Tag: Greek

LOOSE KNIT ETHNIC CRIME GROUP THAT LIVED UNDER THE RADAR

by Nick Christophers

Many have become accustomed to hearing about the Italian mob for many years. Yet within those years other ethnic organizations began to sprout. One such organization was used as an extension of the traditional mob. They came from a country that happened to be a neighbor of Italy namely, Greece. But the Greeks have managed to stay in the shadows of the serpent.

The fact that they have stayed low key there is very little written or documented about their inner-workings. There never has been a “rat” or anyone who defected to offer information on how the Greek mafia works. Since there never has been a hierarchy or a Family tree known to authorities they have been viewed as a loose knit clan that works under the protection of the Italians. This was evident in Philadelphia under then boss Angelo Bruno. Angelo offered protection to the two Greek mob leaders Steve Booras and Harry Peetros. They ran the gambling, loansharking and had control of the PCP trade in the Philly area.

But when Nicky Scarfo took over he issued a heavier street tax on everyone. This is did not fly well for Harry Peetros who was not willing to submit. Hence, Nicky had him eliminated with help from hitman Ray Martorano. Steve Booras was assassinated not to long after that. His murder was never solved as to who was responsible. Some say rival Greeks from the Peetros clan others are sure it was Scarfo.

This connection between the Greeks and Italians was evident in many other cities like New York and Chicago. In New York the alleged leader of the Greeks was Spiro Velentzas who was under the strong grip of the Lucheses. Actually his predecessor Peter Kourakos sealed a deal with street boss Christy Tick Furnari to operate freely under his watchful eye. But after he passed on Spiro assumed his position. At this point Anthony “Gaspipe” Casso was the new “babysitter” for the Greeks. Gaspipe was not interested to lose too much time with them and Pete “Fat Pete” Chiodo took on the responsibility.

Chiodo was a big earner and an even bigger individual at 300 lbs. He was not the most trustworthy partner as Spiro would learn later on. Chiodo went on and became “rat” and implicated not only his crew but Spiro as well on a murder he himself contracted out. Pete to save his own ass testified that Spiro ordered the hit when in essence he wanted the mark, Sammy “the Arab” Nalo eliminated for his own gain. Spiro ran the predominantly Greek enclave of Astoria, Queens from the late 70’s till his lifelong incarceration in 1992. His partners like Peter Drakoulis, Teddy “the General” Politsiadis, Mike “The Italian” Grillo and Jimmy Velentzas ran gambling dens and horse parlors in Astoria and Brooklyn. According the court records they also lended out monies to gamblers who wanted to keep playing. Then when they could not pay they were reprimanded accordingly.

Spiro has vehemently admitted that he lended money and never requested for any in return. But Chiodo and other rats contradicted that and told a different tale of beat downs and so on. Spiro for the past 25 plus years has been behind bars and has lost touch with the streets he once ruled. Astoria as of late has become the stomping grounds for the ruthless and unforgiving Albanians.
Besides Spiro there was another associate of Greek decent that was connected to the Luchese Family. He was Donald “Tony” Frankos who became a contract killer for all five families. But he mostly worked with the Genovese’s. In 1974, Frankos murdered Luchese crime family associate Richard Bilello. He even claimed to have killed Jimmy Hoffa a statement which was yet to be confirmed.

Around the same time that Frankos was notching hits on his belt another Greek mobster actually worked alongside the Italians. Pete “the Greek” Diapoulos was none other than the bodyguard for Joe “Crazy Joe” Gallo. There was not much written about him until he was shot trying to fire back at the assassins who eliminated Joey on April 7, 1972. Pete was a bulky bruiser who was fairly low-key in the mob world and was considered a rebel since being associated with the Gallo crew. He would later pen a book about his life with the Gallo’s called “The Sixth Family” co-written by Steve Linakis.

In Chicago we can go back to the final days of Al Capone when his partner Jake “Greasy Thumb” Guzik welcomed the help of political fixer Gus “Slim” Alex. Gussie Alex ran a section of Chicago which was called the Loop . He had what the fictional character Solozzo called “all the Judges and politicians in your pocket like so many nickels and dimes.” Gus was able to fix many cases for the boys in the Outfit. His bulky frame and intimidating looks made his job even easier.

