Anthony Indelicato | |
---|---|
Born | March 4, 1947 New York City, U.S. |
Other names | "Bruno" "Whack-Whack" "Bruno Red" |
Occupation | Mobster |
Parent | Alphonse Indelicato |
Relatives | Jimmy Burke (father-in-law) |
Allegiance | Bonanno crime family |
Conviction(s) | Murder (1986) Murder (2008) |
Criminal penalty | 40 years' imprisonment and fined $50,000 (1987) 20 years' imprisonment (2008) |
Anthony Indelicato (born March 4, 1947), [1] also known as "Bruno" [2] and "Whack-Whack", [3] [4] is an American mobster and consigliere of the Bonanno crime family of New York City. [5]
Anthony Indelicato is the son of Alphonse "Sonny Red" Indelicato, a powerful capo in the Bonanno family. Anthony Indelicato's wife is Catherine Burke, a daughter of Lucchese crime family associate Jimmy Burke. [6]
In 1979, Anthony Indelicato participated in the murder of Bonanno boss Carmine Galante. With the official Bonanno boss Philip Rastelli in prison, Galante had taken effective control of the family in the early 1970s. His ruthlessness and ambition created many enemies within the Bonanno family and in the other New York families. [7]
The Mafia Commission finally allowed several Bonanno capos to plot Galante's assassination. On July 12, 1979, Galante entered Joe and Mary's Italian-American Restaurant in Bushwick, Brooklyn, for lunch. Three gunmen murdered Galante at his table as he was eating lunch on the patio of the restaurant. Two other men who were sitting with him were killed as well. [8] As a reward for his involvement in killing Galante, Indelicato was promoted to capo. [9]
After Galante's murder, a power struggle erupted between two factions of the Bonanno family. One faction included capos Dominick Napolitano and Joseph Massino, who were loyal to Rastelli. The second faction, which included Indelicato's father Alphonse, Philip Giaccone and Dominick Trinchera, wanted to murder the leaders of the Massino faction and assume power for themselves. After receiving permission from the Mafia Commission, Massino set up a plot to murder the rival captains first. [10]
Napolitano later contacted Donnie Brasco, whom he hoped to make a made man, [11] to murder Indelicato, who had previously evaded death after missing a meeting that left his father, Giaccone, and Trinchera dead on May 5, 1981. [12] Frank Lino, who Indelicato's father brought to the meeting instead and escaped the massacre, was quickly won over to Massino's side. [13] Brasco, however, was actually an undercover FBI agent named Joseph Pistone; shortly after the hit was ordered, Pistone's assignment was ended and Napolitano was informed of their infiltration. [14]
On November 19, 1986, Indelicato was convicted of the 1979 Galante murder during the historic Mafia Commission Trial. [15] On January 13, 1987, he was sentenced to 40 years in prison and fined $50,000. [16] [17] Soon after being sent to prison in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, Indelicato met Catherine Burke while she was visiting her incarcerated friend John Carneglia. In 1992, Indelicato and Catherine Burke were married at the federal prison in Terre Haute, Indiana. In 1998, Indelicato was released from prison on parole. [9]
In 2001, Indelicato participated in the murder of Bonanno associate Frank Santoro, who had threatened to kidnap one of the sons of then Bonanno capo, Vincent "Vinny Gorgeous" Basciano. [18] [19] [20] In July 2001, Indelicato was arrested for parole violations after he was videotaped and photographed by investigators associating with men including Basciano. [9] In February 2006, Indelicato was charged with murder and racketeering for the 2001 Santoro murder. [6] In August 2008, Indelicato pleaded guilty to murder, [21] and on December 16, 2008, was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison. [22] Indelicato was imprisoned at the Federal Correctional Institution, Danbury. He was released on May 20, 2022. [23]
Zips is a slang term in the United States that was especially in use in the early 20th century. It was often used as a derogatory slur by Italian American and Sicilian American mobsters in reference to newer immigrant Sicilian and Italian mafiosi. The mobsters in the US were said to have difficulty understanding the Sicilian dialects of the new immigrants, in which words appeared to "zip" by. Other theories include pejorative uses, such as Sicilians' preference for homemade zip guns. According to another theory, the term is a contraction of a Sicilian slang term for "hicks" or "primitives". The older Sicilian mafiosi of the pre-Prohibition era, known as "Mustache Petes", were also referred to as "zips". They were deposed by American-born mobsters during the Castellammarese War.
Dominick Napolitano, also known as Sonny Black, was an American Mafia caporegime in the Bonanno crime family. He is known for unwittingly allowing FBI agent Joseph D. Pistone to become an associate in his crew and nearly having him become a "made man."
