John Gotti

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Police photo of John Gotti taken by the FBI on December 11, 1990 in New York

John Joseph Gotti (born October 27, 1940 in the Bronx , New York City , † June 10, 2002 in Springfield , Missouri ) was a high-ranking mobster in New York City and head of the Gambino family .

Because of his numerous charges, he became one of the most famous members of the American Cosa Nostra after Al Capone . However, since these charges never led to a conviction in the sense of the indictment, he was nicknamed " Teflon -Don". Due to his elegant appearance in public (including at the court hearings) with elegant tailor-made suits, the media also gave him the nickname "Dapper Don" (the preppy Don).

He was the first contemporary mobster to be widely represented in the media. It made the covers of Time , People and New York Times Magazines . The process, in the course of which he was eventually convicted, was regularly commented by the press in several columns, and the procession of his funeral was filmed from helicopters by numerous television reporters.

Life

Early years

John Gotti was the second oldest of five brothers and grew up in with them Ozone Park ( Queens , New York City on). Early on, John embarked on a criminal career in which all his brothers followed him. The nearby JFK airport was almost predestined for criminals , whose suppliers and warehouses were repeatedly robbed and stolen, with corrupt union and security officers often helping. Gotti quickly rose to become a respected member of the Gambino family.

Drug trafficking

His people, especially his brother Gene, were all known as drug traffickers, which led to several conflicts with Paul Castellano , the boss of the family, who had forbidden his people to do this business and instead left them to the Sicilian Mafia ( Pizza Connection ). Aniello Dellacroce , Castellano's second husband, supported Gotti, but died in December 1985.

In view of the impending danger that Castellano could now take action against the remains of the Dellacroce Gotti crew, and because Castellano had turned many gangsters against him at this point, Gotti himself took the initiative and planned the elimination of his boss. So he had Castellano and his newly appointed deputy Thomas Bilotti , who had been appointed the new underboss after Dellacroce's death , shot on December 16, 1985 in front of the Sparks Steak House in Manhattan , where Castellano probably wanted to meet with John Gotti for a discussion . Gotti received energetic help with the planning from the Capos James "Jimmy Brown" Failla and Frank DeCicco , who were originally loyal to Castellano, but were persuaded by Gotti to ambush them by stoking their dissatisfaction with the management of Castellano. However, it is unclear whether Failla was really involved in the attack.

When the attack occurred, the actual team probably counted eleven attackers. While Gotti and Gravano watched the assassination attempt from a car on the opposite side, the four-man hit team presumably consisted of Vincent Artuso, Salvatore "Fat Sally" Scala , Edward Lino and John Carneglia. Dominick Pizzonia , Angelo Ruggiero , Joseph Watts, Richard “The Iceman” Kuklinski and Anthony “Tony Roach” Rampino were probably ready to support any problems . Police sources suspect Carneglia fired the fatal Castellano shots while Rampino murdered Thomas Bilotti. The murder went down in criminal history as the "Steakhouse Massacre".

Gotti as godfather

John Gotti, who was also allied with some dissatisfied capos of the family such as Salvatore Gravano , has now been unanimously appointed Castellano's successor. He thanked DeCicco for his participation as his underboss and Gravano (also present during the assassination) as consigliere , and promoted his brother Gene to capo.

The manner in which he seized power was not welcomed by the other four families ( Bonanno , Colombo , Genovese and Lucchese ); Murders of executives actually required a vote within the commission of the National Crime Syndicate . Vittorio Amuso , boss of the Lucchese family , his dreaded "underboss" Anthony "Gaspipe" Casso and Vincent Gigante of the Genovese family therefore planned Gotti's death. On April 13, 1986 Frank DeCicco was blown up in his car, but Gotti was missed. This attack sparked a bloody feud that resulted in many deaths in the three families involved.

Gotti's public appearance, who liked to appear in newspapers and on television, increased his unpopularity in Cosa Nostra circles as he drew public attention to the illegal activities of the criminals. At times, Gotti had himself filmed by reporters almost every evening in front of the Ravenite Club , where his people gathered, and in many small trials his notoriety rose as he repeatedly asked the prosecution to finally prove something. However, in this way it was difficult for his opponents within the Mafia to forcibly eliminate him under this massive public observation.

