In this clip, Michael Franzese spoke about his relationship with former Philadelphia mob leader Nicky Scarfo, whose son committed suicide while Nicky was embroiled in a federal trial. Back in the 1980s and 1990s, Trumps buildings and his casinos attracted underworld figures like Fat Tony Salerno, the Fedora-wearing, cigar-chomping boss of the Genovese crime family. [4], It was in 1978 that he gained the moniker "Crazy Phil" from a local radio talk show host. Son of Philly mob boss charged with $12 million fraud. That was the legacy of Little Nicky Scarfo. PhillyVoice Contributor. During his criminal career, Scarfo had a murderous reputation,[1][2] also engaging in organized crime activities such as drug trafficking and gambling. There were some political ads that would run in the local newspaper every day in the last week before election, and the lawyer didnt want them to run. Nicky Jr. was hit multiple times in the arms and torso but miraculously escaped serious injury. Follows on from the Angelo Bruno documentary and covers characters mentioned in the Irishman film (Philip Testa and. While making book for the Philadelphia-South Jersey family in 1963, he stabbed a longshoreman to death in a South Philadelphia diner in an argument over a booth to sit in. Simone said the hanging was a suicide attempt, and Atlantic County Prosecutor Jeffrey S. Blitz said all evidence pointed to a suicide. He was, by most accounts, a computer geek who could have built a legitimate and lucrative career as a software technocrat. No one has ever been charged with the Dante & Luigi shooting which ranks among the most audacious in Philadelphia mob underworld history. In the latest episode of Mob Talk, mob experts George Anastasia and Dave Schratwieser acknowledge some notable recent anniversaries in the Philadelphia organized crime world. [21][22][23] In 1986, Caramandi was indicted for his role in the extortion case and decided to testify in court. Another figure in the book is Testas successor, Nicodemus Little Nicky Scarfo, whose associates tried to lease Trump land for his casino in Atlantic City until New Jersey casino regulators quashed the deal. He was out of the hospital in week, but the shooting effectively ended the Scarfo family's control of the Philadelphia mob. There is no guarantee that he will be released then and there is a chance that he, like his father, could die in prison. Scarfo concentrated on a gangland opponent, Harry The Hunchback Riccobene. To view the purposes they believe they have legitimate interest for, or to object to this data processing use the vendor list link below. Martin Scorseses new film, The Irishman, conjures up a lost world. Once a mob soldier and strip-joint owner, he came to power after pockmarked mob chieftain Philip "Chicken Man" Testa, his mentor, was blown to bits by a nail bomb under his front porch. We are a community partnership that business professionals can trust to expand their personal and professional lives. My cousins not a gangster and never was, Leonetti wrote. Email blog@themobmuseum.org. Young Scarfo was ruthless and a good earner, which was what helped him get made. 2023 WWB Holdings, LLC. Scarfo is already under indictment for allegedly running a South Jersey gambling operation. Where Capone had wit and panache, Mr. Scarfo had neither. So Sheeran set up a picket line outside the newspaper, and he knew the Teamsters union drivers who delivered the paper wouldnt cross it. Witnesses to the slayings were afraid to talk, fearing retribution. Now, years after leaving the federal witness protection program with a $500,000 bounty still on his head, he recalls a critical killing in 1978 from their salad days in Atlantic City, when the two. (The title is a reference to the special kind of painting Sheeran did that left his victims brains on the wall.) Explore. But a few men in Testas gang resented the new boss. The topic led Michael to speak about the pressure and scrutiny kids who have mob parents face, and he pointed out that his siblings didn't handle it well. Nov. 1, 2011 — -- The son of a Philadelphia mob boss infamous for his violent reign was indicted today for a bloodless, white collar crime: a scheme to defraud a Texas financial firm out of $12 million. But less than a year later, in 1989, Scarfo would get the life sentence. Made into the family in 1980 after commiting the murder of rebellious mobster Vincent Falcone, of which he was acquitted along with Scarfo and Philip Leonetti. Scarfo was dining with