He took over after Jake passed on and kept his position as political fixer into the 80’s. Gus remained in power through the reign of Sam Giancana and Joe Aiuppa. After Aiuppa went to prison Gus became second in command to Sam “Wings” Carlisi. Gus would die in prison of a heart attack on July 24, 1998. Even before Gus Alex fully came on the scene there was a Mike “The Greek” Potson who was partner with Jim “Big Jim” Colosimo in his restaurant. Mike was a gambler and a bookie and ran his operation through Jim’s restaurant after Jim passed on.

During the reign of Al Capone, Al had a close friend by the name of Theodore Anton who ran the Hawthorne Hotel. Theodore was known as “Teddy the Greek” when he was a boxer, which is the way he met Capone. Yet Teddy had one issue he was not afraid to back off from anyone. This fact may have been why he landed in a deep grave. One night in 1926 he disappeared it was later rumored that some Northside gangsters eliminated him for his brash words to many of them.

In later years the popular union leader Jimmy Hoffa employed the likes of friend and fellow bruiser of Gus Alex, Gus Zapas. Jimmy was having trouble with some union official and need to make a point and brought along some muscle in the form of Gus Zapas, a Chicago syndicate bruiser who moved to Indiana and went on the payroll of Teamsters Local 135, one of the largest in the Midwest. He was later alleged to have attempted to deal in stolen diamonds and set up a Matthew F. Kane who made it out alive after a gem deal. There are many others we can mention from New York to Australia which you can actually find in my book “Mafia Ties – The Greek Syndicates”.

IS THE MAFIA ON ITS LAST LEG? by Nick Christophers

There is a saying that if you take one man out there are two in the wings to replace him and if you take out two there are four in the wings. This may be the case for some situations but when it comes to the lifeline of the mafia that theory goes out the window. The once awesome and untouchable traditional mafia has lost its “talent pool” that was at once abundant. It is believed since the fall of John Gotti the mob has went underground and has attempted to stay out of the spotlight and the headlines.

There are many rumors that they have been recruiting men from Sicily to replenish the ranks that have been vacated due to lengthy jail terms or death. This seemed to be evident in Philadelphia were like Gotti, past boss Nicky Scarfo left a disaster behind him. There have been other ethnic groups who have tried to fill that vacuum and take over but that has seemed impossible. Groups like the Albanians who were once a threat under their leader Alex Rudaj or the Russians with ruthless mob boss Ivankov.

In Astoria for example after Greek mob boss Spiro Velentzas went away for life the Albanians decided to move in. The Greeks were under the Luchese wing, yet the Albanians planted their flag in Queens and the Bronx. In 2001 they had a fire fight with the Greeks over gambling rackets in Queens. Three years later Rudaj along with what the FBI termed “the sixth family” were all in custody. By 2006 Rudaj was sentenced to twenty-seven years in prison. At this point is where the Albanians became a fractured group. Like the Russians they are not even close to what the traditional mafia is or was.

For the Russians, their main base of operations has always been Brighton Beach the hub for Russian immigrants. The once powerful leader was Vyacheslav Ivankov who ran a much-feared organization in New York when he came from Russia. Yet his reign was not exceptionally long when he was arrested in 1995 on extortion of close to $3 million from an investment advisory firm known as Summit. He was soon deported back to Russia to face murder charges in 2004. Ivankov was acquitted of the charges and released in 2005. While he tried to regain his criminal hold in Russia in 2009, he was shot and killed while leaving a restaurant in Khoroshevskoye Road in Moscow.

As we mentioned earlier after the fall of John Gotti in 1992 the rules of the game began to change. There are very few if any social clubs left where the wiseguys would gather for their espresso or discuss schemes. Supposedly, in the quiet neighborhood of Carroll Gardens there are still three discreet clubs located off Sackett and Union streets. Yet you will never see guys congregated on the street or any corner. Those days are gone. Gotti was famous for outside gatherings that attracted too much FBI attention. Hence, the rule of no more public meetings came into effect.

“The current status of today’s Cosa Nostra Is in a rebuilding state decades of FBI takedowns has diminished the power and ranks within all five families. For the last decade the influence that the five families once had in society’s marketplaces is no longer!! Organized crime today has turned into small groups of men doing such crimes has identity theft, offshore gambling sites selling prescription medications etc. The meat and potatoes of the income that the families once had such as construction trade infiltration of industry is no longer the forefront of their earning  capacity I saw within the Italian communities throughout the city the gene pool Of young Italian men Are a mere shell Of the upcoming men from generations ago, in turn  weakening the ranks across all five families so much in fact that they have gone to outsource murders because finding somebody to trust and who is capable of such an act these days is hard to find nobody’s willing to go to prison these days for such crimes,” said ex-Gambino member Andrew DiDonato.

