John Gotti was
born on October 27th, 1940 in the
Bronx,
New York. When Gotti was 12 he and his family moved to a rough
neighborhood in
Brooklyn. In
Brooklyn Gotti took to
the streets more and more until he finally dropped out of school in the eighth grade. On
the streets Gotti got involved with gangs and committed several small crimes. Gotti would continue his small crimes and eventually began to start moving up in the
underworld. By 1966 Gotti had hooked up with the Gambino Crime Family. Gotti's "thing" was hijacking trucks, he would make loads of
money for the Gambinos hijacking frieghts from
Kennedy Airport. By now Gotti had moved up in stature
inside the Gambino Crime Family. He became a close associate of Gambino Underboss
Aniello "Mr. Neil" Dellacroce and it became
clear that Gotti was going to get to places but before he started his
flight, he was arrested in 1969 for a hijacking and sentenced to three years in prison. When he gets out Gotti continues his life of crime and decides it's
time to take some
steps forward. In 1973 Gotti takes on the contract of
James McBratney, McBratney had allegedly killed a nephew of
Carlo Gambino. Allegedly or not to Gambino it is
clear and Gotti happily takes the
job. After the killing the cops close in on Gotti again, present at the murder were 2 eyewitnesses. He is arrested, at the trial however he somehow manages to reduce murder to second degree manslaughter and only serves a 2 year prison sentence. Serving his
TIME inside the prison outside within the Gambino Family there are some serious
changes happening.
Carlo Gambino is on his deathbed and appoints his successor:
Paul Castellano. Gotti supported his
mentor Neil Dellacroce for the
top job and was angered to see the
job go to Castellano. That
anger would never
die down and would be
one of the
ingredients that would fuel Gotti's drive to
power.
When Gotti gets out of prison he goes back to work which includes narcoticstrade. Already unhappy with Castellano Gotti would experience real tragedy in 1980 when his son Frank dies in a car accident. Frank was driving his bike when a Gotti neighbor drove his car down the street didn't notice him and hit the young Gotti. Frank died from the hit and the neighbor was considered a dead man. After receiving several threats via mail and phone and one time being attacked by Gotti's wife with a baseball bat Gotti's neighbor decided to move but before he could occupy his new home a van filled with Gotti goons pulled him off the street never to be seen again, at the TIME of this murder Gotti and his wife were in Florida. Gotti was never charged with the murder. Throughout the '80s Gotti moved up within the Gambino crime Family eventually becoming capo. Gotti still only saw one man as the rightful boss of the Gambino Family, Neil Dellacroce. Under the protection of Dellacroce Gotti kept running his narcotics trade with his crew. Castellano knew about it and wanted it to stop, he wanted to demote Gotti or have him whacked but Dellacroce always kept the peace. On the other side Gotti wanted Dellacroce to step up and demand his position as Boss but Dellacroce again kept the peace and told Gotti to keep quiet. In 1985 things came to a boilingpoint, Castelano was indicted in the commission case where wiretap evidence from bugs from within the Castellano mansion were used. And members of Gotti's crew were indicted on narcotics trafficking. All in all you knew, someone had to die. Castellano wanted evidence about the narcoticstraficking so he could have Gotti's crew whacked or duisbanded and demoted but Dellacroce kept stalling for time. Gotti on the other hand started saying Castellano might flip under the F.B.I. pressure and that he should be whacked. Dellacroce kept the 2 sides from hitting each other, when Dellacroce died in 1985 it became clear the hit on Gotti or Castellano was near. And it was, Gotti acted first he first won support from the other capo's in the Gambino Crime Family and also got support from 3 of the 4 other New York Families. Gotti assembled a hitteam and on December 16, 1985 Castellano and his new Underboss Tommy Bilotti were gunned down in front of Spasks Stake House in Manhattan. After this hit Gotti became the new boss of the Gambino Family.
Running his empire from the Ravenite Social Club Gotti right away made clear he wasn't a lay low gangster. At his trials he didn't shun the media, he actually loved them. He loved being a gangster. He would show up wearing flashy $2000 dollar suits and that all important smile for the camera's. After winning several trials (one thanks to a bribe by his Underboss Salvatore Gravano) Gotti becomes a media icon. He gets nicknamed the Teflon Don and the Dapper Don. He gets the cover of time magazine. He feels invincible. While conducting his business out of his social club Gotti wants all his employees to come by to pay their respects. When asked if that wouldn't bring attention from the feds he answers "what's weird, just some Italians getting together, it's our tradition". So it went ahead, people who didn't show ended up whacked or had some serious explaining to do and the ones who showed had their picture taken by the F.B.I.. After several years of observing and listening (they eventually bugged the whole Ravenite building and taped Gotti's conversations) the feds moved on Gotti for the final blow. He was indicted and told they had him on tape. When Gravano heard Gotti badmouth him on one of the tapes it pushed him towards and eventually made him decide to flip. With the evidence from the bugs, the photo's and the testinmony of Gravano Gotti's fate was sealed and on April 2, 1992 Gotti was convicted on charges that included 5 murders and sentenced to life in prison without parole. In prison Gotti did heavy TIME, he spent over 9 years in max 23 hour lockdown and several years into his sentence he got cancer. Gotti however kept fighting, the cancer, the system and the feds, Gotti wouldn't go down. On June 10, 2002 however Gotti's fight was over and he died of cancer. A big funeral was held in New York attended by around 130 members of the Gambino Crime Family and his personal family and friends. Gotti's son, who had allegedly taken the reigns of the Gambino Crime Family was indicted and served six years in federal prison for racketeering in 1999, Gotti's brother Pete would then take over the family from 1999 to 2002 he would be Gotti's Acting boss, until Gotti's death. Peter Gotti would run the Gambino Family as the Official Boss up until 2004 before being sentenced to 20 years in prison. Gotti's son has become somewhat of a Teflon Don Jr. as he has had three hung jury mistrials in federal racketeering charges that have led to his freedom, he has allegedly retired from Cosa Nostra activity.
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