Cosa Nostra News

Alleged Colombo crime family soldier Angelo Spata (pictured) was among the 100-plus mobsters arrested in the big 2011 bust known as  Mafia Takedown Day .  Angelo Spata does a Carlo Gambino grin for media. (I used Spata's photograph in a story once, without knowing much about him. This led to an interesting conversation with Michael DiLeonardo. If you're interested in the backstory, you can read it  here in the original version  of this story published in early summer 2016. ) Angelo Spata was an up and coming member of the Colombo crime family because, some might say, he married well. Through marriage, he became a somebody, specifically, a Persico... Blatant nepotism may be frowned upon in the workplace, but it's alive and well in Cosa Nostra, and arguably has never been more important to the remaining Mafia presence in the USA (for better or worse). When Angelo started out as a mob associate, he was with the Gambino crime family, along with his father.

Italy’s southern Puglia region was the site of lethal brutality this week courtesy of one of the country's lesser-known organised crime syndicates. On Wednesday, a group of up to five gunmen riding through the region shot at two other vehicles in separate, but related, incidents, killing four. One of two cars in which people were murdered this week. The violence commenced on Wednesday when four or five gunmen opened fire on another vehicle, killing two men inside. Law enforcement sources have since identified the man they believe was the main target as a Foggia mob boss, and the other man, the driver, his brother-in-law. (A civil war within the region's Mafia group may have set these events in motion.)

Former Detroit mobster Alan “Gunner” Lindbloom finished a 13-year prison term last year. While inside, he decided that thug life was not for him, so he put down the gun and picked up the pen, so to speak. Alan “Gunner” Lindbloom. He is related to Detroit's infamous Tocco family through his mother. His book,  To Be A King , is available now.  The following is excerpted from The National Crime Syndicate's interview with him. It includes a little anecdote centered on how Gunner, one drunken evening in a nightclub in Manhattan, hit on Luchese crime family boss Vittorio "Little Vic" Amuso's girl.... Where did the nickname ‘Gunner’ come from? Alan: Believe it or not, my real middle name is Gunner. Originally, my father wanted to name me Gunner. But my Sicilian grandparents Tocco wanted my name to be Alanzo. There was a lot of contention between both sides of my family over this, but eventually a compromise was reached: my name would be “Alan” (a shortened

We don't usually see what we are seeing this summer.... A good number of readers are purchasing Mafia-related nonfiction lately. (Apparently, the Bonanno crime family is garnering the most interest . ) The No. 1 seller on our Amazon affiliate list. Understand that this is all based on our informal, highly un-technical review of our Amazon sales data for July and thus far into August. We are only including a list of titles -- not sales data. We will say that we see these kinds of numbers only in December.

REVISED to include reference to Miami Memo about Joseph(Skinny Joey) Merlino, reputed boss of Philadelphia Mafia.... This is not the kind of item I'd usually cover but August is the slowest of news months and this is just too whacky to let go.... Elena Accetturo is 29. And dangerous!  A Broward County woman married to a man with a historic Mafia name was arrested on a Friday late last month. She's married to the son of the onetime top Luchese crime family leader in New Jersey. Elena Accetturo, 29, faces charges of DUI with property damage, possession of a controlled substance without a prescription, battery on an officer and driving with a suspended license. She was released from the Palm Beach County Jail after posting a $12,000 bond. She "caused a crash in suburban West Palm Beach that left her husband with a shattered leg," reported the Palm Beach Post. She was not finished, however. She then punched a Palm Beach County sheriff’s deputy in

Looking for a good mob-related read? You might want to check out To Be a King , a novel "based on a Detroit organized crime family," as the author, Alan Gunner Lindbloom, said of it. Lindbloom certainly writes with authority, having been an associate of the Detroit Mafia; specifically, the  Tocco crime family . He's actually a member of the Tocco family via his mother. Lindbloom could kick some serious ass, but he's one of the nicest guys I have ever spoken with. Lindbloom was released from prison last year after serving a 13-year stint for extortion, bank robbery, armed robbery, and several weapons violations. He certainly hit the ground running since then, writing, giving interviews, appearing on television. He even launched " Our Thing"  (Cosa Nostra in Italian) apparel.... Lindbloom has been setting the mob-related blogosphere on fire, with major stories running on many key Mafia-related news sites, including The Gangster Report , G