According to ex-mobster and bodyguard to John Gotti Jr, John Alite, he believes the same theory that it is in a decline. The new, if any, members are naïve to mob culture and do not have the same toughness or loyalty that he grew up in. He also pointed out that families do not trust each other and do not have that fear factor that once gave them the power they once welded. It is scary when you watch such mob enclaves like Little Italy in Manhattan and Bensonshurst, Brooklyn become over-run by Chinese business. Law enforcement has taken down most of the members in every family leaving their strong-holds unprotected and exposed.

In another known mob strong-hold, Chicago, the Outfit as it was called is a shell of itself. Allegedly it is currently run by Albert “Albie the Falcon” Vena, 69. He was the number 3 man before leaders John “No Nose” DiFronzo (passed on) and Joe “The Clown” Lombardo (doing a life bid) were taken out of the game. Supposedly, Salvatore “Solly D” DeLaurentis who was the consiglieri has gone legit. According to ex-mobster Frank Calabrese Jr the Outfit is no more and has no chance of reviving itself.

“The mob or Outfit, whichever way you like to phrase it is no longer a factor in Chicago. After the many trials and deaths, the “pool” is empty of anyone worth carrying the torch. No one wants to do long prison time, most of these guys have went into legit business realizing that they could make the same kind of money legitimately so why take a risk. New York and maybe South Philly are still somewhat on life-support.”

Yet ex-mob associate Kenji Gallo see’s it quite different that Andrew, Frank, and Johnny A do.

“I know that they still have family structures in New York, I think right now, they are no longer in decline. They do not have the same law enforcement pressure, the locals, NYPD has disbanded the units who went after them.  Those who knew who all the players have retired. The FBI no longer has a squad for every family.  I think if they stay secret, don’t make headlines they can gain power.”

His theory may be somewhat true but what Johnny A, Frank and Andrew have expressed seems to be on the ball. But there are those who believe that the traditional mafia will never die it will become active in some fashion. Below are the assumed leaders and number of active members within the five families in New York.

Gambino Crime Family –

•             Boss: Lorenzo Mannino

•             Consigliere: Michael “Mickey Boy” Paradiso

•             New Jersey Faction Boss: Nicholas “Nicky Mita” Mitarotonda

•             Estimated Membership: About 180 Made Members

 Genovese Crime Family –

•             Official Boss: Liborio S. “Barney” Bellomo

•             Street Boss: Michael “Mickey” Ragusa

•             Underboss: Ernest “Ernie” Muscarella

•             Consigliere: Unknown

•             New Jersey Faction Boss: Unknown

•             Estimated Membership: About 200 Made Members

Bonanno Crime Family

•             Official Boss: Michael “Mickey Nose/The Nose” Mancuso

•             Acting Boss: John “Johnny P/Johnny Skyway” Palazzolo

•             Panel:  Unknown

•             Underboss: Unknown

•             Consigliere: Unknown

•             New Jersey Faction Boss: Joseph “Sammy/Sammo” Sammartino Sr.

•             Estimated membership: About 110 Made Members

Lucchese Crime Family –

•             Official Boss: Vittorio “Vic/Little Vic/Vic the Terminator” Amuso (Life Imprisonment)

•             Acting Boss: Michael “Big Mike” DeSantis

•             Underboss: Steven “Stevie Wonder/Wonderboy/Herbie” Crea (Life Imprisonment)

•             Acting Underboss: Patrick “Patty Red” Dellorusso

•             Consigliere: Andrew DeSimone

•             New Jersey Faction Boss: Ralph Vito Perna

•             Estimated Membership: About 100 Made Members

Colombo Crime Family –

•             Official Boss: Candidates include Joel “Joe Waverly” Cacace (Halfway House), Theodore “Skinny Teddy” Persico Jr.

•             Acting Boss: Andrew “Andy Mush/Mush” Russo

•             Underboss: Benjamin “The Little Guy/The Claw/Benji” Castellazzo

•             Acting Underboss: Dominick “Donny Shacks” Montemarano

•             Consigliere: Unknown

•             Acting Consigliere: Thomas “Tom Mix/Mr. T” Farese

•             Estimated Membership: About 90 Made Members