Joseph Salvatore "Skinny Joey" Merlino (born March 13, 1962) is an Italian-American mobster and reputed boss of the Philadelphia crime family....Joey MerlinoBornJoseph Salvatore Merlino March 13, 1962 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.OccupationCrime bossSpouse(s)Deborah Merlino ​ ( m. 1997)​Children27 more rows
Frank RaganoFrank Ragano (January 25, 1923 – May 13, 1998) was a self-styled "mob lawyer" from Florida, who made his name representing organized crime figures such as Santo Trafficante, Jr. and Carlos Marcello, and also served as lawyer for Teamsters leader Jimmy Hoffa....Frank RaganoYears active1952-19903 more rows
As the Bruno crime family under the 20-year reign of boss Angelo Bruno (1959–1980), the family enjoyed an era of peace and prosperity.
Scarfo's attorney David Bahuriak told NBC10 he was trying to get his client released on parole before he died. "Mr. Scarfo was definitely an infamous character.
John Gotti's Lawyer, Miami Criminal Defense Legend Albert Krieger, Has Died.
The salaries of Mobsters in the US range from $16,830 to $92,110 , with a median salary of $36,200 . The middle 50% of Mobsters makes $30,280, with the top 83% making $92,110.
The lives of gangsters are the subject of numerous movies and books, some of which were quite popular, and one name is constantly referenced as the most notorious gangster that ever lived. That man is Al Capone, also known as the “Public Enemy No. 1”.
Joseph ValachiResting placeGate of Heaven Cemetery, Lewiston, New York, U.S.Other names"Anthony Sorge", "Charles Charbano", "Joe Cago", "Joe Cargo"OccupationMobsterKnown forFirst Italian-American Mafia member to acknowledge its existence publicly Valachi hearings10 more rows
The smartest mobster: Al Capone was more famous but his associate and then successor Frank Nitti was the organizational brain that built the notorious Chicago Outfit which dominated the city from Prohibition right through to the JFK era, when it was run by Sam Giancana.
January 13, 2017Nicodemo Scarfo / Date of death
Mark, then only 17 years old, had been taunted for years by classmates about his father's criminal activities. Increasingly despondent over his father's possible imprisonment, Mark Scarfo hanged himself in the office of his father's concrete supply company in Atlantic City.
Victor AmusoAlthough in prison for life, Victor Amuso remains the official boss of the Lucchese crime family. On March 27, 2018, Lucchese crime family soldier, Dominick Capelli, and nine associates were arrested as part of Operation "The Vig Is Up".
When Pattakos was sentenced to jail to serve life for murder, mobster Chelsais "Steve" Bouras of Upper Northeast Philadelphia took over. Throughout the 1970s until 1981, Bouras headed the Greek Mob in Philadelphia, participating in mostly loansharking, extortion, methamphetamine trade, and illegal gambling. Bouras directed the mob efficiently, and ...
Philadelphia's Greek Mob, also known as the Philadelphia Greek Mafia or simply the Greek Mafia, are a low-profile criminal organization of ethnic Greek Americans in Philadelphia with alleged connections to the Italian Philadelphia crime family and the Greek Velentzas crime family of New York city.
Philadelphia crime family. K&A Gang. Velentzas crime family. Greek mafia. 90-84 South Cartel mafia. Philadelphia's Greek Mob, also known as the Philadelphia Greek Mafia or simply the Greek Mafia, are a low-profile criminal organization of ethnic Greek Americans in Philadelphia with alleged connections to the Italian Philadelphia crime family ...
History. The Greek Mob was formed in southern Greece by the original boss Steve Pattakos. Pattakos also had strong ties with the Karakostas family of Macedonia in Northern Greece. When the Karakostas family was run out of power in the 1960s, Pattakos decided to move his operations to the culturally diverse America.
On May 1981, at the Venetis Greek restaurant in South Philadelphia, Bouras and his girlfriend Janette Curro were gunned down while dining with Ray Martorano, and Philadelphia radio personality Jerry Blavat. Curro's family had ties to the Mafia: her nephew Joe "Crutch" Curro, a made member of the Philadelphia Cosa Nostra, was known to the FBI since a 1976 FBI wiretap at Frank’s Cabana Steaks in South Philadelphia — a base of operations for mob capo Frank Sindone, until his death in 2004.
resulted in charges being filed in August 1987.
Curro's family had ties to the Mafia: her nephew Joe "Crutch" Curro, a made member of the Philadelphia Cosa Nostra, was known to the FBI since a 1976 FBI wiretap at Frank’s Cabana Steaks in South Philadelphia — a base of operations for mob capo Frank Sindone, until his death in 2004.
Philadelphia Mob Boss Angelo Bruno. Mafia Kingpin Angelo Bruno died a particularly violent death in Philadelphia, an act that sparked a violent mob war that raged on throughout the 1980s. However, for over two decades, Bruno was nicknamed “the Gentle Don,” and was better known as the mob kingpin who brought order, organization, ...
