The Gangster Report

Harry (Taco) Bowman was a biker world legend. The Detroit-based Outlaws MC boss led the club for 15 years (1984-1999) and established the Outlaws brand as a powerhouse nationwide during his reign where he ratcheted up the club’s war with the Hells Angels. Convicted of racketeering and murder in 2001, he died in prison of cancer last week at 69 years old.

Below is a list of the gangland murders either directly or indirectly ordered by Bowman when he was at the peak of his power in the 1990s:

February 21, 1991 – Warlocks MC boss Raymond (Bear) Chaffin, president of the club’s Smyrna Beach, Florida chapter, is shot to death in his garage. Chaffin was a former Outlaw and in talks to merge interests with the Hells Angels down in Florida.

June 28, 1994 – Rockford, Illinois Hell’s Henchmen boss Lamont (Merciless Monte) Mattias is beaten, shot and stabbed to death inside his bike shop. The Hells Henchmen were in the process of “patching over” to the Hells Angels.

September 25, 1994 – A brawl breaks out between The Outlaws and Hells Angels at the Lancaster Speedway in upstate New York in which Hells Angel Michael (Mad Mike) Quale & the Outlaws’ Walter (Buffalo Wally) Posnjak are both killed as part of the melee. Quale, the Hells Angels’ Buffalo boss and Posnjak, The Outlaws Western New York crew chief, was shot to death. Posnjak was a close friend of Bowman’s.

January 29, 1995 – Northwest Indiana Outlaws enforcer Donald (Big Don) Fogg is shot to death after he allegedly began contemplating becoming a federal informant and providing details on the Lancaster Speedway slayings.

March 3, 1995 – Chicago Hells Angel Jack (4-by-4) Castle is slain behind the wheel of his car, the victim of a drive-by shooting outside the trucking company he worked at.

The post The Taco Bowman Hit List: Outlaws MC Boss Had Rivals Bumped Off In The 1990s appeared first on The Gangster Report.

The nation’s longest-serving mafia don, Carmine (Junior) Persico of New York’s Colombo crime family, died in prison this week at 85 years old. Persico led the Colombo mob for almost a half-century, taking the reins in the early 1970s and heading the family from behind bars since the mid-1980s. Following his incarceration, he was forced to fight a war to remain in power when his acting boss Vittorio (Little Vic) Orena turned against him and convinced a number of capos to join his palace coup. Orena was jailed in December 1992 and although the attack on the throne ultimately proved unsuccessful, the power play damaged the syndicate’s internal political dynamics for years to come after the bullets stopped flying.

Below is a breakdown of the gangland strife in the Colombo clan of the early 1990s.

The Colombo War Hit List (1991-1993):

November 24, 1991 – Colombo soldier Henry (Hank the Bank) Smurra is killed behind the wheel of his car parked in front of a Dunkin Donuts in Brooklyn. Smurra was a Persico loyalist and a week earlier had been part of a hit team that opened fire on Persico’s primary muscle on the streets, Greg (The Grim Reaper) Scarpa, his young granddaughter and his daughter in their Brooklyn neighborhood in broad daylight.

December 2, 1991 – Aging Genovese crime family lieutenant Gaetano (Tommy Scars) Amato is shot to death in an attack on Colombo associate Joey Tolino on a Brooklyn street corner. Tolino was an Orena loyalisr.

December 5, 1991 – Aging Colombo soldier Rosario (Black Sam) Nastasi is slain inside his Belvedere Social Club in Brooklyn while he was playing cards. Natasi was a Persico loyalist.

December 7, 1991 – Colombo crime family soldier Vincent (Vinnie Venus) Fusaro is murdered in front of his house in the Bath Beach section of Brooklyn, gunned down as he hung his Christmas lights. Fusaro was an Orena loyalist,

December 8, 1991 – Innocent bystander Matteo Speranza, a teenage immigrant from Sicily, is killed by accident at a bagel shop in the Bay Ridge section of Brooklyn during an attack on a Persico loyalist.

January 7, 1992 – Colombo crime family captain Nicholas (Nicky Black) Grancio is shotgunned to death behind the wheel of his Toyota Land Cruiser SUV on a Brooklyn street corner. Grancio was a high-ranking Orena loyalist.

March 25, 1992 – Colombo crime family lieutenants Johnny Minerva & Mike Imbergamo are gunned down sitting in Minerva’s car outside the Broadway Diner in North Massapequa. Minerva and Imbergamo were Orena loyalists.

May 22, 1992 – Colombo crime family soldier Larry Lampisi is shot-gunned to death in his Brooklyn driveway. Lampisi was an Orena loyalist.

October 7, 1992 – Colombo crime family lieutenant Steven (Stevie Lightning) Mancusi is killed as he is getting into his car. Mancusi was a Persico loyalist.

October 20, 1993 – Colombo crime family capo Joey Scopo is executed in the front yard of his house in Queens, ending the war and keeping power with the Persico group. Scopo was a leader of the Orena faction and holding the fort down for the insurgence with Little Vic behind bars.

*Orena’s main muscle in the war was charismatic capo William (Wild Bill) Cutolo, who in the aftermath of the feud would eventually get promoted to underboss as a peace gesture, but slain in the spring of 1999 when Persico felt he was poised to launch another offensive.

The post In NYC Mob Boss Carmine Persico’s Death, We Remember His Battle To Maintain Power Through His Incarceration appeared first on The Gangster Report.

Venerable American biker boss Harry (Taco) Bowman is having a sendoff fit for a king. The beloved 69-year old Bowman, who served as the international president of The Outlaws Motorcycle Club at the end of the 20th Century, his dynamic leadership propelling the club to epic heights, died last week in prison of cancer. He’ll be buried this weekend at a funeral expected to be so big it needs to be held at a county fairgrounds to accommodate all the mourners.

A get-together to honor and remember Bowman at his former Detroit, Michigan Outlaws MC compound drew 5,000 people the day after he passed away at a federal prison hospital on March 3. Bowman’s burial will take place at the Montgomery County, Ohio Fairgrounds in Dayton. Biker club luminaries from around the country have been descending on Michigan for the last week and are now off to Ohio to pay their respects.

Bowman was the face of the Midwest biker underworld in the 1980s and 1990s, the most notorious biker Godfather in the nation and by that point on-par with Hells Angels founder Ralph (Sonny) Barger out in California. His legacy includes the vision to expand The Outlaws brand outside U.S. borders, diversifying its business interests and the escalation of tensions between the club and Barger’s Hells Angels.

Under Bowman’s reign, The Outlaws ramped up their “Angels War,” a feud that has been raging since the early 1970s when Outlaws in Florida executed three Massachusetts Hells Angels in retaliation for a beating of a club member at a 1973 New Year’s Eve party held at the Hells Angels New York headquarters. Exactly two decades later, on New Year’s Eve 1993, Bowman gave an impassioned speech to hundreds of rank-and-file Outlaws inside a Florida hotel suite imploring them to be “rottener,” in their efforts to destroy the Hells Angels.

The edict spurred the murders of a Hells Angels soldier in Chicago and a Hells Angels-affiliate in Rockford, Illinois. Bowman slapped a murder contract on Sonny Barger’s head and the head of Barger’s right-hand man George Christie, even sending a hit team of Outlaws to the west coast to scout kill spots. Just a couple years prior, Bowman and Christie had engaged in a series of peace talks that fell apart in the last hours of negotiations.

Raised in Port Huron, Michigan, Bowman put the Detroit Outlaws on the map in the 1970s with a fierce bravado and unbridled determination. By the end of the decade, Bowman’s power in national club circles was rapidly on the rise and at his urging, the club had opened its first international chapter in Canada.

Upon being elected president of the entire club in a 1984 meeting of Outlaws brass in Joliet, Illinois, Bowman moved the club’s nerve center from Chicago to the Motor City. One of his first moves as new boss was to start launching Outlaws chapters in Europe. Another key policy decision was to augment bread-and-butter drug and prostitution rackets with gambling, loan sharking and extortion.

