"How you doing, kiddo?" There were no women around, ever. Untill he died. He started out as co-underboss with Ruggiero and later was shifted to co-consigliere with Armone. While an enlisted soldier, he mainly worked as a mess hall cook. He came up under Tommy Rava crew, he was close to many members in that crew, such as Neil Dellacroce, Tony Rizzo, Mike Ciazzo, and Petey Pumps. Most people on both sides of the law would give a lot to have a second chance like Sammy especially those who had done so much bad but Gravano thought nothing of it and wasn't satisfied. Sammy got permission and had him made on his death bed. The Genovese family, however, was still upset that Gotti had proceeded without the full sanctioning of The Commission and cryptically announced that a Mafia rule had been broken, for which somebody would have to pay if and when The Commission, which was in disarray at the time due to the Mafia Commission Trial, met again. Shortly after the failed hit, Sammy had a falling out with one of Shorty Speros family members. Gravano claims he stood up for Milito and stopped the murder from happening. Gotti wanted Milito killed for being a Castellano Loyalist. Around this time, Gravano opened an afterhours club in Bensonhurst. The costs of the lawyer were too high for Gravano to pay and so Gravano quit his construction job and he and his friend (also indicted in the case) went on a robbing rampage for a year and a half. Married to Sammys sister Fran, Cousin Eddie Garafola was a made member in the Gambino Crime Family. Her mother had just gone inside to make us some lemonade when my new friend made a startling announcement. At the age of 14 he joined the Rampers, a prominent street gang in Bensonhurst. Re: Salvatore Toddo Aurello retiring, Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli: The Epic Story of the Making of The Godfather. Ordering the pair to sit down, the brazen, yet foolish, Fiala stated, You fucking grease-balls, you do things my way. The second Gravano realized he was not going to be shot he began to plot Fialas demise. One night, Greg and his crew were hanging out in one of Sammys many nightclubs. Milito was one of at least 3 Gravano crew members that Sammy was involved in killing. [1] Around 5:30, Gravano spotted Castellanos Lincoln Town Car stopped at a nearby intersection and, via walkie talkie, alerted the team of hitmen stationed outside the restaurant of Castellanos approach. My idea of a gangster was Vito Corleone, the fictional mob boss in The Godfather. Todo Aurello : r/Mafia - reddit It was Milito who fired the shots that killed 16 year old Alan Kaiser on August 15, 1977. And so the hit on Castellano went through and Castellano and his underboss Bilotti were both whacked on the streets of New York. Despite the long history of business and friendship between Louie and Sammy, they had a falling out in the mid 1980s. During this time, the FBI had intensified its efforts against the Gambino family, and in August 1983, three members of Gottis crew Angelo Ruggiero, John Carneglia, and Gene Gotti were indicted for heroin trafficking. [1] After assuring Mormando of his safety, Gravano told him to pick up Joseph Paruta on his way. He is perhaps most famous to the outside world because he was Sammy the Bull's mentor. They better not miss, because even if they get me, there will still be a lot of body bags going back to New York. Well give [Gotti] a shot. } My teacher overheard me and went directly to my mother. In 1970, he committed his first murderthat of Joseph Colucci, a fellow Spero associate with whose wife Tommy Spero was having an affair. Guys like Petey "Pumps" Ferrara, Jimmy "Brown" Failla and Salvatore "Toddo" Aurello ended up under Rizzo. [CDATA[ All of this irritated Gravano, but the last straw came when Fiala moved into Sammys private office and began breaking through an office wall. After befriending Simone through a series of meetings, Gravano, with the assistance of Milito and DAngelo, abducted Simone from Yardley Golf Club in Yardley, Pennsylvania (in suburban Trenton, New Jersey) and drove him to a wooded area in Staten Island. He then was vocal about Louie being made, which happened later on. Gravano knew if DeMeo was exaggerating it wasnt by much. When they were alone, Scarpa sincerely thanked Sammy for giving him a break. Gravano became a particular favorite of family boss Joe Colombo, who used Gravano to picket the FBI as part of his Italian-American Civil Rights League initiative. The over/under on comments before we got the first Alite joke was 6.5. Read about Karen Gravano's interview with "20/20" and watch the full story on "20/20" Friday at 10 p.m. That is from the FBI vault. Charles "Charlie Bats" Battaglia. As time past Gravano got more violent, he was involved in a shoot out and not long after that was arrested for assaulting an oficer. [2] In June 1985, he again demanded that Dellacroce get him the tapes. By the fall, my father announced that I was going to be transferring to a new school. Thanks to a good lawyer Gravano walked on that one but was soon back in court when he was arrested for a burglary. In 1985, he was involved in the corporate takeover and removal of Paul Castellano. Ten months went by. 60 [2] When Joseph N. Gallo