Michael Coppola

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Michael "Trigger Mike" Coppola (born July 29, 1900 near Salerno , Italy , † October 17, 1966 in Boston ) was a high-ranking American mafioso from the clan in New York City , later classified as the Genovese family private marriage difficulties put an end to his career.

biography

Early years

During the alcohol prohibition , Coppola rose quickly in the hierarchy of the American La Cosa Nostra , where he acquired a reputation as a sadistic and violent gunslinger and was therefore called "Trigger Mike". After the Castellammare War he was a senior member led by Lucky Luciano .

From 1933 he was considered an "underboss" who led the "116th Street Crew", which represented the "family" in East Harlem . His deputy was Philip Lombardo , who briefly rose to be the boss of the Genovese family in 1981.

After the murder of Dutch Schultz in 1935, he took over his lottery activities, and when Luciano was convicted in 1936, he became the owner of the monopoly over the artichoke trade , which had originally been held by Ciro Terranova , but which had to be ceded by Ciro Terranova in December 1935 .

Together with income from other activities, the total value of his earnings was estimated to be more than $ 1 million per year.

First marriage

The rise of Coppola continued under Frank Costello's leadership as the “acting boss” of the family.

In 1943 he married his first wife Doris Lehman (about 1920-1948), who, however, did not want to adhere to the Omertà and turned to the authorities when Coppola planned the murder of the politician Joseph R. Scottoriggio in 1946 and carried it out together with Joseph Rao . Michael Coppola is said to have killed her himself in March 1948, the day after their daughter was born.

Nevertheless, this was a blow to his reputation and he lost control of running the street lottery to Anthony Salerno , who was to become boss of the Genovese family in 1981 .

Second marriage

He then married his second wife Ann (1910–1962), who is said to have initially not heard of her husband's true business activities; at least she didn't mind, until one day she noticed that he was obviously supplying his stepdaughter with drugs. She then filed for divorce and testified against him as part of an ongoing tax investigation. Coppola had her kidnapped and after being mistreated, she was dumped on a deserted beach; but she survived this attack and continued to help the investigative authorities.

In 1961, Coppola was charged with tax evasion but was able to negotiate a deal due to a procedural misconduct and got away with a $ 40,000 fine and eight years' imprisonment (four on probation). Since 1960 he has also been one of 11 people in the official "Black Book" of the Nevada Gaming Commission , which practically excluded him as an operator of casinos, among other things.

After his conviction, his wife fled to Europe with $ 250,000, writing letters to then-prosecutor Robert F. Kennedy and to the IRS (Internal Revenue Service) . In the letters, she revealed the activities of her husband and his criminal environment. After that, they sent another letter to her ex-husband and committed suicide with sleeping pills suicide .

The end

In 1963 Coppola was released from the Atlanta Federal Prison , but could not or did not want to continue his criminal career. In April 1963, along with Charles Tourine , Dino Cellini , Max Courtney and Frank Ritteran , he is said to have taken part in a conference called by Meyer Lansky in Miami at the Fontainebleau Hotel , at which it became necessary to move casino activities from Cuba to the Bahamas was discussed.

He stayed at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston until his death .

literature

  • James Mills: The Underground Empire: Where Crime and Governments Meet . 1986.
  • Lawrence Binda: The Big, Bad Book of Mike: Rogues, Rascals and Rapscallions Named Michael, Mike and Mickey , Lincoln, Nebraska : Universe, 2003. ISBN 0-595-28772-7 .
  • Robert J. Kelly: Encyclopedia of Organized Crime in the United States . Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 2000, ISBN 0-313-30653-2 .
  • Carl Sifakis: The Mafia Encyclopedia . New York: Facts On File Inc., 2005, ISBN 0-8160-5694-3 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. Ciro Terranova ( Memento of the original dated November 12, 2006 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Biography on www.onewal.com (English) @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.onewal.com
  2. ^ "Ten Detectives at the Funeral of Trigger Mike's Wife": New York Times, March 23, 1948
  3. ^ "" Trigger Mike "Released in Bail as Material Witness in the Scottoriggio Case" New York Times, July 16, 1947
  4. US Politics Part 7: "April 1963 From Cuba to the Bahamas and Back" on www.us-politik.ch (English)
predecessor Office successor
Dutch Schultz Boss of the " Number Game " -Roads lottery
in New York City
1935 - 1948
Anthony "Fat Tony" Salerno