John Riggi, Mafia's "Last Legitimate Boss"
Giovanni Riggi (February 1, 1925 – August 3, 2015), aka John the Eagle, died on Monday of natural causes. He was 90 and outlived what law enforcement officials no doubt considered a life sentence. A member of the New Jersey-based crime family since the 1940s (before it was given its historic name, the DeCavalcante crime family), Riggi served as the Elizabeth crew's captain and was named acting boss in the 1970s. John Riggi, at the height of power. Riggi's rise was slow and deliberate. Simone "Sam the Plumber" DeCavalcante named Riggi as his successor in 1980. Riggi in fact held the official boss title up until his death a week ago. He's been described as well-spoken, extremely polite and extremely ruthless. Toward the end of his life he'd been incarcerated at the Federal Medical Center (FMC) in Devens, Massachusetts. He was released on November 27, 2012. The funeral at the Corsentino Home for Funerals in Elizabeth, N.J., held on Friday, Aug. 7...