two friends, according to police reports, and was looking forward to a plate of clams and spaghetti, one of his favorite dishes. The book is full of characters who didnt make it into the movie, but they did surface in Trumps world. He is scheduled for release in 2033, when he is 104. Scarfo survived the attack, but Philly Mob expert George Anastasia says the shooting marked the end of Nicky Scarfo Sr.'s rein as leader of Philadelphia organized crime. They allegedly directed FPFG to buy worthless companies that they created. Nicky Jr. has never spoken publicly about the shooting but in phone conversations with his father at the timeconversations secretly recorded by authoritiesthe two Scarfos described Merlino as a snake. The elder Scarfo suggested that his son take Merlino to dinner, a reference to the shooting and a veiled order to do to Merlino what he was suspected of doing to Scarfo Jr. The feds hailed Scarfo as the first La Cosa Nostra boss to be convicted of first-degree murder. Scarfo jr. is currently serving a 30-year sentence on . Riccobene in turn hired hits on Scarfos men. Records show him graduating from Benjamin Franklin High School in 1947. The sentence amounted to life imprisonment, since he was not scheduled for release before 2033. He is now a federally protected witness. Scarfo's father "Little Nicky" and fellow boss Vittorio Amuso were named as unindicted coconspirators in the plot. Giuliani went after Salerno with such zeal that the mobsters defense attorney complained that the prosecutor has made it his personal mission to bury my client.. Receive all of VladTV's hard-hitting news in our daily newsletter, as well as our exclusive interviews. In the late 1980s a battle was under way for control of the Philly mafia which led to as assassination attempt on the Nicky Jr. However, its rise as a gambling mecca made Scarfo a powerhouse. In 1976, Atlantic City legalized gambling, and Scarfo prioritized gambling as his main source of income. Contact us for franchise opportunities. While Scarfo lost most of em in court, he did win a few. Thirty-two years ago, this month, Nicky Scarfo Jr. nearly paid the ultimate price for his loyalty to his father. Nicodemo Domenico "Little Nicky" Scarfo Sr. (March 8, 1929 January 13, 2017) was a member of the American Mafia who became the boss of the Philadelphia crime family after the deaths of Angelo Bruno and Phil Testa. ", New Jersey State Commission of Investigation, Federal Medical Center in Butner, North Carolina, "On the anniversary of the St. Valentine's Day Massacre, a look at history's most fearsome mob bosses", "Nicky Scarfo, Mob Boss Who Plundered Atlantic City in the '80s, Dies at 87", "Always A Joker, Never A Rat. November 2, 1988. The son of former mob boss "Little Nicky" Scarfo was arrested today and is charged with heading up a scheme to defraud a financial firm [] City Life Scenes From the Melrose Diner More than three decades later, its Giuliani who is under federal investigation for his dealings in Ukraine, Trump is the president on the brink of impeachment, and bosses like Salerno are dead and gone, except for in the movies. [7], During the trial, Scarfo's son Mark Scarfo attempted suicide on November 1, 1988. Scarfo was a mob boss for the 1980s, a greedy, ruthless despot whose family coat of arms could have been a pair of crossed .357 magnums mounted on a blood-red shield embossed with the words Kill or Be Killed, George Anastasia wrote in Blood and Honor: Inside the Scarfo Mob the Mafias Most Violent Family (1991). George Anastasia [9][10][11] In 1979, criminal associate and contractor Vincent Falcone was shot twice and killed by Scarfo's nephew Phil Leonetti on Scarfo's orders, after making negative remarks about the company and Scarfo.[12]. [24][25], Scarfo began his sentence at the Atlanta Federal Penitentiary. Scarfo testifies at a Congressional subcommittee in Philadelphia, 1982. In 1963, Scarfo pleaded guilty to manslaughter for fatally stabbing a longshoreman; he spent about six months in prison. That, in large part, explains why Nicodemo S. Scarfoknown as Nicky Jr.is currently serving a 30-year federal prison sentence after being convicted in a multi-million dollar financial fraud case several years ago. He had fallen into a coma in 1988 after a failed attempt to hang himself. The Irishman is based on the 2003 book I Heard You Paint Houses: Frank The Irishman Sheeran & Closing the Case on Jimmy Hoffa, by Charles Brandt. For many, a shooting like that would have been