and Armone were convicted on racketeering charges in 1987, Gotti turned to Gravano to help fill the void, promoting him to official consigliere and making Frank Locascio acting underboss. Dad referred to him as his right-hand man. His father ran a small dress factory and could sustain a good standard of living for the family. After Ravas murder in late 1957, the crew split between Neil Dellacroce and Anthony Rizzo. By 1998, however he had resumed his life of crime and partnered with a local youth gang known as the Devil Dogs after his son became friends with the gangs 23-year-old leader Michael Papa. Aurello's story is written, and almost fully designed. Obviously, I didn't know that Toddo was Salvatore "Toddo" Aurello, a capo in the Gambino crime family, and my father's boss and mentor in the mob. Salvatore DAquila was the first recognized boss of what is now called the Gambino Family, leading a large Palermitani faction in New York City as they emigrated. When Sammy Gravano switched from the Colombos to the Gambinos, he was placed in Aurellos crew. At school Gravano had enormous trouble with reading and learning the material, it later turned out that he was dyslexic but in those days there was no knowledge about the problem. 3) Toddo died after Gravano cooperated, but none of that hurt his crew, which means it was part of the deal Gravano had made with the FBI. He was the triggerman along with Stymies son Joey DAngelo in the murder of Eddie The Chink Garofalo. Dad would first get the car washed and then we'd stop in. Mikey Scars Speaks on Jimmy Calandra, Toddo Aurello, Jimmy Brown Salvatore Gravano was born on March 12, 1945. He gradually became a close associate of Salvatore 'Toddo' Aurello, who then became his mentor. In his book Gravano details the hit: "As that Beatles song played, I became a killer. The life story of iconic Gambino Family consigliere Joseph N. Gallo. In 1990, Gravano was involved in two murders, the first of which was Eddie Garofalo, a demolition contractor who made the mistake of running afoul of the Gambinos. He would testify against Gotti and send him to prison for life. And back with his gang, Gravano got himself into trouble again. It must have cost a fortune. My father was obsessed with construction and remodeling. "He's in the construction business," my father replied. Before the transaction was completed, Fiala began to act as if he had already purchased the club. Nicky served as a backup shooter on the Fiala hit. He was ready to start an all out war with the Colombos, who at first attempted to stop Sammy from killing the guy. He brought people in to begin remodeling the place and he hired his own bouncers. On top of this Kuklinski has also claimed responsibility for over 200 murders including Paul Castellano, Carmine Galante, Roy DeMeo, and Jimmy Hoffa, making his claims highly unbelievable. After an exchange of words, Scarpa and his guys pummeled the man. By 1931, Vincent Mangano would come to power. This meant an automatic death penalty. . The high publicity generated by the incident triggered an IRS investigation into Gravano and Fialas deal for the sale of the Plaza Suite and Gravano was subsequently charged with tax evasion. He was 74 years old. Mom was in the front seat with Dad, and my younger brother, Gerard, and I were buckled in the back. He also had a small diamond in the middle of his chest. A percentage of the money was kicked upstairs to the Family bosses who protected him. His captain ordered him to apologize to Sammy which Scarpa did without hesitation. I didn't know why he addressed people as Bo, not Bro. Several members of the family informed Gravano that Gottis high profile and large gatherings of mob members at the Ravenite Social Club were constant targets for the FBI and that the media attention put a large spotlight on the Gambinos. I never ate there, thats a little out of my way, but its a damn shame to lose another staple. Sammy got permission and had him made on his death bed. 60. 1977) A brother of Eddie and a partner of his in numerous rackets. Toddo Aurello- Gravano's capo/mentor : r/Mafia In one of Sammy The Bill Gravanos interviews; He mentions that Toddo Aurello; who was Sammys captain asked to step down and retire after the hit on Paul Castellano. Salvatore "Toddo" Aurello. Im not sitting here like some jerk-off with a phony beard. Also Paul used Sammy to eliminate Johnny Keys Simone in 1980. Louis Saccenti was a member of Toddos original Bensonhurst crew that Sammy inherited. The latter died of a fentanyl overdose 15 months ago. On February 24, 2003, New Jersey state prosecutors announced they would pursue murder charges against Gravano for allegedly ordering the hit by notorious killer Richard Kuklinski on decorated NYPD detective Peter Calabro on the night of March 14, 1980. Other popular Cosa Nostra figures discussed in this video are Joe the Boss Masseria, Lucky Luciano, and Giuseppe \"Pete\" Morello. Nicholas Mormando aka Nicky Cowboy was another top shooter in Sammys crew. He requested a mercy killing; however, he died of lung cancer before this could happen. Roy fed these rumors. Im not meeting you in Montana on some fuckin farm. Witness to the Mob - Wikiwand What the mob can teach research analysts - Research Editors