Pentiti

One of the most important rules of the mafia is the omertà ; d. H. the confidentiality of members and associates. Mobsters who violate it and appear as key witnesses of the judiciary are referred to as pentito (it: repentant).

Internal disputes within the Lucchese family set in motion a chain reaction that ultimately led to a whole series of Pentiti: Amuso and Casso had shut down their outpost in New Jersey , which meant that the members concerned had to expect their murder. Alphonse D'Arco in particular now testified before the authorities, and this in turn led to a. also arrested Sammy Gravano .

This then testified against Vincent Gigante , John Gotti and his consigliere Frank LoCascio . Amuso was arrested and charged in 1991, John Gotti in 1992, and Casso in 1994. Vincent Gigante was sentenced to 12 years in prison.

Gravano's testimony was particularly incriminating, and Gotti was sentenced to life imprisonment; Gravano was initially given a new identity in Arizona through the US witness protection program until he was arrested again.

estate

Gotti was sent to the United States Penitentiary in Marion, Illinois to serve his sentence . There he was in solitary confinement for 23 hours a day. Even in custody, he remained the formal head of the Gambino family, which he further consolidated by promoting his brother Richard to capo. The Gambino clan quickly disintegrated under his son of the same name, John A. Gotti (also known as "Junior" Gotti) and his brother Peter Gotti in the 1990s and is said to hardly play a role today, especially as did his brothers Richard and Peter had to serve a 16-year prison sentence on March 13, 2003. However, the high-ranking member of the Gambino family John D'Amico returned to Brooklyn after a long prison sentence and has been considered - by the FBI - as the new head of the Gambino family and actual successor to John Gotti since 2002 . On June 10, 2002, Gotti died of throat cancer at the United States Medical Center for Federal Prisoners in Springfield, Missouri.

Family relationships

John Gotti was one of five sons (Richard V, John, Gene, Peter and Vincent) of the married couple John Gotti, Sr. and his wife Fannie, who all became members of the Cosa Nostra.

So is z. B. Richard V. Gotti (* 1942 in Brooklyn), a younger brother of John, has been with the clan since 1962 and has been a member of the family since 1988. While in custody, John tried to enforce him as capo to consolidate his position as head of the Gambino family. His son Richard G. Gotti (born November 30, 1967) is also considered a member of the Gambino family from 1992, for which he worked from the beginning of the 1980s.

On March 13, 2003 Richard V had to face a 16-year prison sentence for extortion together with his son Richard G. and brother Peter Gotti .

Films and documentaries

music

In their song King Of New York on the concept album Come Find Yourself , the Fun Lovin 'Criminals tell the story of John Gotti.

The German-speaking rapper Kollegah released a song called "John Gotti".

literature

  • Howard Blum: The knife for your death . In: Der Spiegel . No. 32 , 1994 ( online ).
  • Howard Blum: Gangland: How The FBI Broke the Mob. Simon & Schuster, New York 1993, ISBN 0-671-68758-1 (German: Gangland - The hunt for the godfather John Gotti . Knaur, Munich 1996, ISBN 3-426-77232-9 )
  • Jerry Capeci, Gene Mustain: Mob Star: The Story of John Gotti . Penguin, New York 1988. ISBN 0-02-864416-6
  • Jerry Capeci Gene Mustain. Gotti: Rise and Fall . Onyx, New York 1996, ISBN 0-451-40681-8 .
  • John H. Davis: Mafia Dynasty: The Rise and Fall of the Gambino Crime Family . HarperCollins, New York 1993, ISBN 0-06-109184-7 .
  • Selwyn Raab: Five Families: The Rise, Decline, and Resurgence of America's Most Powerful Mafia Empires . Robson Books, London 2006, ISBN 1-86105-952-3 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ John Gotti Dies in Prison at 61 - Mafia Boss Relished the Spotlight - NYTimes.com
  2. ↑ US Department of Justice , June 4, 2002
predecessor Office successor
Paul Castellano Head of the
“ Gambino family ” of the Cosa Nostra
1985–2002 		John D'Amico
personal data
SURNAME Gotti, John
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Gotti, John Senior; Teflon Don; Dapper Don
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American mobster
DATE OF BIRTH October 27, 1940
PLACE OF BIRTH United States
DATE OF DEATH June 10, 2002
Place of death Springfield, Missouri , USA