viewed as a warning and seen as the opportune time to walk away. The investigation, which generated headlines across the world, involved the Inzerillo and Gambino factions of La Cosa Nostra. [11] A year later, he would be initiated as a made man. A surgeon at Thomas. A U.S. prosecutor described Scarfo as a remorseless and profoundly evil man who became one of the most powerful criminals in the United States.. Touch device users, explore by touch or with swipe gestures. Murderous Philadelphia Mob boss dies in prison. Scarfo started to play the role of the vain don, seeking to murder those whom he felt had disrespected him. Testa's son sold Trump premium land that became a casino parking lot. Capone supposedly said, You can go a long way with a smile; you can go a lot farther with a smile and a gun. Mr. Scarfo preferred just the gun. ", At a press conference Tuesday in Camden, New Jersey, U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman said "the defendants gave new meaning to 'corporate takeover' by looting a publicly traded company to benefit their criminal enterprise. However, his tenure as Boss would be a short one. He went into cardiac arrest. ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) _ The teen-age son of reputed underworld boss Nicodemo Little Nicky Scarfo was in critical condition today after he was found hanging by the neck while father was on trial on racketeering charges. Shortly after, he agreed to testify against Scarfo and the family, also admitting to participating in 10 murders; this allowed for his release after only five years, subsequently going into hiding. Salerno arranged things so his concrete company got a $7.8 million contract at Trump Plaza. ", "Phil Leonetti's tell-all book shows he's crazy like a fox", "Tyrannical Mafia boss Nicodemo 'Little Nicky' Scarfo, 87, dies in prison hospital", "Paying respects: When the mob bid farewell to Kellyanne Conway's grandfather", "Leonetti Rips Uncle, Says Cousin Didn't Have A Chance", List of Italian-American mobsters by organization, Collaborations between the United States government and Italian Mafia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Phil_Leonetti&oldid=1137166180, Holy Spirit High School (New Jersey) alumni, Federal Bureau of Investigation informants, Pages using infobox person with multiple parents, Articles with unsourced statements from October 2022, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, 45 years imprisonment; served five years after testimony, This page was last edited on 3 February 2023, at 04:17. He survived, but barely and remained comatose for more than 20 years. This was in 1979, and Stone had been tapped to run Ronald Reagans political operation in New York. But by the end of the three-hour-plus movie, the nostalgia fades and so does the pinkie-ring finery. Some of that blood was spilled by his son. Send us a tip using our anonymous form. It was a path that would lead 40 years later to Stones conviction last month on charges of lying to Congress about his contacts with WikiLeaks. Scarfo seized the top position for himself, promoting Salvatore Merlino as his Underboss and Frank Monte as his Consigliere. [4] Having been abandoned by his father at an early age, he was brought up by his mother. As recently as 2011, he was named in a companion indictment to the extortion of a financial group based in Texas that led to his son Nicky Jr.s conviction in 2015. Little Nicky Scarfo was boss of the Philadelphia mafia from 1981 to 1989. [3] After his release, he was sent to Atlantic City, New Jersey by Angelo Bruno to oversee the operations there. On Halloween 1989, "Junior" was sitting in an Italian restaurant when a man in a Batman costume and carrying a bag of candy walked up to his table and shot him in the neck and torso eight times. The episode also highlights the return of reputed mob boss Joey Merlino, who returned to the Boca Raton area in Florida following his release from federal prison. Philip Michael Leonetti (born March 27, 1953)[1] is an American former mobster who became the underboss of the Philadelphia crime family under his mentor, uncle and former boss, Nicodemo "Little Nicky" Scarfo, before becoming a government informant in 1989 after being sentenced to 45 years for racketeering. As a young adult, bookmaking served as his entry to Phillys underworld. All rights reserved. Nicky Scarfo, a Mafia boss who purged two dozen fellow mobsters during his 1980s reign in Philadelphia and South Jersey, milked casino profits