Joe Watts

The rule for a long time was that you had to be 100% Italian to be inducted into a Mafia Family.

The rules were changed by the Commission in the 1980’s to include those who had an Italian father.  That way, guys like John Gotti Jr. could be inducted into the Gambino family. Some of the toughest, most loyal and biggest moneymakers are the non-Italians that were close to the Mafia. One man served the Gambino family from the days of Carlo Gambino to the dark days of Junior Gotti.  The man? Joseph Watts, a German who was one of John Gotti Sr.’s most loyal men.

When John Sr. barked, it was Joe Watts that would bite.  He was so trusted that he was in on the planning and the hit of Gambino Boss Paul Castellano.  The spectacular murder took place in midtown Manhattan during rush hour.  Joe Watts was a back up shooter wearing a fur cap and trench coat.  It has been said that Joe took over Tommy Bilotti’s Shylock loans after the murder.  Joe was known as a Shylock’s Shylock who gave out huge loans.

Frederick E. Weiss ran a real estate company but his real money maker was carting.  He made a fortune with others dumping solid waste.  Frederick leased an 80 acre site known as Port Ivory on Staten Island which bordered a protected area.  He would haul asbestos and medical waste and then dump it in the landfill illegally.  It was a huge money maker that pulled in a reported 7 million dollars.   On September 11, 1989 Weiss was on trial for RICO when he walked out of his apartment towards his car at 8:30am.  The shooters were waiting for him and they opened fire killing him before he hit the ground.  Weiss had sealed his own fate when he dropped his Gambino family lawyer.  John Gotti Sr. suspected that he was cooperating with the Feds so he ordered a hit on him.  Joe Watts was given the contract and he put together a crew to carry it out.  He had guys dig a hole and they had a house set for where the murder was to take place.  Weiss was supposed to come to the house and Joe Watts was waiting in the garage with a pistol but he never showed up.  It really didn't matter because three shooters from the New Jersey DeCavalcante family murdered him the next day.  

Joe Watts ended up getting taken down in a number of cases so he was locked up for a long time.  Junior Gotti hated Joe Watts because he thought Joe had made sure he was not able to kill Daniel Marino the Gambino Capo.  Junior Gotti has a book out now, which I am sure is a self serving pile of shit.  The guy went in and flapped his mouth to the prosecutors and he still pretends he is a stand up guy.  I do not care that he is a rat but I do care that he talks bad about those that have also cooperated.  He is no different.

There is a new book out by John Alite that gives the inside details of the Gotti family and their rule over the Gambino Family.  One of the things included in the book is a word for word transcript of John Jr.’s talk he had with the Feds.  He gave up Joe Watts and Daniel Marino for a murder.  He also told the Feds about a murder his father committed.  Too bad he won't tell them where they buried the poor man who worked at Castro Convertibles.

Joe Watts never killed Weiss but he pleaded guilty to murder because it was the best deal he could get. Weiss was a Government witness who was murdered so he could not testify.  The Government wanted to send a message that they would not let anyone murder their witnesses.  Joe Watts was able to plead out to 13 years and a 250k fine.  He will be 82 years old when he gets out.

Michael Persico and the Colombo Family

Michael Persico is the son of Carmine Persico and the brother of Allie Boy Persico.  Michael was always known as the straight son.  Michael was never inducted into the Colombo Family but he didn't need to be because he was the son of the boss and the brother of the acting boss.

Michael Persico has lived with all the perks of being a Mafia Boss without the exposure.  He has watched as his father went away for a hundred years, his brother for life and many relatives.  Never has Michael been in trouble until recently and that is mostly because of a man named Steve Marcus.  I met and recorded Steve and his son Jeremy while I was wearing a wire.  Jeremy was the part paper owner of D.M. Equipment Leasing with Eddie Garafolo's wife Alicia and he was a bouncer at a Mob run stripclub in Manhatten.

Michael took a really good plea deal where he would plead out to one count of extortionate extension of credit, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371.  This was a great deal considering what he was charged with at the time.  Michael gave Anthony Preza $100,000 for a shylock loan and he gave it to Teddy Persico Jr, James Bombino and a Cooperating Witness.  Michael did this to disguise the fact that he was giving the loan.

The Feds claim in the indictment and his sentencing memorandum that he took part in the murder of Joseph Scopo. They claim that he passed on the order for the murder along with his cousin Teddy Persico Jr for the hit.   They also write that Michael assembled the team of shooters to carry out the job.  They were Frank Guerra, Eric Curcio, Johnnie Pappa, Anthony Russo and John Sparacino.  He then provided the guns that would be used for the hit.  

They would murder Joseph Scopo and not long after Eric Curcio and John Sparacino would be murdered.  Johnnie Pappa would murder John Sparacino and then with the help of Anthony Russo they would cut off his penis, place it in his mouth before setting his body on fire.