Indicted by the feds out of Tampa, Florida in 1997, Bowman went on the run from the law for nearly two years, finally getting apprehended in a Detroit suburb in June of 1999. He’d go on to be found guilty of racketeering and murder at a 2001 trial.

The post Royal Farewell Planned For “Taco” Bowman, Historic Outlaws Pres. Will Be Laid To Rest In Front Of Thousands appeared first on The Gangster Report.

East coast mafia figure Robert (Bobby the Cook) Gentile was released from federal prison over the weekend after serving just more than a year on weapons charges. The infirmed 82-year old Gentile was born in Boston and lived in Connecticut, but was a member of Philadelphia’s Bruno-Scarfo crime family.

The FBI believes Bobby the Cook may be the last living person with any knowledge of the infamous Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum robbery, the biggest art heist in world history which still remains un-cracked nearly three decades after it happened. A pair of Boston gangsters (both believed to be deceased today) ripped off the elite privately-funded museum for a half-billion dollars in stolen artwork – 13 pieces, including classic paintings from Rembrandt, Manet and Vermeer, were crudely torn from their frame on the walls in the early-morning hours of March 18, 1990 and have yet to be recovered.

Gentile has been a focus of the investigation into the theft for the last several years. In 2012, the FBI recovered a hand-written list of the pilfered masterpieces with accompanying black-market values in a search of his Connecticut home. He’s been tied by an eye-witness account to at least two of the stolen paintings and he was caught on a wire discussing his connection to the highly-coveted art. An attempt by Gentile to sign a cooperation agreement with the government in a prior case was thwarted when he failed a polygraph exam for lying about what he knows regarding the Gardner Museum heist.

The widow of Gentile’s former partner-in-crime, Robert (Bobby Boost) Guarente, has told authorities she was present when Guarente gave two of the paintings to Gentile in the parking lot of a Portland, Maine diner in the early 2000s. Guarente died of cancer in 2004.

Gentile and Guarente were at first part of an East Boston crew of mobsters belonging to the Patriarca crime family before being inducted into the Philadelphia mafia in 1998 and helping set up a New England satellite of the Bruno-Scarfo crime family. Investigators suspect Gentile and Guarente of attempting to broker a black market sale of a number of the Gardner Museum paintings in Philly around the same time of the alleged paintings exchange in Portland.

Gentile most recent case is for selling a loaded pistol to an informant. The Feds found firearms in a search of his residence as well.

The post Home Cooking: Conn. Mobster, Gardner Museum Robbery Suspect “Bobby The Cook” Gentile Gets Out Of Prison appeared first on The Gangster Report.

Shockwaves coursed through the streets of New York last week when the news broke of Gambino crime family underboss and street boss Frank (Frankie Boy) Cali being shot to death outside his Staten Island home. The shooter, 24-year old Anthony Comello, has no known mob ties and appears mentally unstable. Comello had allegedly been warned by Cali to stay away from Cali’s college-aged niece.

Below is the listing of every assassination of an American mob boss dating back to 1931.

The Godfather Hit List (1931-2019):

February 7, 1931 – Detroit mafia don Cesare (Big Chet) LaMare is shot dead inside his own mansion concluding the Motor City’s “Crosstown Mob War” and setting the stage for Michigan’s Tocco-Zerilli clan gangland dynasty.

April 15, 1931 – New York don Giuseppe (Joe the Boss) Masseria is gunned down in a Coney Island restaurant, the first U.S. mob boss killed in the Castellamarese War that laid the foundation for the modern day American mafia.

September 10, 1931 – New York don Salvatore (Little Caesar) Maranzano is gunned down inside his office in what is now the Helmsley Building in midtown Manhattan, the final boss killed in the Castellamarese War.

September 13, 1931 – Pittsburgh mafia don Giuseppe (Joe the Baron) Siragusa is killed for his allegiance to slain New York Godfather Salvatore Maranzano, a mere 72 hours after Maranzano is executed inside his own office.

October 15, 1931 – Los Angeles mafia don Giuseppe (Iron Joe) Aridizzone vanishes on his way to a relative’s residence in the midst of a war for the Southern California rackets, just months removed from surviving an assassination attempts that killed his bodyguard.

August 8, 1932 – Pittsburgh mob boss John Bazzano is strangled and stabbed to death on a trip to New York in the wake of a falling out with the national “Commission” over an unsanctioned triple murder he ordered of rivals two months before.

February 18, 1933 – Denver mafia don Joe (Little Caesar) Roma is killed inside his mansion, paving the way for the rise to power of the Smaldone Brothers, overlords of the Rocky Mountain underworld for the next three quarters of a century.

July 10, 1934 – Kansas City mob boss Giovanni (Brother John) Lazia is gunned down in front of his luxury apartment, having upset his mafia brethren on the East Coast as well as his political allies in Missouri for the heat brought from his sanctioning of the Kansas City Massacre less than a year prior.

August 17, 1936 – Philadelphia mafia don John Avena is killed on a street corner in a drive by shooting orchestrated by rivals looking to move in on his mob empire.

October 24, 1940 – Tampa mafia don Ignacio Antinori is shot-gunned to death over a beef he was engaging in with mobsters in Chicago related to a drug debt, laying the foundation for the ascent of the Trafficante family.

April 5, 1950 – Kansas City mob boss Charlie Binaggio and his underboss Charles (Mad Dog Charlie) Gargotta are slain together inside the First Ward Democratic Club, both shot in the head following Binaggio’s bold attempt to expand his business into St. Louis drew the ire of the national “Commission” in New York.

April 19, 1951 – Original “Five Families” Godfather Vincent (The Executioner) Mangano disappears as a result of a power play hatched by his underboss and successor Albert Anastasia, who would encounter a similar fate.

March 31, 1955 – New Jersey mob boss Steve Bedami, who ran the rackets in Elizabeth, N.J. was murdered in a faction war that raged across the Garden State.

October 25, 1957 – New York don Albert (The Mad Hatter) Anastasia is famously slain while having a shave sitting in a barber’s chair inside the Park Sheraton Hotel in a power play orchestrated by his underboss and successor Carlo Gambino.

September 12, 1964 – Rochester mafia boss Jake Russo disappears en route to a meeting at a mobbed up restaurant after offending Buffalo don Stefano Magaddino at a dinner months earlier to discuss Magaddino’s desire to take a piece of Russo’s gambling rackets.

June 28, 1971 – New York mob boss Joe Colombo is assassinated at Italian Unity Day in Columbus Circle, hanging around for seven years before finally succumbing to his injuries. Colombo was at war with rogue capo “Crazy Joe” Gallo.

July 16, 1972 – Genovese crime family boss Thomas (Tommy Ryan) Eboli is gunned down leaving his girlfriend’s Crown Heights, Brooklyn amid a fallout with his own cabinet and mobsters from the Gambino clan over a drug debt.

June 19, 1975 – Former Chicago mob don Sam (Momo) Giancana is killed inside his own house after returning from years living as an expatriate making millions in gambling ventures in Mexico, the Caribbean and Middle East and not sharing with his gangland buddies in the Windy City.

July 12, 1979 – Bonanno crime family boss Carmine (The Cigar) Galante is assassinated as he ate lunch in Brooklyn on the patio of a friend’s restaurant. Gigante had isolated himself from his troops by importing Sicilian “Zips” to do his bidding and angered his fellow dons in New York’s Five Families with his brash and dismissive behavior.

March 21, 1980 – Philadelphia mob boss Angelo (The Docile Don) Bruno is felled by a shotgun blast to the back of the head as he sat smoking a cigarette in the passenger’s seat of his bodyguard’s car idling outside his South Philly row house. Bruno angered his consigliere “Tony Bananas” Caponigro and others regarding his policies towards drugs and the burgeoning gambling paradise that was Atlantic City. Caponigro thought he had the sanctioning of the mob’s national “Commission,” but he was duped and soon savagely executed himself.