in Atlantic City and bribed the citys mayor, died on Saturday at the Federal Medical Center in Butner, N.C. This documentary is used for education. Trump Plaza, a co-op apartment building on Manhattans East Side, was specifically mentioned in the 29-count indictment. He said a breathing machine was being used to help keep his lungs clear of fluids. Log in. But by 1985, the friendship had soured. Oscar Goodman, the former mayor of Las Vegas and prominent defense lawyer for accused organized crime figures starting in the late 1960s, defended reputed Scarfo underboss Phillip Crazy Leonetti in three trials in Philadelphia in the late 1980s, sitting in federal court beside Scarfo and Scarfos attorney, Robert Simone. Scarfo was a bully with a gun., Nicky Scarfo, Mob Boss Who Plundered Atlantic City in the 80s, Dies at 87, https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/17/nyregion/nicky-scarfo-mob-boss-who-plundered-atlantic-city-in-the-80s-dies-at-87.html. Philadelphia police and FBI agents formed a task force to investigate gang murders and set about the tricky job of identifying the killers and their accomplices. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. That was 1989. But that left his son out of the streets to deal with a crime family decimated by the violence and mismanagement of Little Nicky. Only the shotgun slaying of mob boss Angelo Bruno outside his Snyder Avenue row home in 1980 and the ambush of mob boss John Stanfa in the middle of rush hour traffic on the Schuylkill Expressway in 1993 compare. In 1978, Scarfo and his associate, Nicholas "Nick the Blade" Virgilio, shot and murdered judge Edwin Helfant for refusing to cooperate with them and to help Virgilio receive a lighter sentence as he was facing murder charges, in exchange for $12,500. Copyright 2023 Penske Business Media, LLC. He was charged last summer with committing bank fraud and other related offenses in relation to the First Plus Financial scam. Nicky Jr. has been convicted twice in federal court on racketeering and gambling charges, emerging from prison in 2005. He had a violent temper. PUBLISHED CAPTION: The mob boss son, Nicodemo S. Scarfo, is accused of plotting with his father over the phone. [12] By the early 1980s, Leonetti was already a millionaire and controlled a lucrative trade of racketeering, illegal gambling, loan sharking, extortion and skimming from the Atlantic City casinos. Only a few weeks ago, one of the other 33 people arrested and charged in that case pled guilty and agreed to cooperate against his co-defendants. Cash $ILee2020In this video, we will be covering the life of Mark Scarfo, son of Philadelphia Crime Boss Nicky Scarfo. Those traits proved to be his undoing. One person who knew the real-life mob families that show up in The Irishman is President Donald Trump. He said he was on strict, supervised release at the time awaiting sentencing for an armed truck robbery and was not allowed out after 7 pm. He was discovered by his mother, and paramedics were able to resuscitate him. Little Nicky had a penchant for Rolls Royce cars, motor yachts, and Florida vacations, as well as newspaper headlines and violence. This documentary is used for education. Prosecutors allege the FPFG fraud began in 2007. Cash $ILee2020In this video, we will be covering the life of Mark Scarfo, son of Philadelphia Crime Boss Nicky Scarfo. When a federal judge in Philadelphia sentenced him to 55 years in prison on murder and racketeering charges in May 1989, Nicodemo "Little Nicky" Scarfo just shrugged. Little Nicky died in jail serving what amounted to a life sentence. He was brought into the family by then boss Joe Ida. [7], Leonetti has alleged that, at 8 years of age, he was used as a decoy by Scarfo to dispose of a dead body, explaining to the young Leonetti that he had brutally stabbed a man in a New Jersey bar with an ice pick for disrespecting him. Leonetti was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Pasquale Leonetti and Annunziata Scarfo. Nicodemo "Little Nicky" Scarfo, the tyrannical mob boss who ruled the Philadelphia underworld in the 1980s, has died while serving a 55-year prison sentence at a federal medical center in North Carolina. 