John Angelo Gotti (born February 14, 1964) is an American former
mobster
A gangster is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Most gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from ''mob'' and the suffix '' -ster''. Gangs provide a level of organization and ...
who was the acting boss of the
Gambino crime family
The Gambino crime family (pronounced ) is an Italian-American Mafia crime family and one of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City, United States, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the Ame ...
from 1991 to 1999. Gotti became acting boss when the boss of the family, his father
John Gotti
John Joseph Gotti Jr.Capeci, Mustain (1996), pp. 25–26 (, ; October 27, 1940 – June 10, 2002) was an American gangster and boss of the Gambino crime family in New York City. He ordered and helped to orchestrate the murder of Gambino boss ...
, was sent to prison. The younger Gotti was himself imprisoned for
racketeering
Racketeering is a type of organized crime in which the perpetrators set up a coercive, fraudulent, extortionary, or otherwise illegal coordinated scheme or operation (a "racket") to repeatedly or consistently collect a profit.
Originally and of ...
in 1999, and between 2004 and 2009 he was a defendant in four racketeering trials, each of which ended in a mistrial. In January 2010, federal prosecutors announced that they would no longer seek to prosecute Gotti for those charges.
Early life
Gotti was born in the
Queens
Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...
borough of
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
on February 14, 1964, to
Italian-American
Italian Americans ( it, italoamericani or ''italo-americani'', ) are Americans who have full or partial Italian ancestry. The largest concentrations of Italian Americans are in the urban Northeast and industrial Midwestern metropolitan areas, w ...
mobster,
John Gotti
John Joseph Gotti Jr.Capeci, Mustain (1996), pp. 25–26 (, ; October 27, 1940 – June 10, 2002) was an American gangster and boss of the Gambino crime family in New York City. He ordered and helped to orchestrate the murder of Gambino boss ...
and Victoria DiGiorgio Gotti, whose father was of
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
descent, and mother was of half-Italian half-
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
ancestry. Gotti was raised in a two-story house in
Howard Beach, New York
Howard Beach is a neighborhood in the southwestern portion of the New York City borough of Queens. It is bordered to the north by the Belt Parkway and Conduit Avenue in Ozone Park, to the south by Jamaica Bay in Broad Channel, to the east by 102 ...
, with his four siblings,
["Victoria Gotti: Reality Television Star (1962–)"]
. Biography.com
''Biography'' is an American documentary television series and media franchise created in the 1960s by David L. Wolper and owned by A&E Networks since 1987. Each episode depicts the life of a notable person with narration, on-camera interviews ...
. Retrieved January 10, 2018. which include sisters
Victoria Gotti
Victoria Gotti (born November 27, 1962) is an American writer and television personality. She is best known for being the daughter of Gambino crime family Mafia boss John Gotti.
Early life
Victoria Gotti was born November 27, 1962, in Brooklyn ...
,
and Angel, and brothers Frank and Peter.
[ ]Angelo Ruggiero
Angelo "Quack Quack" Ruggiero Sr. (; July 29, 1940 – December 4, 1989) was a member of the Gambino crime family and a friend of John Gotti's. Once Gotti became leader of the family he made Ruggiero a caporegime. Although he showed little orga ...
was his godfather and middle namesake, whom he and his siblings considered an uncle. Gotti attended New York Military Academy
New York Military Academy (NYMA) is a college preparatory, co-ed boarding school in the rural town of Cornwall, north of New York City, and one of the oldest military schools in the United States. Originally a boys' school, it started admitting ...
in his youth.
After graduating school, Gotti's father helped him start a trucking business, Samson Trucking Company, and after the business failed, helped him get a position in the Carpenters Union.
Leadership of the Gambino crime family
According to federal prosecutors, Gotti was inducted into the Gambino crime family on Christmas Eve 1988. According to fellow mobster Michael DiLeonardo
Michael DiLeonardo (born June 18, 1955) is a former Italian-American mobster who rose to position of caporegime in the Gambino crime family. In the early 2000s DiLeonardo turned government witness and decided to cooperate with the FBI and manage ...
who was initiated the same night, Gravano held the ceremony to keep Gotti from being accused of nepotism
Nepotism is an advantage, privilege, or position that is granted to relatives and friends in an occupation or field. These fields may include but are not limited to, business, politics, academia, entertainment, sports, fitness, religion, an ...
