wanted him dead.

This is where Joseph Compitello aka Joey Caves comes into the picture. Joey Caves was a Colombo soldier who killed for Joe Waverly.

Joey would sit at the witness stand and describe how they would refer to Joe Waverly by motioning his hand across the side of his head.  That way they could avoid electronic surveillance, He talked about his life in the Colombo Family and about how he killed for him.

He would detail his hangouts along Bay Parkway in Brooklyn and then the candy store on 75th street and 20th Avenue Brooklyn.  He then detailed his rise in the 1980’s as a Colombo associate to a Made guy until he flipped in 2008.    He spoke about his time during the Colombo war in the 1990’s when he sat on or clocked Joe Baudanza for murder.  

He then described the house of horrors on 76th and 20th in Brooklyn where Dino Saracino lived.  They killed a man named Richard Greeves there and then the Colombo underboss Wild Bill Cutolo.  They lured Wild Bill into the basement and Dino Saracino shot him as he descended the steps.

Joey then described in detail the murder of Ralph Dols, where he parked his car and how they used walkie talkies.    

After all the murders he helped out with he was rewarded by the Colombo’s by being proposed for induction.  Joey Caves name was placed on a list that was given to other families in New York.  No family had any objections so he was made.  The day he was made they had him wait at Roll N Roaster in Brooklyn.   One of the guys to show up was my old buddy Little Craig Marino along with Dino Saracino and his brother Sebby. They were then driven by another Colombo named Jimmy Gooch to a house on West 6th and Ave U.  The house was Jimmy Gooch’s sister and they were told to wait in the front room. Joey Caves was called in second and there sat Joe Baudanza,  Tommy Geoli, Upstate Vinny, Dino Calabro and Funzi. There was a table with a bowl, a pistol, knife and picture of a Saint.  They picked his finger they had him touch the pistol trigger, the knife and the saint.  They then burned it in his hand.  They then all came together in the room and were introduced around and put with Capo’s. Little Craig Marino was put with Joe Baudanza as a member of his crew.  

Joey Caves was once a bad man, he killed  and then he had a change of heart.  Joey went with Team USA and that is a good thing because he solved a lot of murders and gave some families some closure by revealing where there loved ones were buried.  Joey comes up for sentencing this month and I hope they go easy on him.  

Colombo War: A Father-Son Story (Part III)

Less than three days after Bill Sr disappeared, the FBI reached out to Bill Jr.  One of the first things the agent said to Bill was that he was reaching out to give his condolences about the death of his father.  Bill Jr was caught off guard, and said “My father’s been gone less than three days, how do you know he’s dead?”  The agent responded saying anytime a man of his father’s rank in the family disappears, its the last time they are seen alive.  The agent continued on to ask Bill Jr if he would like to help the FBI investigate his father’s disappearance.  Bill Jr agreed on the condition that he didn’t have to wear a wire.  Within two weeks he had changed his mind and was ready to wear a recording device.  

A number of devices were used, ranging from hidden devices sewn into Bill Jr’s clothing to a cell phone that was wired.  One of the first people Bill Jr recorded was Jackie DeRoss.  Jackie was soon caught up in an FBI sting.  The FBI had set up a fake Manhattan businessman who was supposedly making a lot of money in shady businesses.  Jackie sent Downtown Ronnie to go with Bill Jr to shake down this “shady businessman” who was in reality an FBI agent.  That pretty much sealed Jackie’s fate as far as extortion, but left Bill Jr no closer to the whereabouts of his father.  Billy continued to go to his father’s club and hang with the rest of his father’s crew members.  He recorded a number of them speaking candidly about the family.  

When you wear a wire for the FBI you always have to be recording, its always on, friend or foe.  Anytime you talk on the phone, its recorded.  Sometimes you end up catching friends, or those you wish no harm to, on these recordings, which has repercussions for them down the road.  

A few days after Bill Sr had disappeared, Jackie DeRoss upgraded his ride to a leather topped Cadillac, which he drove to Bill Sr’s club, where he spoke to Billy, calling him “Buff” and pretending that nothing was wrong.  He did not even acknowledge the ongoing search for Billy’s father.  This proved to be very hard for Billy Jr but he had to play along because another one of the FBI’s unbreakable rules is “absolutely no violence at all.”  