5 Perina BLVD. The mafia lineage of Scarfo Jr., an alleged Lucchese family mob member, goes back generations. He was resuscitated by paramedics, Ms. Spatz said. Within months, four co-conspirators in Brunos murder turned up dead. [8] He attended Holy Spirit High School, where he played on the school's basketball team. Anastasia says the attempted killing of Scarfo represented a power shift in the Philly Mob. Mr. Scarfo had been in prison since 1988. It was yet another botched move by Little Nicky. In May 1988, he was found innocent with eight other defendants in the 1984 murder of Salvatore Testa, the son of Scarfos former boss, Philip Chicken Man Testa. Merlino has repeatedly denied the allegation. . At the time he was dispatched to Atlantic City, it was considered a backwater. His father and former Lucchese family boss Victor Amuso were named as unindicted coconspirators as part of the First Plus Financial case.if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'aboutthemafia_com-large-mobile-banner-1','ezslot_3',198,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-aboutthemafia_com-large-mobile-banner-1-0'); JSCARFO19 - MAY 18 - Nicky Scarfo Jr. in Morris County courtroom for use in Inquirer edition where it will appear with George Anastasia story. Trump Melts Down Over Murdoch Admitting Fox Lied About Election Fraud Nicodemo Scarfo Jr., 50, of Galloway--son of jailed Philadelphia mob boss Nicodemo "Little Nicky" Scarfo-- was convicted in July 2014 on more than 20 counts of mail, bank and wire fraud and. He is 56 and has spent about one-third of his adult life in prison. While in prison, Scarfo always had two bodyguards accompanying him; who were associates of the Mexican Mafia, whom he referred to as his pistoleros. Watch the latest Mob Talk report (and a previous episode) below, andsubscribe to the YouTube channelto view past and future episodes: In Episode 34 of Mob Talk, mob experts George Anastasia and Dave Schratwieser detail the Philadelphia connection to the so-called "Operation New Connection," an international takedown of 18 alleged Mafia figures in Sicily in July. His father, however, had other ideas. [19] As a result of Salvatore Testa's murder, Scarfo gained a reputation for disloyalty, and several criminal organizations across the United States began to distrust him. But these are not the kinds milestones that warrant a celebration. Continue with Recommended Cookies. [6] He moved to Ducktown, the Little Italy of Atlantic City, New Jersey shortly after, where he was protected and supervised by his uncle and other Scarfo members. Scarfo died in prison on January 13, 2017, while serving his 55-year sentence.[4][5]. Scarfos life sentence in prison ended Friday, January 13, when he died, reportedly of cancer, at the Federal Medical Center in North Carolina. He suffered cardiac arrest and his brain was deprived of oxygen. | Cherry Hill, NJ 08003 | 856.912.4007. One was his underboss, Peter Casella, an expert in bomb making who felt unappreciated. His time at the top was one of the bloodiest in underworld history. Scarfo grew up in South Philadelphia, working as a newsboy at a train station and later, though small in stature (5 feet 5, hence his nickname), trained as an amateur boxer. When a federal judge in Philadelphia sentenced him to 55 years in prison on murder and racketeering charges in May 1989, Nicodemo Little Nicky Scarfo just shrugged. Salerno died in prison in 1992, but his words captured on tape live on. Nearly 20 more were indicted and sentenced to prison. Prosecutors allege the FPFG fraud began in 2007. My uncle got him involved with trying to keep control of La Cosa Nostraand almost got Nicky killed. The Biden story isnt in the movie. His trial was met with damaging testimonies of several informants, who had carried out his murders. The youth was brought to Atlantic City Medical Center in a coma, said Sherry Spatz, a spokeswoman for the hospital. And its not just Trump who has links to the world depicted in The Irishman. [16] Between August 1982 and January 1984, Scarfo was imprisoned in FCI La Tuna for gun possession. He was found shot dozens of times in a car trunk and $300 in bills were jammed in his mouth and anus as a sign of his own greed. At the time, Fresolone was secretly cooperating with the New Jersey State Police. Thanks to DelGiorno, one of those on the hook for homicide for the execution of bookmaker DAlfonso in 1985 was the big fish, Scarfo. (The sentence was eventually overturned, and in a second trial he was acquitted of the murder charge.). Along with the lengthy prison sentence Scarfo has also been ordered to pay over $14 million dollar in restitution for money stolen from First Plus Financial. After Scarfo and his nephew Leonetti beat the Testa murder charges, Goodman said he tried