March 15, 1981 – Philadelphia mob boss Philip (The Chicken Man) Testa is blown up via a nail bomb planted on his front porch in an ill-conceived palace coup hatched by his underboss Pete Casella and capos Frank Narducci and Frank Sindone. Narducci and Sindone would die gangland style in retribution, while Casella was exiled to Florida.

December 16, 1985 – Gambino crime family boss Paul Castellano dies in a hail of gunfire as he steps from his car to walk into a dinner at Sparks Steakhouse in Manhattan, the victim of a power play launched by his rival and successor John Gotti.

December 12, 1986 – Luchese crime family acting boss Anthony (Buddy) Luongo is killed in the kitchen of a Brooklyn apartment after feuding with jailed Luchese don “Tony Ducks” Corrallo. Luongo was shot to death by his own protégé and successor Vic Amuso.

January 18, 1992 – New Jersey mob don John (Johnny Boy) D’Amato is killed when he is outed as being gay, shot by DeCalvacante crime family soldier Anthony Capo as they drove to lunch.

November 24, 2011 – One-time Bonanno crime family boss Salvatore (Sal the Ironworker) Montagna is murdered in an ambush at a private residence near Montreal, where he had set up shop upon being booted from New York and tried planting a flag.

March 13, 2019 – Gambino crime family street boss Frank (Frankie Boy) Cali is shot to death outside his Staten Island estate by a lovesick, conspiracy-theorist following Cali banning him from romantically pursuing his college-aged niece.

The post To Kill A Don: The American Mob Boss Hit List (1931-2019) appeared first on The Gangster Report.

New England wiseguy and repeat felon Richie Tiberi reported to state prison last week to serve a two-year sentence for selling stolen property out of his longtime headquarters, the Decatur Social Club in Providence’s Federal Hill neighborhood. The 76-year old Rhode Island mobster, who has a myriad of convictions for gambling offenses, prescription drug sales and receiving stolen goods, pleaded no contest earlier this month to the charges of running a black market corner store stocked with items ripped off from local Rite Aid, CVS and Walgreen locations. Per his plea agreement, he will be eligible for parole by the end of the year.

Tiberi took a similar pinch in 2016. He and his older brother Joey Tiberu (d. 2016) had just gotten nabbed in a bookmaking case the year before. In November 2010, they were busted alongside then-Patriarca crime family captain Joe (The Bishop) Achille for trafficking pain pills.

The Tiberis have operated the Decatur Social Club since the 1960s. The FBI considered them part of a crew of Rhode Island Goodfellas reporting to Providence mob capo Rudy Sciarra. After Sciarra passed away in 2012, the Tiberis began “kicking up” to Achille, according to sources. Achille, eventually promoted to the Patriarca clan’s consigliere, died of natural causes last summer.

The post Providence Mafia Figure Heads To The Can To Cool His Heels For A Bit appeared first on The Gangster Report.

The Hankton Boys Gang was formed in New Orleans in the 1990s by cousins George (Cup) Hankton and “Wild Telly” Hankton and went on to become the biggest, baddest, most bloodthirsty drug-trafficking organization in Big Easy history, making millions and partying with local rap music luminaries like Lil’ Wayne and Master P while ruling the Crescent City crack and heroin trade with an iron fist. In the 2000s, the Hankton Gang went to war with a group of former lieutenants led by Brian (Pluck) Broussard and Darnell (Durney) Stewart. Carnage lined the streets well into the next decade.

Below is a list of the murders tied to the resulting unrest:

The Hankton Crew Hit List (2006-2016)

April 19, 2006 – New Orleans drug figure Darvin Bessie is killed a week after pulling a drive-by shooting targeting Wild Telly Hankton.

The Center City Massacre: June 17, 2006 – Five teenagers linked to the insurgence brewing within the Hankton drug empire, Marquis (Big Man) Hunter, Arsenio (Lil’ Man) Hunter, Warren (Luv Bug) Simeon, Iraum (I-Rock) Taylor and Reggie (Putty) Dantzler, are shot dead inside a SUV.

December 7, 2007 – Hankton Gang boss George (Cup) Hankton is gunned down outside a car wash in Gert Town by Darnell (Durney) Stewart, Jesse (Tu Tu) Reed and Karim (K-Ice) Peters.

May 13, 2008 – Big Easy drug chief Darnell (Durney) Stewart, the leader of the insurgence, is brutally slain in front of Jazz Daiquiris nightclub, struck by a car following a high-speed chase, pistol whipped and shot execution style by Wild Telly Hankton.

June 20, 2009 – New Orleans drug world figure Jesse (Tu Tu) Reed, Stewart’s best friend and right-hand man, is shot to death on his front porch.

July 6, 2009 – Hasan (Hockie) Williams, Reed’s friend and the lone witness to Reed’s murder, is killed days after testifying in front of a grand jury.

November 21, 2010 – Big Easy stick-up kid Chris (Tiger) Smith is killed on contract by Hankton Gang enforcer Walter (Moonie) Porter in retaliation for Smith robbing a Hankton Gang associate. Porter was the triggerman in the Reed and Williams hits too.

October 20, 2011 – Nightclub manager Curtis Matthews is murdered in front of his brother John Matthews’ club, Jazz Daiquiris, as revenge for John Matthews testimony at Wild Telly Hankton’s trial for Durney Stewart’s murder months earlier. John Matthews survived being shot a dozen times to take the stand against Hankton.

August 7, 2014 – New Orleans underworld power Karim (K-Ice) Peters is killed over a beef regarding Peters’ kidnapping, beating and robbing of a rival. Peters was a triggerman in the Cup Hankton slaying.

December 3, 2014 – Big Easy stick-up kid Maurice (Mo Red) Sparkman is killed for robbing a Hankton Gang gambling den.

August 3, 2016 – Hankton Gang lieutenant turned witness for the government Gerald (G-Rock) Howard is shot to death weeks after testifying against Wild Telly Hankton and Moonie Porter at their racketeering and murder trial.

December 4, 2016 – Hankton Gang lieutenant turned witness for the government Bobby Basquine is shot to death months after testifying against Wild Telly Hankton and Moonie Porter at their racketeering and murder trial.

The post Big Trouble In The Big Easy: The Hankton Boys Gang Hit List (2006-2016) appeared first on The Gangster Report.

The Montreal mob war has left two more bodies in its wake. Canadian mafia associates Mike Di Battista and Mario Simeone were both gunned down last week.

Di Battista was found shot to death behind the wheel of his car in the Dominican Republic Monday. Simeone, a licensed real estate agent, was killed in the Cote-de-Neiges neighborhood of Montreal.

The fall of the Rizzuto mob dynasty has sent the entire Canadian underworld into chaos. Raging since the late 2000s, the Montreal mob war has claimed more than a hundred casualties and stretched far outside of Quebec all the way to Ontario. Montreal Mafia don Vito Rizzuto being sent out of the country to serve a prison stint in the United States in 2009 triggered an onslaught of bloodshed that has yet to cease, even almost six years after Rizzuto died of cancer.

Di Battista, according to police documents, was known for doing muscle work for mob leader Liborio (Poncho) Cuntrera and the Hells Angels biker gang. Simeone has been linked to recently-slain Montreal mob figure and real estate mogul Tony Magi, one of three gangland slayings back in the winter tied to the war.

Below is a blow-by-blow chronicling of the violence:

THE MONTREAL MOB WAR MURDER TIMELINE

August 11, 2005 – Montreal mobster Johnny Bertolo, a racketeer, builder and construction union rep aligned with Raynald Desjardins, is killed as he left his gym after a falling out with Vito Rizzuto.

August 30, 2006 – Rizzuto crime family enforcer Domenico Macri is killed in a drive-by shooting as he sat at a traffic light in downtown Montreal.

September 7, 2007 – Montreal mob figure Frank Velenosi, a main lieutenant of Rizzuto crime family underboss, Francesco (Compare Frank) Arcadi, is found stabbed to death in the trunk of his car.

January 15, 2008 – Rizzuto crime family enforcer Constantin (Big Gus) Alevizos is killed.