Meanwhile, the Persicos, along with DeRoss, were busy trying to locate and steal any money that Bill Sr had anywhere, his businesses, his stashes, etc.  Billy Jr was now having a hard time making ends meet, so the FBI began paying him for his expenses and time.  After months of not knowing who killed his father, the FBI would charge Ally Boy Persico and Jackie DeRoss with the murder of Bill Sr. They used Billy Jr’s tapes and testimony from others to convict them.  Still no body.  There were a lot of rumors that he was dumped at sea, that he was incinerated, that he was compacted in a junk yard, that would go on until a young man named Joey Compantello was arrested with the Colombo underboss and others for some murders.  Joey Compatello aka Joey Caves, saw the writing on the wall and decided to flip.  He gave up the location of Bill Sr’s body.  The FBI began digging and soon found Bill Sr’s body in a Long Island grave.  This ended 8 years of anguish for the Cutolo family.

The Colombo family decided to get rid of Joe Campy partly because of what he said to Billy Jr on the tapes.  One day, Joe Campy was in Coney Island at the beach.  He noticed a blue van following him throughout the day.  He didn’t think much of it, because the FBI had raided him recently, and they had driven a similar blue van.  He just figured this van was the FBI agents.  After his day at the beach, Joe was stowing his beach chair in the trunk of his Mercedes when the van pulled up, the door slid open, and someone yelled, “Hey Joe Campy!” and they began firing shots at him.  He was hit but he continued to zigzag and run.  The van took off and he laid down on the ground.  An off-duty cop happened to be on the scene, and rushed over.  He told Joe to stay down because he’d been shot in the foot and the arm.  Joe was rushed to the hospital where he soon recovered.  He kept his mouth shut even though he knew who had shot him.  The Persicos soon started taking everything of Joe’s on the street.  They even tried to take his Harley Davidsons.  That was the final straw for Joe and he too began cooperating.   

This story of the lust for greed and power will show you what the mafia is like today.  There is no honor, there is no loyalty.  If you work your way up as an earner you will get killed by the greedy ones on top.

The Life in Breakshot

The Life.

That is what I write about in Breakshot. Anyone who reads it will see it is about the life and all that it is and was. The life looks glamorous and fun. The reality of the life is that it’s a grind. I wanted it and I gave up everything for it. It was not worth it.
Joseph Avila was murdered in what should have been the prime of his life. He would never see his kids grow up. Mike Rizzi the Capo who everyone ranked as a tough stand up Guy., died in diapers after years locked away. Mike did many years; he did a lot of work, in the end all that was for nothing. I have pictures of his funeral, just family and a few friends. No big Mafia send off for Mike.

I write about Mama Coca aka Griselda Blanco, she was the female Scarface. She made millions, so many millions, yet she lived in a state of war. She had to move, hide out. Her young son had to live with others to be safe. She did 24 years straight and then was deported. She lost two of her three sons to the life.
Osvaldo, the next Pablo Escobar made it to 1992 and Uber made it till 2000.

Bill Cutolo Sr lived the life; he made it to the upper levels. Yet when he was called to make peace he did. He helped put the Illegal Colombo Family back together. Then when greed got the better of those in power he was called in and that was that. 8 years his family waited and then finally they had closure.
The killers of Bill Cutolo did not fair well. Allie Boi Persico got life and so did Jokey Deross. Tommy Man Boobs Geoli is done. Big Dino is done and may have flipped. Joey Caves got on that boat first so he will live a life..

I used to think the Mafia was this sophisticated organization, then my eyes opened and I saw it for what it was in real life. A ragtag bunch of loser criminals.
Look at those idiots who shot Joey Camp. They followed him around in one of their wives blue mini vans. They had to yell out his name before they blasted him. Chickie you should have worked on your aim. Goodbye for the rest of your life.

That is what the life is about. It is a dead end. That is the point of Breakshot.