Gig Is Up for Gambino Associate Nailed for Murder
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| "Jerry" Bruno, Gambino associate |
The murder of Martin Bosshart in 2002 garnered widespread media coverage. Bosshart himself was a notorious thug who was alleged to be involved in several murders and himself could be likened to a one-man crime wave.
Bruno was arrested on Tuesday in Las Vegas, where his initial appearance for removal proceedings to the Eastern District of New York commenced.
“Gennaro Bruno started his criminal career at a young age as a member of a street gang where he earned his criminal credentials. He then graduated to become an associate in the Gambino crime family, where he proved himself to be both an earner for the family and capable of murder,” stated United States Attorney Loretta E. Lynch.
FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge George Venizelos stated, “Gennaro “Jerry” Bruno was originally trained as a member of the “Young Guns.” After being released from prison, Bruno was promoted to associate of the Gambino crime family. In January of 2002, Bruno executed Martin Bosshart by shooting him in the back of the head. Bruno was as ruthless as he was calculating, and after a long run of evading justice, Bruno’s gig is up.”
According to the indictment and other court filings, when Bruno was released from prison in 2000 following a three-year term he became an associate of the Gambino crime family, having graduated from The Ozone Park Boys, also known as "Liberty Posse" and "The Young Guns," which is a Gambino crime family Mafia crew based in Ozone Park, Queens. They are infamous for their massive number of crimes, including an illegal $30 million-a-year sports gambling enterprise.
''The list of people who would want him dead is rather lengthy, and we're doing what we can to narrow it down to something manageable.''
Over the next 14 years, before his arrest, Bruno engaged in a myriad of crimes as an associate under Joseph “JoJo” Corozzo, who had risen to the position of consigliere. Among Bruno's alleged crimes: he and other Gambino crime family members and associates imported large quantities of marijuana from Canada into New York City.
In 2001, Bruno’s criminal associate Martin Bosshart began efforts to exclude one of Bruno’s co-cohorts from the operation. Bruno plotted with other Gambino crime family members and associates, including Todd LaBarca, to murder Bosshart. On Jan. 2, 2002, Bruno and others lured Bosshart to an isolated location in Queens, New York, where Bruno allegedly shot Bosshart in the back of the head at point-blank range. Bosshart, 30 years old, was later recovered at the scene.
The New York Times noted that "the body was found about 9:25 p.m. in a desolate area near the Belt Parkway, investigators said. It was face up in front of a fence at 155th Avenue near Lahn Street. Mr. Bosshart was running one of the most lucrative stolen auto parts operations in New York City when he was arrested in 1996, officials said. At the time, he was just 25. Before his arrest, he had overseen an auto-theft marketplace in a warehouse that covered an entire Queens block, base for organized crime's auto theft operations in the city, and shared some profits with a member of the Gambino crime family, according to court testimony.
"[H]e had a reputation that went farther.
"Law enforcement officials said he was a suspect in killings in the Bronx and Queens, and the police in Florida wanted to question him about three 1995 killings there.
"He was also the target of a federal grand jury inquiry into credit card fraud, narcotics trafficking and other crimes in Fort Lauderdale, where he traveled to work as a club promoter, the officials said.
"His criminal record dates back to 1988 and includes arrests on charges of robbery, assault, forgery, narcotics trafficking and, in 1990, attempted murder, although he was never convicted in that case."
The article further noted that Bosshart was charged with kidnapping, robbery and assault for abducting and shooting a former partner aligned with the Bonanno crime family because he believed the man had stolen $50,000 worth of Mr. Bosshart's stolen auto parts.
A law enforcement official who tracked Bosshart told the Times, ''The list of people who would want him dead is rather lengthy, and we're doing what we can to narrow it down to something manageable.''
Bruno also is alleged to have extorted the owner of a waste carting company in Queens.