December 4, 2008 – Rizzuto crime family soldier Mario (Skinny) Marabella is killed as gunmen open fire on him as he exits his vehicle and goes to fill up his tank at a Montreal gas station.

January 16, 2009 – Montreal mobster Sam Fasulo, a top henchman for Compare Frank Arcadi, is murdered.

August 21, 2009 – Montreal mobster Freddy Del Peschio, a Rizzuto confidant, is slain.

December 28, 2009 – Montreal mobster Nicolo (Ritzy Nick) Rizzuto, Jr., Vito’s son and protégé, is shot dead in broad daylight.

March 19, 2010 – Greek mobster Pete Christopulous, a bodyguard for Haitian gangster Ducarme Joseph, is killed in an attempt to assassinate Ducarme inside Ducarme’s women’s clothing boutique located in a Montreal shopping plaza (Joseph, the leader of the 67s Gang, was the suspected shooter in the Ritzy Nick Rizzuto hit).

May 19, 2010 – Rizzuto crime family consigliere Paolo Renda, Vito Rizzuto’s brother-in-law, vanishes and is presumed dead.

June 29, 2010 – Rizzuto crime family acting boss Agostino Cuntrera and his bodyguard Liborio Sciascia are killed in a hail of bullets outside Cuntrera’s office.

September 29, 2010 – Rizzuto clan enforcer Ennio Bruni is killed, gunned down in a crowded Montreal strip mall.

November 10, 2010 – Montreal mafia patriarch, Nicolo (Uncle Nick) Rizzuto, a mafia dignitary on multiple continents, is shot dead in his kitchen by a sniper’s rifle.

January 31, 2011 – Montreal mobster Antonio Salvo, one of Compare Frank Arcadi lieutenants, is killed outside his home.

October 24, 2011 – Rizzuto ally-turned-rival Larry Lopresti, the son of a slain Rizzuto lieutenant, is killed on his home balcony in suburban Montreal while smoking a cigarette.

November 24, 2011 – New York mob don Salvatore (Sal the Ironworker) Montagna is assassinated near a woodsy riverbed as he runs from an ambush in suburban Montreal after his and Desjardins’ palace coup goes awry (Desjardins eventually pleads guilty in the murder plot).

March 1, 2012 – Montreal mobster Giuseppe (Joe Closure) Colapelle, a Rizzuto lieutenant-turned-Desjardins loyalist is slain.

May 4, 2012 – Montreal mobster Joe Renda, a stealthy Rizzuto ally-turned-Montagna-backer, disappears and is presumed dead.

July 16, 2012 – Money-laundering expert Walter Gutierrez, tasked with washing illegal windfall for the Rizzuto crime family, is killed in a barrage of bullets as he walks towards his house in a West End Montreal neighborhood.

August 14, 2012 – Haitian street gang leaders Chenier Dupuy & Lamartine Paul are gunned down within hours of each other, Dupuy is killed as he sat in his truck outside a restaurant, Paul was murdered as he left his apartment. They were suspected of providing muscle for the anti-Rizzuto wing of the Montreal mafia.

November 5, 2012 – Montreal mob capo, Giuseppe (Smiling Joe) Di Maulo, a one-time top Rizzuto crime family power who joined forces with Montagna and Desjardins (Smiling Joe’s brother in-law), is killed outside his home by Rizzuto gunmen.

November 17, 2012 – Montreal mob associate, Mohamed Awad, a top Desjardins associate, is slain.

December 8, 2012 – Rizzuto crime family lieutenant Emilio Cordeleone is killed.

January 22, 2013 – Montreal mob associate Gaetano Gosselin, a Desjardins ally and local builder, is murdered outside his home.

January 31, 2013 – Montreal mobster Vinnie Scuderi, a Desjardins loyalist, is murdered outside his home.

May 8, 2013 – Deported Toronto mob crew boss Juan (Joe Bravo) Fernandez, the Rizzuto crime family’s captain in Ontario, is found dead in Sicily, after being marked for death by Vito Rizzuto himself for staying neutral in the war.

July 8, 2013 – Montreal mob figure and Rizzuto rival, Giuseppe (Ponytail) De Vito, is poisoned to death in his cell in a Quebec prison.

July 12, 2013 – Toronto mob enforcer Sam (The Young Gun) Calautti and his driver Jimmy Tusek, are murdered outside a bachelor party in the Woodbridge neighborhood while a suspect in the slayings of a number of Rizzuto crime family members.

November 10, 2013 – Montreal mobster Moreno (The Turkey) Gallo, a Rizzuto ally-turned-rival is killed in Acapulco on the three-year anniversary of the murder of Uncle Nick Rizzuto inside his estate.

December 18, 2013 – Montreal mob associate Rogert Valiquette, closely aligned with Moreno Gallo and Smiling Joe Di Maulo loyalist Roger Valiquette is murdered.

April 24, 2014 – Highly-feared Toronto mobster Carmine (The Animal) Verducci is shot dead on the sidewalk outside of his restaurant.

August 1, 2014 – Ducarme Joseph, the powerful Haitian street gang leader, is killed.

March 1, 2016 – Montreal mob figure Lorenzo (Skunk) Giordano, the acting underboss of the Rizzuto crime family, is shot to death outside his health club.

May 27, 2016 – Montreal mob figure, Rocco (Sauce) Sollecito, the acting boss of the Rizzuto crime family, is shot to death as he sat at a stop sign in his luxury SUV within less than 100 yards from a suburban Montreal police station.

June 2, 2016 — Semi-retired Montreal mobster Angelo D’Onofrio is shot to death while sitting outside a suburban Montreal coffee shop (Café Sinatra) drinking an espresso.

October 15, 2016 — Montreal mobster Vince Spagnolo, one of Vito Rizzuto’s most trusted lieutenants, advisors and messengers, is shot to death outside his home.

March 14, 2017 – Mila Barberi, the 28-year old girlfriend of Toronto mobster Saverio Serrano, is killed sitting in Serrano’s car in an attack Serrano survived.

March 18, 2017 – Montreal mobster Nicola (Big Nicky) Di Marco, a top lieutenant of Ponytail De Vito’s, is killed.

May 2, 2017 — Prominent Hamilton, Ontario mobster Angelo (Big Ange) Musitano is shot to death in his driveway bringing the war to Western Ontario.

August 17, 2017 — Montreal mobster Antonio De Blasio, one of Sauce Sollecito’s closest friends, is gunned down outside his son’s football practice.

November 2, 2017 — Montreal mobster Jacques Desjardins, the brother of Raynald Desjardins, disappears and is presumed dead.

February 3, 2018 – Toronto mob figure, Daniel (Dark Danny) Ranieri, the Rizzuto rime family’s Ontario crew boss, is found dead in Mexico, two years after fleeing an indictment out of Canada.

June 28, 2018 — Montreal mob associate Steve (Stevie the Jew) Ovadia is shot to death in the parking lot of a strip mall parking lot.

June 29, 2018 — Toronto mobster Cosimo Commisso, the nephew of Ontario mob boss Cosimo (The Quail) Commisso, and his girlfriend, are killed.

September 13, 2018 – Hamilton mob associate Al Ivarone is gunned down outside his residence in the city’s Scenic Woods neighborhood in payback for his connections to those responsible for the Angelo Musitano hit and his involvement in a feud over gambling territory in Niagara Falls.

January 24, 2019 — Montreal mob associate and construction mogul Tony Magi is gunned down on a construction site. The 50-year old Magi did business with the Rizzutos and was suspected of possibly being the setup man in the Ritzy Nick Rizzuto hit. He had averted a number of attempts on his life before finally being felled.

January 30, 2019 — Hamilton mob prince CeCe Luppino is shot to death in his parents driveway. The 43-year old’s dad Rocco is a heavyweight in the Hamilton mafia scene as was his grandfather Giacomo.

February 14, 2019 — Mob connected drug dealer Ray Khano is shot dead on a suburban Montreal street corner. Khano, 43, was linked to Rizzuto crime family leader Francesco (Compare Frank) Arcadi.