Alphonse "Al" Indelicato, also known as Sonny Red, was an American mobster and caporegime in the Bonanno crime family who was murdered with Dominick Trinchera and Philip Giaccone for planning to overthrow Bonanno boss Philip Rastelli.
Joseph Charles Massino was an American mobster. He was a member of the Mafia and boss of the Bonanno crime family from 1991 until 2004, when he became the first boss of one of the Five Families in New York City to turn state's evidence.
Salvatore "Good Looking Sal" Vitale is an American former underboss of the Bonanno crime family before he became a government informant. After his arrest in 2003, Vitale agreed to cooperate with the government and testify against his brother-in-law, boss Joseph Massino, and in July 2004, Massino was convicted in a RICO case. Vitale had admitted to 11 murders, however, in October 2010, was sentenced to time served due to his cooperation, and entered the witness protection program.
Joseph Dominick Pistone is an American former FBI agent who worked undercover as Donnie Brasco between September 1976 and July 1981, as part of an infiltration primarily into the Bonanno crime family under the tutelage of Anthony Mirra and later Dominick Napolitano, and to a lesser extent the Colombo crime family, two of the Five Families of the Mafia in New York City. Pistone was an FBI agent for 17 years, from 1969 until he resigned in 1986. The evidence collected by Pistone led to over 200 indictments and over 100 convictions of Mafia members, and some responsible for his infiltration were also killed by other mobsters.
Benjamin "Lefty" Ruggiero was an American mobster in the Bonanno crime family. He is well known for his friendship and mentorship of FBI undercover agent Joseph D. Pistone, who Ruggiero knew as Donnie Brasco. When Pistone's operation was ended on July 26, 1981, the FBI intercepted and arrested Ruggiero on August 29, 1981. In November 1982, Ruggiero was sentenced to 15 years in prison for racketeering conspiracy; he was released in April 1993 before his death from cancer.
Cesare "The Tall Guy" Bonventre was a Sicilian gangster who served as a caporegime in the Bonanno crime family, operating out of Knickerbocker Avenue in Bushwick. Bonventre alongside Salvatore “Toto” Catalano led the Sicilian “Zips” faction of the family and was a key member of the Pizza Connection until his assassination on April 16, 1984 on orders of Joe Massino and Philip “Rusty” Rastelli.
Anthony "Tony" Mirra was an American mobster, soldier and later caporegime for the Bonanno crime family. He is well known for being the individual who introduced FBI Special Agent Joseph "Donnie Brasco" Pistone into the Bonanno family.
Michael "Mikey Cigars" Sabella (1911–1989) was a caporegime in the Bonanno crime family and a relative of Philadelphia crime family mob boss Salvatore Sabella.
Dominick "Big Trin" Trinchera was an American caporegime in the Bonanno crime family who was murdered with Alphonse Indelicato and Philip Giaccone for planning to overthrow Bonanno boss Philip Rastelli.
Philip Giaccone, also known as "Philly Lucky", was an American mobster and caporegime in the Bonanno crime family who was murdered with Dominick Trinchera and Al Indelicato for planning to overthrow Bonanno boss Philip Rastelli.
Frank "Curly" Lino was an American former caporegime in the Bonanno crime family who later became an informant.
Frank Coppa Sr. was an American gangster in the Bonanno crime family who was a close friend of Joseph Massino and Frank Lino and made large sums of money in stock fraud schemes. In 2002, Coppa became the first Bonanno made man to turn state's evidence.
Antonio Tomasulo, also known as "Bootsie", was an Italian-American mobster who served in the New York Bonanno crime family running a highly lucrative illegal slot machine gambling operation.
Raymond J. Wean a.k.a. "Big Ray" was a Bonanno crime family associate who worked under capo Joe Massino and Dominick Napolitano.
Nicholas Angelo "Nicky Mouth" Santora was the reputed underboss of the Bonanno crime family.
Donnie Brasco: My Undercover Life in the Mafia is a 1988 autobiographical crime book written by Joseph D. Pistone about his story as an FBI agent going undercover and infiltrating the Mafia. In 1997, the book was made into a feature film titled Donnie Brasco, starring Johnny Depp and Al Pacino.
Philip "Rusty" Rastelli was an American mobster and former boss of the Bonanno crime family in New York; he spent all but three years of his reign in prison.
The Bonanno crime family is an Italian-American Mafia crime family and one of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City as part of the criminal phenomenon known as the American Mafia.