The Philadelphia mob was renowned for constant infighting, often leading to bloody wars in the streets as rival factions fought for control of the rackets there. Bruno approach organized crime more like the legitimate businesses he ran; uncontrolled violence in the streets, in his eyes, was bad for the Mob’s bottom line.
Angelo Bruno after his assassination. Eventually, Angelo Bruno succumbed to the gang violence he had tamped down so successfully as the Godfather of Philadelphia. On March 12, 1980, Bruno was assassinated with a shotgun blast to the head while sitting in a car outside his South Philly rowhouse.
Bruno’s father established a grocery store, and young Angelo worked there tirelessly, often to the detriment of his education.
His death set in motion a violent gang war that that pitted different factions of the Philadelphia Mob against one another and left several top gangsters dead in the streets; one of them, Phillip “ the Chicken Man” Testa, was even blown up with a nail bomb on his front porch.
While he is gone now, and the Philadelphia Mob is a shadow of its former self, Angelo Bruno left a mark on Philadelphia ...
In 1959, after a long power vacuum in Philadelphia due to Dovi’s death and the arrest of other high-ranking mobsters, Angelo Bruno became the leader of the Philadelphia Mafia.
The Philadelphia crime family, also known as the Philly Mob or the Favito crime family is an Italian-American Mafia (La Cosa Nostra) organized crime family based in Philadelphia and surrounding neighborhoods.
He was released on June 1, 2020 due to COVID-19 concerns.
July 24, 1978 – Late-1970s Philly Black Mafia leader Clarence (Squeaky) Hayman is shot to death after an argument with an extortion victim of his named Barry Wright. April 9, 1979 –Philly Black Mafia drug chief Alfred Clark is killed as he approaches mosque by man dressed in Muslim garb.
Founded in the fall of 1968 by Sam Christian and several of his loyalists, PBM reigned high, mighty and murderous through the underworld’s “Superfly & Disco Eras” and beyond. Below is a timeline of murders attributed to the Philly Black Mafia organization, compiled with the aid of Sean Patrick Griffin’s superb book, Black Brothers, Inc.
January 23, 1977 – 20 th -&-Carpenter Gang leader Donald Robinson is killed in a shootout with former members of his gang that had swung their loyalty to the Philly Black Mafia. October 1977 – Philadelphia Black Mafia member Grady Dyches is shot in a North Philly afterhours club over a drug dispute.
The Philadelphia Black Mafia terrorized the east coast for more than a decade, from the late 1960s all the way into the early 1980s. “PBM” was a notoriously brutish and violence-prone crime syndicate that tried veiling their activities in the name of religion, latching on to the Nation of Islam and Black Muslim movement.
As alleged in the Superseding Indictment, on October 15, 2015, defendants Steven Mazzone, Domenic Grande and Salvatore Mazzone participated in a “making ceremony” (as detailed above) in a South Philadelphia residence, during which several new soldiers were inducted into the Philadelphia LCN.
According to court documents, the Philadelphia LCN is one of a number of LCN organized crime families based in various cities throughout the United States. The purpose of the LCN in Philadelphia and elsewhere is to make money through the commission of various crimes, including illegal gambling, loansharking, drug trafficking, and extortion.
As described in the Superseding Indictment, the Philadelphia LCN sought to use its reputation and influence to exercise control over criminal rackets, like bookmaking and loansharking in Philadelphia and southern New Jersey, particularly Atlantic City.
Top 5 Philly Mob Murders of All-Time. 1 Angelo (The Docile Don) Bruno – The assassination of Bruno, the heavily-respected Philadelphia mob don and National Commission member on March 21, 1980 as he sat in a car outside his home, set off a near 15-year period of violence and instability in the suddenly-treacherous Philly underworld.
Somewhat mislabeled The Docile Don – he was equally murderous as most of his mafia boss brethren around the country -, Bruno was killed personally by his consigliere Antonio (Tony Bananas) Caponigro, the back of his head literally blown off by Caponigro’s buckshot.
Nick the Blade was sent back to prison on racketeering charges ten years later, where he would die in 1995 as a heart attack . Honorable Mention: Frank (Frankie Flowers) D’Alfonso, John McCulloch, Pasquale (Pat the Cat) Spirito, Rocco Marinucci, Raymond (Long John) Martorano, John (Johnny Gongs) Cassasanto, Ronnie Turchi.
3 Phil (The Chicken Man) Testa – Angelo’s Bruno’s underboss and successor, Testa had a short-reign and was famously blown up by a nail bomb as he walked onto the porch of his house in the early-morning hours of March 15, 1981.
Earlier in the decade Helfant pocketed a bribe he was supposed to pass on to a fellow sitting judge related to the murder case of Philadelphia mobster Nick (The Blade) Virgilio, a close friend of AC crew leader and future Philly mafia boss Little Nicky Scarfo.