March 25. 2019— Montreal mob enforcer Mike Di Battista is shot to death behind the wheel of his car in the Dominican Republic. Di Battista was tied to mafia chief Liborio (Poncho) Cuntrera.

March 29, 2019 — Montreal mob associate Mario Simeone is slain. Simeone was linked to Tony Magi.

The post More Bloodshed In Montreal Mob War, As Pair Of Underworld Figures Pop Up Dead appeared first on The Gangster Report.

West coast rap star Ermias (Nipsey Hussle) Asghedom was killed over the weekend in a shooting outside his South Central L.A. men’s clothier shop, Marathon Clothing. Sadly, the Grammy-nominated Nipsey Hussle, allegedly gang affiliated with the Rollin 60 Crips, is just the most recent in a long line of murders tied to the billion-dollar hip-hop industry dating back to the 1980s.

Below is a hit-by-hit rundown of the violence:

The Hip Hop Hit List (1987-2019)

August 27, 1987 – New York DJ and early-hip hop music impresario Scott (La Rock) Sterling

*Co-founder of the influential east coast rap contingent Boogie Down Productions is shot to death behind the wheel of his jeep in the Bronx projects

August 8, 1990 – New York rapper Brandon (B-Doggs) Mitchell

*Founding member of the Motown Records rap group Wreckx-n-Effect from Harlem is killed in argument over a girl at picnic in the wake of the group’s first album hitting shelves months earlier

October 6, 1990 – Texas rapper Daniel (D-Boy) Rodriguez

*The Puerto Rican rapper is killed in carjacking in Dallas

December 16, 1993 – West Coast rapper Charles (Charizma) Hicks

*Shot and killed in Palo Alto, California

April 18, 1994 – Louisiana rapper Edgar (Pimp Daddy) Givens

*The Cash Money Records artist is killed in a New Orleans housing project in an alleged domestic dispute

November 30, 1995 – New York rapper Randy (Stretch) Walker

*Live Squad member and Tupac Shakur and Notorious B.I.G. affiliate is killed in Queens on the one-year anniversary of the famous Quad Studio shooting-and-robbery attack survived by him and Shakur, which served as the seminal event in the notorious East Coast-West Coast Rap War

January 1, 1996 – San Francisco rapper Kyle (Mister Cee) Church

July 31, 1996 – Bay Area rapper Seagram (aka Seagram Miller)

*The first Bay area rapper signed to Scarface’s Rap-A-Lot in Houston who is killed in East Oakland

September 13, 1996 – Historic West Coast rap superstar Tupac Shakur

*Killed in a Las Vegas drive-by following attending a Mike Tyson boxing match (succumbs to wounds a week after the attack)

November 10, 1996 – Tupac Shakur affiliate and Outlawz rap group member Yafeu (Kadafi) Fula

*The lone witness to the Shakur slaying is killed inside a New Jersey housing project

January 15, 1997 – New Orleans rapper and Cash Money Records afilite Robert (Kilo-G) Johnson, Cash Money affiliate

March 9, 1997 – East Coast rap icon Christopher (Notorious B.I.G.) Wallace

*Murdered in a drive by on a promotional tour of Los Angeles after leaving a party

April 5, 1997 – New Orleans rapper and Cash Money Records artist Albert (Yella Boy) Thomas

*Founding member of the rap group UNLV

February 3, 1998 – Houston rapper Patrick (Fat Pat) Hawkins

January 11, 1999 – Texas rapper Steven (Granpappy Mafioso) Eduok

*Gunned down in the parking lot of a Houston nightclub and recording studio by an assailant toting a AK-47

February 15, 1999 – New York rapper Lamont (Big L) Coleman

*On the verge of a Roc-A-Fella contract, killed in a Harlem drive-by

March 28, 1999 – New York rapper Raymond (Freaky Tah) Rogers

*Founding member of the Lost Boyz rap group, killed outside a Sheraton Hotel in Queens

May 21, 1999 – Detroit rapper Karnail (Bugz) Pitts

*Founding member of D-12 and Eminem affiliate is killed in a fight at BBQ in the weeks after Eminem rocketed to international superstardom

May 2, 2000 – Elektra Records artist and east coast rapper Raeneal (Q-Don) Quann

*Founding member of the NAAM Brigade rap group, killed in a Philadelphia

July 4, 2000 – DJ Quick protégé Jonny (Mausberg) Burns

*Murdered in a Compton, California drive-by

July 26, 2001 – New York rapper Eric (E Moneybags) Smith

*His murder was ordered by legendary east coast drug kingpin Kenny (Supreme) McGriff, who had aligned with the music label Murder, Inc.

October 30, 2002 – Rap pioneer and DJ legend Jason (Jam Master Jay) Mizell

*Killed in a recording studio in Queens

October 31, 2002 – New Orleans rapper and Cash Money Records artist Derrick (Bulletproof) Williams

*Nephew to Cash Money Records founder Ronald (Slim) Williams and Bryan (Baby) Williams

February 2, 2003 – San Francisco rapper Ricky (Hitman) Herd

May 19, 2003 – Georgia rapper Jason (Camoflauge) Johnson

*Killed in his hometown of Savannah leaving PurePain Recording Studios

October 24, 2003 – East coast rapper and SPICE 1 and Kool G Rap affiliate Jasun (Half a Mill) Wardlaw

*Killed in a Brooklyn housing project

November 26, 2003 – New Orleans rapper and No Limit Records artist James (Soulja Slim) Tapp

*Killed inside his mother’s house

September 18, 2004 – Detroit rapper Antonio (Wipeout) Cadell

*Killed in a feud with fellow Motor City rapper Blade Icewood

November 1, 2004 – Bay Area rapper Andre (Mac Dre) Hicks

*Killed in Kansas City, Missouri drive by shooting

April 19, 2005 – Detroit rapper Darnell (Blade Icewood) Lindsay

May 24, 2005 – Kansas City rapper Anthony (Fat Tone) Watkins

*Killed in Las Vegas

April 11, 2006 – Detroit rapper and D12 founding member DeShaun (Proof) Holton

*Killed in a shooting at an after-hours club on Motown’s far north eastside

May 1, 2006 – Houston rapper James (Big Hawk) Hawkins

June 11, 2007 – East coast rapper, Byrd Gang co-founder and Jim Jones affiliate Rayquon (Stacks Bundles) Eliot

*Killed in Queens, New York

March 25, 2008 – New York rapper Leval (Cavlar) Lyde

*Killed outside a Brooklyn seafood restaurant after an argument with fellow patrons in a parking lot turns violent

April 20, 2008 – New Orleans rapper and Hot Boys affiliate Michael (VL Mike) Allen

January 4, 2009 – New York white rapper Joe (29-E) Ryan

*Killed in Seattle after a recent move to the Pacific Northwest

March 18, 2009 – Akon protégé Roderick (Dolla) Burton

*Killed in Los Angeles over beef starting in his hometown of Atlanta

October 30, 2009 –Felon-turned-rapper Mike Beck killed in Brooklyn

*Affiliated with historic east coast hip hop figures Rakim and Fat Joe

December 10, 2010 – Cash Money Records female rapper Renetta (Magnolia Shorty) Lowe

*Killed in New Orleans behind the wheel of her Mercedes Benz

May 15, 2011 – West Coast rapper Montae (M-Bone) Talbert

*Killed in a drive by in Inglewood, California

November 10, 2011 – San Francisco rapper Markesee (Killa Keise) Henry

December 4, 2011 – East coast rapper John (Tommy Hill) Wilson

*Founding member of the R.A.M. Squad rap group, killed in front of club in Philadelphia after having testified against a set of Philly drug dealers months earlier

December 16, 2011 – Mario (Slim Dunkin) Hamilton

*Killed in Atlanta by fellow rapper Vinson (Young Vito) Hardimon

June 7, 2012 – Baton Rouge, Louisiana rapper Melvin (Lil’ Phat) Vernell III

*The Trill Entertainment label dynasty scion is killed in the parking lot of Georgia hospital while awaiting the birth of a child

