On this day in 1915, The Howard Hughes of the Mob was born in Brooklyn. Big Paul Castellano controversially succeeded Carlo Gambino as head of the Gambino crime family after Carlo’s passing in 1976. Many thought that Aneillo Dellacroce would take the reigns of the family, but he was in prison at the time of the decision, and couldn’t contest it. Castellano controlled the family for 9 years, ordering many hits during his time at…
On this day in 2012 Henry Hill passed away at the age of 69. For 25 years he was a Luchesse Crime Family associate who took part in the 1968 Air France Heist and then ten years later in the infamous 1978 Lufthansa Heist. In the Lufthansa Heist an estimated $5 million in cash ($18.1 million today) and $875,000 in jewelry ($3.2 million today) were stolen. In 1980 he became an FBI informant and the…
Anthony Casso built his empire through various rackets from drugs to garment district operations and everything in between. He was a natural born killer who worked as an underboss to Vic Amuso in the Lucchese Crime Family. However, many have said that Casso pulled the strings. In 1994 he plead guilty to 72 counts he had been indicted on, including 15 murders. His lifelong motto; “kill or be killed.” Casso Rising Through the Ranks Ruthless…
Over the next month we are going to be covering some of the depression era bank robbers, the Bonnie & Clyde’s, Baby Face Nelson’s, Pretty Boy Floyd’s and Harry Peirpont’s. You can read our article ‘The Three Musketeers‘ to read more about Dillinger, Floyd and Nelson. Our first article comes from a prison escape, and one of the masterminds of his era, John Dillinger. Dillinger was the leader of The Terror Gang and was said…
Salvatore Nurcaro was walking down a busy street in Naples when a hitman, jumps off his motorbike and walks up to Nurcaro, putting a gun up to his head and pulling the trigger… CCTV captures the moment where the hitman’s gun jams, as Nurcaro freezes then realizes what is going on as he runs off down the street. The hitman following closely behind. Bystanders are seen to dive for cover in the busy street as…
The popular TV series, Gomorrah, which looks into the inner-workings of the Camorra (which is lead by Don Pietro) is being blamed for a rise in violence on the streets of Naples. The story is told through the eyes of Don Pietro’s right-hand man, Ciro Di Marzio, and every time an episode airs there has been a notable rise in violence and crime. So much so that the Mayor of Naples has spoken out about…
Now aged 86, soon to be 87 in July of this year, Alphonse D’Arco also known as “The Professor” was the acting boss of the Lucchese Crime Family during the early 1990’s. But, Al wasn’t your stereotypical mobster. He didn’t drink (apart from the occasional glass of wine), he didn’t smoke, and he remained loyal to one woman, Dolores, who he married and had 5 children with. The first being Joe who was born in…
Early last week it was announced that Anthony Comello, a 24 year old, was accused of the shooting of Gambino Crime Family Boss, Frank Cali. Cali was shot 10 times as he tried to shield behind a parked car outside his home. The incident appears to be non-mob related, which complicates matters. Cali had apparently threatened Comello to stay away from his niece, and on the night of the killing Comello told detectives that he…
The Pizza Connection Trial began on September 30, 1985 and ended with convictions of 21 defendants in March 1987. The FBI had been investigating into a drug smuggling tie between the Sicilian Mafia and the Bonanno Crime Family since 1980, with the first arrests being made in 1984. What Was The Pizza Connection? Put simply, it was a massive drugs and cash laundering operation that would see $1.6 billion in heroin and cocaine moved into…
It was back in late 1978 when four of the five crime families of New York came together to embark on a lucrative racket that would make millions for the mob. The racket was to win contracts throughout New York City from the Housing Authority, to replace windows across the city. Each family designated a mobster or a couple of mobsters to control their respected interest in the scheme. The Lucchese Family were at the…
You have just been marked as a rat by your boss, even though you aren’t. A contract is soon to be put on your head, what do you do?
The last time a mob boss was gunned down in New York, you would have to cast your mind back to 1985, that was of course the assassination of Paul Castellano outside Sparks Steakhouse. 34 years later, and again the Gambino Crime Family take to the headlines, and this time 53 year old Frank Cali is the one lying on the streets of Staten Island. The shooting happened less than 24 hours ago, and currently…