John Gotti

For other people named John Gotti, see John Gotti (disambiguation).

John Gotti
Spouse	Victoria DiGiorgio
Children	Angela Gotti Victoria Gotti John A. Gotti Frank Gotti Peter Gotti, Jr.
Parent(s)	John and Philomena Gotti
Criminal charge	Murder, conspiracy to commit murder, loansharking, racketeering, obstruction of justice, illegal gambling, tax evasion
Penalty	Life imprisonment

John Joseph Gotti, Jr. (October 27, 1940–June 10, 2002), commonly known by the media as "The Dapper Don" and "The Teflon Don" after the murder of his former boss Paul Castellano, was the boss of the well known Gambino crime family, one of the Five Families in New York City. He became widely known for his outspoken personality and flamboyant style that eventually caused his downfall. In 1992, Gotti was convicted of racketeering, 13 murders, obstruction of justice, hijacking, conspiracy to commit murder, illegal gambling, extortion, tax evasion, loansharking and other crimes and was sentenced to life in prison where he died 10 years later.

Early life and family

Gotti was born to Italian-American parents, John Gotti Sr. and Philomena "Fannie" Gotti. He was 12 when his Gotti|Victoria]], John A. "Junior" Gotti, Peter and Frank.hi

Criminal career

Gotti's criminal career with the Gambinos began with fencing stolen goods from Idlewild Airport (later renamed John F. Kennedy International Airport) out of the Bergin Hunt and Fish Club in Ozone Park, Queens. A truck to JFK's United Airlines cargo area drove off with $30,000 worth of merchandise. A few days later the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) began surveillance on Gotti and Ruggiero and caught them loading more goods, the FBI swooped in and arrested all three men.

In February 1968, United employees identified Gotti as the man who signed for the earlier stolen merchandise. The FBI arrested him for the United hijacking soon after. Two months later, while out on bail, Gotti was arrested a third-time for hijacking—this time stealing a load of cigarettes worth $500,000 on the New Jersey Turnpike. Later that year, Gotti pled guilty to the Northwest and United hijackings and was sentenced to four years at Lewisburg Federal Penitentiary. Prosecutors dropped the charges for the cigarette hijacking. Gotti spent less than three years at Lewisburg.

Gotti was arrested several times throughout his career, and although he served time in both state and federal prison, including a manslaughter conviction in connection with the shooting death in a tavern on Staten Island in 1973 of low-level Irish-American gangster James McBratney. By the 1980s, he was referred to by the news media as the "Teflon Don" as he avoided conviction on racketeering and assault charges.

Death of Frank Gotti

On March 18, 1980, 12-year-old Frank Gotti, Gotti's youngest son, was run over and killed on his bicycle by neighbor John Favara, whose children were friends. Police found Favara was not to blame in the accident, which was officially ruled "accidental" and no charges were ever filed against him. However, in the months after the accident, the word "Murderer" was spray-painted onto Favara's car. On May 28, Victoria DiGiorgio Gotti, Frank's mother, attacked Favara with a metal baseball bat, sending him to the hospital. Favara decided not to press charges and planned to move out of Howard Beach. According to the FBI, on July 28, 1980, Favara was kidnapped and murdered by eight members of Gotti's crew while Gotti and his wife were out of town.

Trial and imprisonment

Gotti was under electronic surveillance by the FBI; they caught him on tape in an apartment discussing a number of murders and other criminal activities. The FBI also caught Gotti denigrating his underboss, Salvatore "Sammy The Bull" Gravano. On December 11, 1990, FBI agents and New York City detectives raided the Ravenite Social Club and arrested Gotti, Gravano, Frank Locascio, and Thomas Gambino.

Gotti was charged with 13 counts of murder (including Paul Castellano and Thomas Bilotti), conspiracy to commit murder, loansharking, racketeering, obstruction of justice, illegal gambling, tax evasion.

Gotti was tried in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York before Judge I. Leo Glasser. The federal prosecutor's evidence was overwhelming. Not only did they have Gotti on tape, but they also had several witnesses to testify against Gotti. Philip Leonetti, a former Underboss in the violent Philadelphia crime family, was going to testify that Gotti bragged that he had ordered Castellano's execution. Then, Gotti's own Underboss Gravano voluntarily agreed to testify against his boss and Consigliere Frank LoCascio with the promise of being entered into the Witness Protection Program. On April 2, 1992, after only 13 hours of deliberation, the jury found Gotti and LoCascio guilty on all 13 charges. On June 23, 1992, Judge Glasser sentenced Gotti to life imprisonment without possibility of parole. He was sent to the United States Penitentiary at Marion, Illinois, where he was kept in a cell 23 hours a day. Four days later, his father died of heart failure.

Death and funeral

Last known picture of an ill John Gotti

Gotti died of throat cancer at 12:45 pm on June 10, 2002 at the United States Medical Center for Federal Prisoners in Springfield, Missouri, where he had been transferred once the cancer was diagnosed. Doctors had removed the lower half of Gotti's jaw due to the cancer and was being fed through a tube. Gotti's body was flown by a private jet to New York. His body was dressed in a blue suit and placed into a gold-colored casket for two nights of viewing at the Papavero Funeral Home. Stretch limousines and flower cars filled the street as eight pallbearers shoulder-carried the casket to the awaiting hearse. The funeral procession passed Gotti's home and headquarters on the way to the cemetery.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn announced that Gotti's family would not be permitted to have a Mass of Christian Burial but allowed Gotti's family to have a Requiem after burial.

Further reading

• Blum, Howard. Gangland : How The FBI Broke the Mob. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1993. ISBN 0671687581
• Capeci, Jerry and Gene Mustain. Mob Star: The Story of John Gotti. New York: Penguin, 1988. ISBN 0-02-864416-6
• Capeci, Jerry and Gene Mustain. Gotti: Rise and Fall. New York: Onyx, 1996. ISBN 0-451-40681-8
• Davis, John H. Mafia Dynasty: The Rise and Fall of the Gambino Crime Family. New York: HarperCollins, 1993. ISBN 0-06-109184-7

External links

• The Smoking Gun
• Public photo of John Gotti after being beaten up in prison