September 4, 2012 – Chicago rapper Joseph (Lil’ JoJo) Coleman,

January 2, 2013 – Atlanta rapper Justin (Yung Teddy) Mitchell

April 26, 2013 – Atlanta rap label owner James (OG Double D) Lewiel

*Killed cruising in his Maybach in a drive-by on the I-20 Expressway

June 20, 2013 – Louisiana rapper and Meek Mill-signee Addarren (Lil’ Snupe) Ross

*Killed in fight over video game

June 21, 2013 – Philadelphia rapper James (Jimmie Wallstreet) Davis

*Killed on the porch of his mother’s house

September 1, 2013 – Texas rapper Jeremy (Jit) Hill

*Killed outside a Houston strip club

September 23, 2013 – West coast rapper Kevin (Flipside) White

*Founding member of the OFTB Gang rap group

September 26, 2013 – Midwest rapper Louis (L.A. Capone) Anderson

*Killed leaving a recording studio in Chicago

December 28, 2013 – T.I. protégé Glenn (Doe B) Thomas

*Killed in his hometown of Montgomery, Alabama

January 3, 2014 – G-Unit and 50 Cent affiliate Jamal (Mazaradi Fox) Green

April 9, 2014 – Chicago rapper and Interscope Records artist Mario (Blood Money) Hess

*Rapper and Kanye West-affiliate Chief Keef’s cousin

May 31, 2014 – Chicago rapper McArthur (OTF NuNu) Swindle

*Killed in a Southside Chicago shopping mall parking lot

February 2, 2015 – Bay Area rapper Dominic (The Jacka) Newton

*Killed in East Oakland

May 17, 2015 – New York rapper Lionel (Chinx Drugz) Pickens

*Killed in Queens

May 29, 2015 – Chicago rapper Shoquon (Young Pappy) Thomas

June 23, 2015 – Bow Entertainment founder and Louisiana rapper Shannen (Young Ready) Hudson

July 11, 2015 – Chicago rapper, Glo Gang member and Chief Keef affiliate Marvin (Capo) Carr

*Killed in a drive-by shooting in Chicago

September 7, 2015 – Detroit rapper Bryon (Dex Osama) Cox

September 23, 2015 – Chief Keef affiliate and Glo Gang member Marquese (Wolf Da Boss) Tann

*Killed in a Los Angeles marijuana dispensary robbery-homicide

March 4, 2016 – Georgia rapper Trentavious (Bankroll Fresh) White

*The 2Chainz and Gucci Mane affiliate is shot inside a Atlanta recording studio allegedly by fellow rapper “No Plug”

June 25, 2016 – Baltimore rapper Tyriece (La Scoota) Watson

*His manager was killed days later

November 10, 2016 — Houston rapper Chris (3-2) Barriero

*Part of H-Town’s iconic Rap-A-Lot Records regime

January 26, 2017 — Jacksonville rapper Maurice (Ramboe Slice) Hobbs

April 29, 2017 – New Orleans rapper and Cash Money/Rich Gang member Desmone (BTY YoungN) Jerome

May 2, 2017 — Chicago rapper Ulysses (Bando Bandz) Pole

June 8, 2017 — Alabama rapper Paul (Bam Bam) Carter

August 6, 2017 –Atlanta rapper Jibril (Yung Mazi) Abdur-Rahman

*Kevin Gage disciple

September 6, 2017 — Washington D.C. rapper Theodore (30 Glizzy) Pigford

*He was the third member of the Shy Glizzy crew to be murdered in less than 18 months

September 9, 2017 — Louisiana rapper Garrett (Da Real Gee Money) Burton

October 9, 2017 — Detroit rapper Rodney (Doughboy Roc) Yeargin of the CTE-signed Dopeboyz Cashout crew

*Young Jeezy’s disciple

October 21, 2017 — California rapper Roberto (Blackie Fontana) Diaz

June 18, 2018 — Fast-rising Florida rapper Jahseh (XXXTentacion) Onfroy

June 18, 2018 — Pittsburgh rapper Travon (Jimmy Wopo) Smart

*Wiz Khalifa disciple

June 30, 2018 — Toronto rapper Smoke Dawg

*Opening act for Canada’s favorite son in the rap game Drake

October 29, 2018 — Texas by way of the Big Easy rapper Theodore (Young Greatness) Jones

*The Quality Control Music label rapper was shot to death in the parking lot of a New Orleans Waffle House

March 31, 2019 — L.A. rapper and Atlantic Records artist Ermias (Nipsey Hussle) Asghedom

*The Crips affiliated wordsmith is gunned down outside his Marathon Clothing shop in South Central just a year removed from a Grammy nod for his debut studio album Victory Lap releases on his own All Money In Atlantic Records imprint in 2018

The post The Hip-Hop Murders Hit List (1987-2019): Nipsey Hussle’s Slaying Continues Disturbing Trend appeared first on The Gangster Report.

The senseless murder of on-the-rise L.A. rap star Nipsey Hussle this week tragically places the beloved, Grammy-nominated MC on a growing list of California hip hop artists who have died in gangland-style slayings. There have been five murders of West Coast rappers in the past four years.

Below is a breakdown of every Cali killing tied to the rap game:

The California Rap Murder Time Line

December 16, 1993 – San Jose rapper Charles (Charizma) Hicks is mugged and shot to death in front of his church in East Palo Alto, California. Charizma and his partner in the rap game Chris (Peanut Butter Wolf) Manak were signed with Disney-owned Hollywood Records and toured with Nas and The Pharcyde.

January 1, 1996 – San Francisco rapper Kyle (Mr. Cee) Church is shot to death on New Year’s Day, only months removed from getting signed by Atlantic Records with his pioneering rap group, the RBL Posse, known for their 1991 hit “Don’t Give Me No Bammer Weed.”

July 31, 1996 – Bay Area rapper Seagram, signed to the Rap-A-Lot label out of Houston and a collaborator with Rap-A-Lot flagship troop the Geto Boys, is killed in a drive-by shooting in East Oakland.

September 13, 1996 – West Coast rap superstar Tupac Shakur succumbs to wounds sustained days earlier in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas following a Mike Tyson fight. Shakur is one of the most beloved and respected popular music figures of his time and was an up-and-coming actor at the time of his death. He was inciting tensions with his rivals on the East Coast, specifically his allies-turned-enemies in the Notorious B.I.G. and Bad Boy Records camp.

March 9, 1997 – New York rap titan Christopher (Notorious B.I.G.) Wallace is gunned down in the passenger’s seat of a SUV leaving a post Soul Train Music Awards party at L.A.’s Petersen Automotive Museum. Wallace and Tupac Shakur’s personal feud had turned into an all-out East Coast-West Coast rap war.

July 4, 2000 – L.A. rapper Johnny (Mausberg) Burns is slain in a drive-by shooting in Compton, California. Mausberg was a protégé of DJ Quick and had just been a featured performer on Snoop Dogg’s No Limit Top Dogg album.

February 2, 2003 – San Francisco rapper Ricky (Hitman) Herd of the seminal Bay Area rap group the RBL Posse is shot to death behind the wheel of his car while driving through an intersection in the city’s Bayview neighborhood.

November 1, 2004 – Oakland rap legend Andre (Mac Dre) Hicks is killed in a drive-by shooting in Kansas City, Missouri when his tour bus comes under attack by automatic gunfire on U.S. Route 71 after a show. Hicks broke through at the forefront of high-paced “dance rap” or “Hyphy” movement in the early 2000s.

March 18, 2009 – Atlanta rapper Roderick (Dolla) Burton is killed in Los Angeles as he waited for his car at the valet stand in the parking lot of the exclusive Beverly Center shopping mall in Beverly Hills. Burton was the protégé of hip hop crooner Akon. His murder was allegedly tied to a beef that had its roots in Georgia.

May 15, 2011 – L.A. rapper Montae (M-Bone) Talbert is killed in a drive-by shooting in front of an Inglewood, California liquor store. Talbert was part of the Cali Swag District famous for the “Teach Me How To Dougie” song and dance craze.