to make good on a bet he made if they won, he would jump naked into the fountains outside the Four Seasons Hotel in Philadelphia. The oldest, Chris, married and took his wifes maiden name to get out from under the infamy that came with his birthright. "The scheme to defraud FPFG," said the indictment, "ultimately resulted in a loss to FPFG and its shareholders of at least approximately $12 million." To go with that, he was also serving a 14-year stretch he got in 1988 for extorting a developer to pay a $1 million bribe to a Philadelphia city councilman, who was to give a share of it to Scarfo. The author of Mafia Prince has said Phil is the one of the only LCN guys he's met that flipped that doesn't want his old life back. Follow Michael Franzese at:http://www.michaelfranzese.comhttp://www.michaelfranzese.com/coachinghttp://join.michaelfranzese.com/innercircle, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qa4QtL_Z28M&feature=youtu.be. Dr. Sekander Ursani, an emergency specialist at the hospital, said he found no visible sign of injury on Mark Scarfo except for a bruise on his neck. [8] He served time with boss Angelo Bruno and Genovese crime family members Gerardo Catena and Louis Manna, the latter of whom he formed a close relationship with. Mr. Scarfo nurtured his reputation early. News of the injury reached federal court in Philadelphia late in the afternoon and brought a halt to the elder Scarfos trial. Mark, then only 17 years old, had been taunted for years by classmates about his father's criminal activities. Scarfo was born on March 8, 1929, in Brooklyn, New York, to Philip and Catherine Scarfo, Italian immigrants from Naples and Calabria. The judge had been killed execution-style in a restaurant as he dined with his wife. A reporter for the Philadelphia Daily News watched inside the Four Seasons as about 75 partiers, many of them Scarfos relatives and friends, celebrated loudly drinking from $160 bottles of champagne and $1,200 bottles of Louis XIII cognac, racking up a $10,000 tab the afternoon of the jurys verdict. In 1985, Mr. Scarfo assigned a hit man, Nicholas Caramandi, to extort $1 million from Willard Rouse III, a developer who was seeking to build on the Delaware River waterfront. But Fresolone as well as several other cooperators and many law enforcement sources point to Joey Merlino as the gunman that night. Tony was the Tip ONeill of the underworld and would reside forever in Rudy Giulianis mind, wrote the legendary New York columnist Jimmy Breslin. SHOOT DATE: May 18, 2010 He appeared to be the opposite of his uncle, a quiet and laid back personality. Amid the blood already shed by 1981, Scarfo encouraged his soldiers to take part in still more murders to maintain his standing. Cohn, dressed in a silk bathrobe, introduced Stone to the mobster and then offered to help him with the Reagan campaign. His cement contracting company "Scarf, Inc", which was shared with his nephew, received business as developers built new casinos in Atlantic City; Scarfo would intimidate businesses into buying from his company. During his rule, according to George Anastasia of the Philadelphia Inquirer, more than 20 mob associates died and 25 went to prison. Nicky Scarfo Jr., 46, the son of one-time Philly mafia boss "Little Nicky" Scarfo, was arrested in New Jersey after a three-year FBI investigation of an alleged plot to siphon millions out of FirstPlus Financial Group. A mob hit, a miss and a well-known mob cooperator are among topics discussed. The Museum is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with a mission to advance the public understanding of organized crime's history and impact on American society. My cousin owes my uncle absolutely nothing.. Everybodys dead, Mr. Sheeran, one agent says. He moved to South Philadelphia at the age of 10, and started working as a young laborer. Instead, he was served a huge helping of lead. The hit was commemorated by Bruce Springsteen in the song "Atlantic City.". [5] As part of his cooperation, he served just five years in prison, and later authored a book about the mob. Nicodemo "Nicky" Scarfo, Jr., whose imprisoned father was an LCN crime boss in Philadelphia, was sentenced in July to 30 years in prison for racketeering, securities and wire fraud, and other . [9] Leonetti did not like the nickname and was not referred to as such by his mob peers. The family was led by Angelo Bruno from the 1950s until he was murdered in 1980.
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