These are wonderful people and they are what helped Michael Persico live the life of a Mafia Prince.  He ran a number of businesses thanks to his father and brother.  I was told by his cousin Teddy Jr that he would bring word from Carmine who was in Lompoc Federal Penitentiary.

There was a man named Michael Devine who lived on Staten Island and he owned a nightclub.  Michael never had anything to do with the mafia, never wanted to have anything to do with them.

Michael fell in love with a woman named Tori Persico and that would be his bad luck.

Tori Persico was the estranged wife of Allie Boy Persico who was locked up at the time.

Allie Boy was very jealous of the relationship so he had some of his men wait outside Michael’s condo complex on Staten Island.  When he pulled into the garage they were there and they shot him twice in the head and twice in the groin.  The next morning Michael was found in his still running 1991 Pathfinder dead.

The FBI had a tape of Michael Persico speaking with his brother Allie Boy about Michael Devine. Michael Persico was able to get the recording suppressed but that does not mean that he was not part of it.  

The Cosa Nostra or Mafia was never supposed to be about settling personal scores but the Persicos have broken every rule in the Mafia. They had Law Enforcement murdered, sold drugs and committed many other off-limits crimes.  

Carmine Persico was charged a long time ago in a hijacking case but he kept fighting it long after everyone else took their time which was not bad.  The case started in 1960 and it took five trials and 8 years for Carmine to be found guilty.  He ended up getting sentenced  to 8 years in Federal Prison.  Lets hope they grant Michael the right to a new trial and he gets a long time!

Joey D'Angelo

Joey D’Angelo Jr. grew up in the world of the Gambino Family.  He was the son of Joseph “Stymie” D’Angelo, the best friend of former Gambino Family Underboss Sammy the Bull.

He started driving Sammy around after his father was killed in a Brooklyn bar.  He became close to Sammy and even after Sammy started cooperating with the Government he remained a loyal Gambino Associate.  He was in Lou Vallario’s crew as an associate when he was sent for by John Gotti Jr.  Mikey Scars, a Gambino Capo, found him and brought him to a diner in Queens where he was paired with Mikey Yannotti to abduct and beat Curtis Sliwa, the outspoken radio host and founder of the Guardian Angels.  Joey was the driver of the stolen taxi cab that was waiting for Curtis to exit his apartment. He picked up Curtis and as soon as he was in the backseat Joey locked the doors. Then without warning an overzealous Mikey Y popped up from the front seat and ended up shooting Curtis  instead of beating him. Curtis was able to jump out of the moving cab despite being wounded.  The blunder must not have mattered much to John Gotti Jr. because in 1994 Joey D’Angelo became a made member of the Gambino Family.  He had taken part in a successful hit in Brooklyn in August of 1990 on a Gambino Associate named Edward “The Chink” Garofalo.  Joey had been one of the shooters on this hit.  The Chink was suspected of being an informant for the FBI but it is more likely Sammy just wanted his business. The Chink is the father of Eddie Garofalo, the Colombo Associate that has his wife Alicia on the show Mob Wives. The Chink was also the brother of Manny Garofalo a guy who was taken down on Mafia take down day but got no time.

Joey had come to learn the construction business but he had never actually worked a day in life. He had a series of no show jobs or job on construction sites where he sat around and read magazines.  He was later in Mikey Scars crew, who sat on the Gambino family Construction panel.  The so called construction panel was made up a few Gambino members who knew the business and knew how to make money from it.  They decided who got what jobs and how much the companies had to pay. They would also deal with the other crime families and their Unions.  This panel would bring in millions of dollars for the Gambinos.  Joey was busy picking up payments, kickbacks, making threats, extorting and if necessary committing assaults if the Gambino family needed it to keep the construction money flowing.  

I found out some new information when I was going through some of Joey’s files (court and FBI records).  Joey agreed to participate in a murder in the late 1980s for John Gotti Sr.  The target was a Colombo Family Capo named Greg Scarpa. Greg Scarpa, who was also known as “The Grim Reaper” was a tough earner who was very loyal to Carmine “The Snake” Persico.  Greg Scarpa had also been a long time FBI informant who used his government contacts to expand his power base. Scarpa was no ordinary informant, it has long been rumored that in 1964 when three civil rights workers disappeared and were murdered that the FBI put Scarpa on plane and he forced the burial information from one of the Ku Klux Klan members.  John Gotti Sr. wanted Greg Scarpa killed because he said he was a rat, which I find funny because look at what his own Underboss would do.  Fast forward and look what his own son John Jr. would do.  Maybe Gotti Sr. just wanted to get rid of Greg so he could control the Colombo Family.  Joey did sit on Greg Scarpa a few times but Gotti Sr. called off the hit.  Gotti Sr. told Gravano to let the Colombo Family handle their own business.

Joey would end up flipping in 2004 and he would help the FBI make cases on over 40 Gambino family members and associates.