November 10, 2011 – San Francisco rapper Markeise (Killa Keise) Henry is shot to death while driving on Interstate 80 in Vallejo.

September 23, 2013 – L.A. rapper Kevin (Flipside) White, a founding member of the OFTB Gang rap group and one-time recording artist on the Death Row label, is shot to death in front of a private residence near the Nickerson Gardens housing projects in Watts.

February 2, 2015 – Bay Area rapper Dominic (The Jacka) Newton of the rap group Mob Figaz is killed in East Oakland. Newton was shot in the head as a crowd of people congregated by a van parked on a residential street.

September 23, 2015 – Chicago rapper Marquese (Wolf Da Boss) Tann, a member of Chief Keef‘s Glo Gang, is killed in a Los Angeles marijuana dispensary robbery-homicide alongside Crips gangbanger Terrance (Bubble Up) Brown, the reputed driver in Tupac Shakur’s murder. Tann was managing a dispensary in L.A. backed by Chief Keef while trying to get his solo rap career off the ground.

October 21, 2017 — L.A. rapper Roberto (Blackie Fontana) Diaz is shot in an altercation at a block party in the San Gabriel Valley.

March 31, 2019 — L.A. rapper Ermias (Nipsey Hussle) Asghedom is gunned down outside his Marathon Clothing store in South Central just a little more than a year removed from releasing his Grammy-nominated studio album debut Victory Lap (Atlantic Records). The socially-conscious Nipsey Hussle was connected to the Rollin 60s Crips gang set.

The post No California Love: West Coast Hip Hop Murder Timeline (1993-2019) appeared first on The Gangster Report.

The man claiming to be the inspiration for the hit television show Empire died of natural causes in California last month. Ron Newt, a flamboyant pimp turned aspiring music impresario, passed away at 69 on March 11. Running a gang and a prostitution ring out of San Francisco in the 1970s and 80s, Newt eventually transitioned to the recording industry, managing an R&B trio consisting of his three sons and snaring a deal with MCA.

In the spring of 2015, Newt filed a lawsuit against the Fox Broadcasting Company and Empire creators Lee Daniels and Danny Strong for stealing his idea for the smash primetime series from his autobiography, Bigger Than Big, a movie script he wrote based on his life and a documentary chronicling his exploits in the pimp and music games. Months before, Empire had debuted to monster ratings on Fox. The show is currently in the middle of its fifth season on the air.

Seeking $10,000,000 in damages, Newt wound up losing in court when in the summer of 2016 the judge in the case ruled in favor of Fox and the show’s creators, declaring that Newt’s version of the concept was more about a gangster dabbling in the music business compared to Empire’s story of a burgeoning hip-hop label headed by a reformed drug boss and the family dynamics involved in preserving his rap music dynasty. After the court decision, Newt produced and shopped a reality tv show pilot called The Newt Empire.

According to the lawsuit, Newt met with Empire’s star Terrence Howard, who portrays the show’s protagonist, Lucious Lyon, after Howard shot to fame for his Oscar-nominated performance as a sly, ambitious rapping pimp in 2005’s Hustle & Flow, and they discussed the possibility of turning his life story into a movie. Howard was hired following Empire’s creation though and had nothing to do with the conceptualizing of the project prior to being tabbed to play Lyon in 2014.

Howard’s Lucious Lyon character must decide which one of his three sons will succeed him as king of the family’s music kingdom when he is diagnosed with a life-altering illness. Daniels, who garnered acclaim and a Best Director Oscar nomination for the film Precious in 2009, has described his vision for the show as a modern retelling of Shakespeare’s King Lear set in the hip hop industry.

Back in the late 1980s, Newt took his three adolescent sons, Bobby, Ronnie and Johnny and formed The Newtrons, a hip-hop pop act molded to be New Edition meets the Jackson 5. MCA released their self-titled debut album in 1990. The lead single from the album, “My Hearts Breaks For You” reached No. 46 on Billboard’s Hot Black Singles chart but the album and the group itself failed to gain any significant traction.

Newt had a falling out with executives at MCA and was arrested after a physical altercation at the MCA offices in Los Angeles in 1991. Subsequently, he made a deal with Michael Jackson’s dad, Joe Jackson, for The Newtrons to record on his label. That same year, 16-year old Ronnie Newt, Jr. was killed trying to rob a convenient store as part of a street gang initiation ritual.

Johnny Newt, 40, changed his to name J Valentine and has crafted a successful career for himself as a singer, songwriter and producer, some of it working in tandem with his brother and former Newtrons band mate Bobby. J Valentine’s 2011 album The Testimony featured collaborations with Gucci Mane, Chris Brown, Keri Hilson and Twista. He’s written and produced for Justin Timberlake and N’Sync, Keyshia Cole, Ludacris, Tyreese, Mario, Omarion and former Destiny’s Child member LeToya Luckett.

The post San Francisco’s Pied Piper Of Pimping, Ron Newt, Gone At 69, Bragged Of Inspiring Empire TV Show appeared first on The Gangster Report.

Derrick (Big 38) Crumpton, the former boss of the Gangster Disciples in Tennessee, was slapped with a 27-year federal prison sentence for narcotics trafficking and racketeering last week in Memphis. If he had been convicted, he could have gotten life. The case was known as “Operation 38 Special.”

When Crumpton was arrested three years ago, he was second-in-command of the gang’s Tennessee operations, having handed over shot-calling duties to Byron (Lil’ Ghetto B) Purdy in the winter of 2015. The month before passing the reins and completing what authorities believe was a five-year run atop the Tennessee GDs, Crumpton extorted a Memphis area gang in exchange for preventing testimony at an upcoming trial, per court records.

The much-feared Gangster Disciples street gang was founded on the Southside of Chicago in the late 1960s, but in more recent years has spawned satellite factions in other major cities. Legendary Windy City crime lord Larry Hoover brought the gang to prominence and even though he’s been behind bars for almost a half-century, he remains a gangland folk hero.

The 35-year old Crumpton was indicted, along with 47 fellow “GDs” stretching across nine states in a sweeping 2016 RICO conspiracy case and pleaded guilty in March 2017. Purdy, 40, was convicted and handed a 30-year sentence in January 2018. He and Crumpton were identified as “Governor” and “Assistant Governor” respectively of the GDs Tennessee affairs in the sprawling indictment.

The case was split between jurisdictions in Tennessee and Georgia, with twin indictments dropping simultaneously in federal courts out of Memphis and Atlanta in May 2016. The Memphis branch of the probe was dubbed “Operation 38 Special” as a reference to Crumpton’s nickname and nabbed 16 Tennessee based GDs.

In the years preceding the bust, Crumpton, Purdy and their Memphis GDs began butting heads with GD national administrators in Illinois, according to the indictment. Crumpton and Purdy assigned a lieutenant of theirs, Demarcus (Trip) Crawford to assemble a hit squad and dispatch them to Chicago, per court records. What the outcome of the trip north turned out to be or if there even was one at all is unknown.

They tasked another lieutenant of theirs, Robert (Lil’ Mac Rob) Jones, to plant a flag for the GDs in Covington, Tennessee, according to court documents. Jones called a meeting of local drug crews in Covington shortly thereafter and declared the city “GD Land,” threatening to kill anybody who refused to get in line. Jones and Crawford were found guilty in the case as well.

The post Gangster Disciples Chieftain “Big 38” Crumpton Gets Hit Hard, Near Three-Decade Stay In Prison On Horizon appeared first on The Gangster Report.

The state of Connecticut has always been open mob territory, “no man’s land,” meaning it doesn’t belong to one single crime family. Several different mafia syndicates from all along the East Coast have had a presence in the state for decades, including the Genovese (NY), the Colombos (NY), the Gambinos (NY), the DeCalvacantes (NJ) and the Patriarcas (MASS-RI). And with mob activity, inevitably comes violence.

