Cosa Nostra News

By Andrew Machin “ The criminal life of (members of the) ‘Ndrangheta is born and develops in the Locale. It’s for the economic interests and for the prestige of (their) own Locale that every single affiliate commits crimes. "-- Direzione Nazionale Antimafia, Yearly Report, December 2012 Michael (Big Mike) Leventis It is helpful to view the ‘Ndrangheta—the Italy-based organized crime organization with global reach—as an octopus, to borrow the metaphor used by turncoat Rocco Varacalli (see  ‘ Ndrangheta Governing Body in Greater Toronto Area: Latest Developments ), with its head located in Calabria, Italy, and its tentacles inhabiting various countries across the globe, including Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, Australia, and Canada. In some regions, it has more than one tentacle. The ‘Ndrangheta competes with rival criminal organizations wherever it has sought to plant a flag. Only in its home base, the southern Italy region of Calabria, does the group enjoy supremacy, with ...

" Joe Piney was the consigliere, Frankie (Loc) was acting consigliere. " — Sammy the Bull testimony  The 1992 murder and racketeering trial of top Gambino wiseguys John Gotti and Frank Locascio in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York resulted in Gotti's and Locascio's convictions and subsequent lifetime prison sentences. Sammy the Bull testified against John Gotti in 1992. In 2002, Gotti died of head and neck cancer at the federal prison hospital in Springfield, Missouri, at 61, nearly 10 years after he was flown (on an airplane, not his preferred mode of travel) to Marion Federal Penitentiary in Marion, Illinois. In 2020,  Frankie Loc continues trying to wiggle out of this sentence (ironically, with Gravano's assistance), though the effort stalled last month when Brooklyn Federal Judge I. Leo Glasser squashed the compassionate release motion in a 12-page decision that targeted any notion that Frankie Loc was innocent of the murder of Gambin...

Former acting Luchese boss Matthew (Matty) Madonna, 84; soldier Christopher Londonio, 45; and associate Terrence Caldwell, 61, were sentenced to life in prison on Monday, July 27, following their 2019 jury conviction for the Bronx murder of Michael Meldish, among other crimes. Cops examine car in which Michael Meldish was killed in the Bronx in 2013. Audrey Strauss, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced the sentences, which were imposed by U.S. District Judge Cathy Seibel, as per  a media release . Steven L. Crea, the Underboss of the Luchese Family, who also faces a life sentence, will be sentenced at a later date. According to Gang Land News, he will be sentenced next week . As per Gang Land the reason for the delay is that, at the time of the hearing, which was conducted remotely due to COVID-19 precautions, "no court appearance slots were available for inmates at the Metropolitan Detention Center," where Crea is b...

Wiseguys know that anytime they chat, there's always a chance that their words could be memorialized forever on wiretaps—which is why they effortlessly speak in code and use copious nicknames and never spell things out entirely. (An ex-wiseguy who spent decades in the life told us recently that he has no idea what John Gotti and the other guys are talking about in our Ravenite Transcript Series. "I can't follow a word of what they're fcking saying.") John Gotti and unidentified man(?) outside Brooklyn federal court. In one of the discussions below Gotti obsesses over loose lips and anoints himself the prime offender: “This [is] how we get in trouble—we talk.” Minutes later, he notes what will happen to anyone who dares to oppose his regime... This entry marks the conclusion of the Ravenite Transcript Series; our next transcript series will be: The Testimony of Salvatore (Sammy the Bull) Gravano. JANUARY 24, 1990 FILE NUMBER: 183A-3507 PLACE: Apar...

Just because we haven't posted as frequently as usual this past month doesn't mean we're slacking off: in fact, we've been busily researching a piece about  former Bonanno powerhouse Carmine Galante that we hope to publish in the next week or so. John Gotti; then from left: Peter Gotti, Gerald Shargel of the Shargel, Cutler, and Whattaya Call It Crime Family . We were surprised to learn that, at one point, Gambino capo Danny Marino , for one, walked into that apartment above the Ravenite and joined in the wiretap discussions between boss John Gotti, underboss Salvatore (Sammy the Bull) Gravano , and consiglieri Frankie Locascio. In this meeting, Gotti and his appointed hierarchy discuss inducting new members into the Gambino Family, which is not a matter for levity, as Gotti clarifies for all those present. Gotti also notes that they will conduct the ritual with dignity and sobriety: “I’m not in the mood for the toys or games or kidding, no time … This is gon...