Below is a ranking of the most significant gangland slayings in the history of Connecticut:

Mafia Hit List – Top 15 Connecticut Mob Murders

1 William (Billy the Wild Man) Grasso: June 3, 1989 – The maniacal, hair-triggered 62-year old New England mafia underboss was shot to death as he sat in the front passenger’s seat of a van driving on Interstate 91 towards Worcester and dumped onto the banks of the Connecticut River in Whethersfield. His murder was part of a power play staged by the Boston faction of the Patriarca crime family and set off a half-decade of unrest in the borgata resulting in another dozen gangland hits. Grasso, gruff and rough around the edges, rose rapidly through the ranks of the Patriarca clan after developing a close friendship with Providence Godfather Raymond Patriarca, the mob family’s namesake, in prison.

2 Salvatore (Midgie) Annunziato: June 19, 1979 – The notoriously ruthless pint-sized mob captain in charge of rackets in Connecticut for the Genovese crime family disappeared from his East Haven home after getting into a car with his driver Tommy Vastano to go to a meeting with Billy Grasso. Annunziato, 59, had been running Genovese affairs in Connecticut since the 1950s and was alleged to have robbed a series of Grasso’s backdoor gambling dens in the months preceding his demise.

3 Ralph Mele: March 21, 1951 – One of the first true mob powerhouses to work exclusively in Connecticut, the greedy Genovese crime family captain based in New Haven was found shot to death on the side of the road in East Rock Park. He had been out drinking with Midgie Annunziato the night he was slain at Lip’s Bar & Grill and informants told the FBI that Annunziato clipped Mele and was “made” into the Genovese family shortly thereafter, given Mele’s territory, as reward.

4 Ralph (Whitey) Tropiano: April 3, 1980 – The Colombo crime family’s longtime capo in Connecticut was gunned down by a pair of masked assailants walking on a Brooklyn sidewalk. Tropiano, 67, was a snarling, bloodthirsty gangster who came up through the East Coast underworld as a hit man in the New York mafia’s dreaded Murder, Inc. enforcement wing. He groomed Billy Grasso in the rackets but ultimately fell victim to his protégé’s lofty ambitions. It was later revealed that Tropiano debriefed with the FBI in the 1970s to get a prison term for shaking down trash hauling firms shortened.

5 Thomas (Tommy the Enforcer) DeBrizzi: February 4, 1988 – The brutish, broad-shouldered 65-year old Fairfield County mob chief for the Gambino crime family was found frozen stiff in the trunk of his Cadillac in a Trumbull, Connecticut shopping mall parking lot. He had fallen out of favor with flashy Gambino boss John Gotti when he repeatedly refused to come to New York to report to the Dapper Don face-to-face and had been shot four times in the head, chest and neck.

6 Frank (Frankie Cigars) Piccolo: September 19, 1981 – The Gambino crime family’s Connecticut crew boss was gunned down outside a Bridgeport telephone booth across the street from his makeshift headquarters at the Bagel King on Main Street. The 58-year old industrious capo angered Gambino boss Paul Castellano when he began pushing into Genovese crime family territory in Bridgeport and New Haven, jeopardizing the lucrative and longstanding business relationship between the two syndicates. At the time of his death, he was facing trial on charges of trying to extort Las Vegas entertainer Wayne Newton.

7 Paolo (Paul the Greaser) Agresta: July 4, 1974 – A Gambino crime family drug and gambling lieutenant in Connecticut, Agresta disappeared on his way to a July 4 barbeque. He was one of Frank Piccolo’s main advisors and acted as one of the Gambino’s representatives for mob business in Canada. The Italian-born Agresta, 68, based his narcotics and gambling activity in the Bridgeport and Stamford areas. He reportedly had been in a beef with Billy Grasso following Grasso’s release from prison in 1973.

8 Richard (Richie the Pistol) Biondi: December 23, 1968 –The feared Connecticut mobster and Midgie Annunziato’s top enforcer is killed inside his apartment in New Haven, a casualty of Annunziato’s war with Irish gang leader Eddie Devlin. Biondi had threatened a group of Devlin’s men that morning over the phone and they responded by going to his apartment and machine gunning him to death when he opened his front door. Annunziato responded by having a Devlin soldier named Charlie Fray executed.

9 John (Johnny Slew) Palmieri: November 10, 1974 – The Gambino crime family’s Connecticut lieutenant was blown up in a car bomb stashed in his trunk on Eastern Street in New Haven. The 59-year old produce wholesaler and explosives expert for the mob was on the losing end of a turf battle with Billy Grasso. Like Grasso, Palmieri had just come home from a stint behind bars and felt entitled to a bigger share of the New Haven racket pie.

10 Thomas (Tommy the Blonde) Vastano: January 28, 1980 – The Genovese crime family soldier was shot to death in the backyard of his Stratford, Connecticut residence. Vastano, 71, had picked up Midgie Annunziato at his home the day he vanished and was considered a top suspect in his homicide. He was also scheduled to testify at an upcoming grand jury probing illegal gambling networks doing business in Bridgeport.

11 Salvatore (Mickey the Face) Caruana: May 1987 – The Patriarca crime family’s “marijuana guy” and one of Billy Grasso’s top earners while living across the state line in Peabody, Massachusetts, disappeared after being last sighted hiding out in a hotel in Groton, Connecticut. Caruana, 49, was dodging a federal drug trial and according to an informant Grasso worried that he would give him up to the feds to get out of his narcotics case, so he killed him in a garage in Hamden. His vehicle was found abandoned at a Connecticut truck stop and wiped of prints.

12 Billy (Hot Dog) Grant: May 18, 1988 – The slick mob gambling chief and popular East Hartford restaurateur disappeared after suspicions grew that he was an FBI informant. Linked to the Patriarca, Genovese and Colombo crime families, Grant, 45, was last seen leaving his South End Seaport establishment. He had previously owned Augie & Ray’s, a heavily-frequented hamburger and hot dog joint. Rumors circulated that he was slain in the parking lot of the West Farms Mall in Farmington for giving up the whereabouts of Colombo mob administrator Alphonse (Alley Boy) Persico , who was apprehended in 1987 on the run from a murder and racketeering case.

13 Thomas (Tommy Pinocchio) Rispoli: November 24, 1962 – The low-level New Haven hoodlum popped up dead two weeks after getting into a physical altercation with Whitey Tropiano and Billy Grasso over a gambling debt. Rispoli’s naked and battered body was discovered in a Branford, Connecticut basement – his skull had been smashed in with a blunt object and he was shot three times. Rispoli, 32, felt Tropiano’s sports book owed him $1,500 for a bet he made on a horse race, however, Tropiano accused Rispoli of “past-posting,” placing his bet once the race was already over, and refused to pay him anything but his original wager back. An incensed Rispoli attacked Tropiano and Grasso and sent Tropiano to the hospital with injuries sustained.

14 Eric Miller: December 27, 1988 – The Hartford boxer, gym owner and reputed drug dealer was found shot in the back of the head behind wheel of his Chevy Blazer on Ledyard Street following a nasty dustup with Patriarca crime family underboss Billy Grasso. The pair had gotten into a heated argument in front of Grasso’s New Haven headquarters, Franco’s, a posh Italian eatery on Franklin Street, two months before when Grasso took offense to Miller’s use of Italian ethnic slurs in a ball-busting session with one of his soldiers. Grasso lunged at Miller with gardening clippers and Miller knocked him out with an uppercut to the chin.

15 Billy Shamansky: April 7, 1980 – The Gambino crime family associate was shot dead in a high-speed chase with his killers on the Merritt Parkway in Stratford. The 41-year old Shamansky was a thief and independent strong arm used for collecting Gambino gambling debts in Connecticut. The suspected triggerman in the brazen hit, Joey Rabbitt, another Gambino enforcer, was found dead four days later with two bullets in the back of his head behind the wheel of his car in the parking lot of a Howard Johnson’s diner in Stamford.

The post Mafia Hit List: The Top 15 Connecticut Mob Murders Of All-Time appeared first on The Gangster Report.