. He was named a ''caporegime
A caporegime or capodecina, usually shortened to capo or informally referred to as "captain" or "skipper", is a rank used in the Mafia (both the Sicilian Mafia and Italian-American Mafia) for a ''made member'' of an Italian crime family who head ...
'' (captain) in 1990, and is believed to be the youngest capo in the Gambino family's history.[Raab, Selwyn. ''The Five Families: The Rise, Decline & Resurgence of America's Most Powerful Mafia Empire''. New York: St. Martins Press, 2005.]
In April 1992, his father, John J. Gotti, received a life sentence for racketeering and related offenses.[Capeci, Mustain (1996), pp. 435–437] His father asserted his prerogative to retain his title as boss until his death or retirement, with his brother Peter and his son Gotti Jr. relaying orders on his behalf.
Remembering how his father had been brought down by FBI
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...
bugs, Gotti adopted a more secretive way of doing business. He discussed mob business mainly through "walk-talks," or conversations held while walking alongside trusted captains. He also tried to pose as a legitimate businessman. However, several of his button men didn't think much of him, thinking he was incompetent. He was not nearly as good a negotiator as his father had been, and the Gambinos lost out on several disputes with the other families. The Genovese family
The Genovese crime family, () also sometimes referred to as the Westside, is an Italian-American Italian-American Mafia, Mafia crime family and one of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City and New Jersey as ...
was so unimpressed with Gotti that it refused to deal with him at all. In 1995, Charles Carneglia
Charles Carneglia (born 1946) is an American mobster in the Gambino crime family.
Carneglia was born in Queens in 1946. Charles Carneglia and his brother John owned a junkyard in the East New York section of Brooklyn that was reportedly used for ...
and John Alite
John Edward Alite (born September 30, 1962) is an American former Gambino crime family associate and a government witness who testified against the crime family and John A. "Junior" Gotti in 2008. That year, Alite pleaded guilty to racketeering ...
were involved in a major conspiracy to murder Gotti.
In a 1997 search of the basement of a property owned by Gotti, the FBI found a typed list of the names of the "made
Made or MADE may refer to:
Entertainment Film
* ''Made'' (1972 film), United Kingdom
* ''Made'' (2001 film), United States Music
* ''Made'' (Big Bang album), 2016
* ''Made'' (Hawk Nelson album), 2013
* ''Made'' (Scarface album), 2007
*'' M.A.D.E. ...
" members of his organization, as well as $348,700 in cash, a list of the guests who attended his wedding, along with the dollar amount of their wedding gifts (totaling more than $350,000), and two handguns. Also found was a list of several men who were inducted into other families in 1991 and 1992; a longstanding rule in the New York Mafia calls for prospective members to be vetted by the other families before being inducted. However, normally these lists are destroyed almost as soon as the inductions take place. The discovery enraged Gotti's father as well as the other bosses, since it put dozens of other mafiosi at risk of government scrutiny. The episode earned him the nickname "Dumbfella" in the New York media.
1999 racketeering charges
By 1998, when he was indicted on racketeering charges under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, Gotti Jr. was believed to be the acting boss of the family. Many of the charges related to attempts to extort money from the owners and employees of Scores, an upscale strip club
A strip club is a venue where strippers provide adult entertainment, predominantly in the form of striptease or other Erotic dancing, erotic or exotic dances. Strip clubs typically adopt a nightclub or Bar (establishment), bar style, and can also ...
in Manhattan. According to the indictment, the Gambinos had forced the owners of Scores to pay $1 million over a six-year period in order to stay in business, with Gotti's share of the money totaling $100,000. In addition to the lists seized in the 1997 raid, prosecutors obtained transcripts of prison conversations in which Gotti Jr. received advice from his father on how to run the family. On April 5, 1999, faced with overwhelming evidence, Gotti Jr. pleaded guilty to four acts of racketeering, including bribery, extortion, and the threat of violence, against his father's advice. His lawyer said he decided to accept a plea bargain
A plea bargain (also plea agreement or plea deal) is an agreement in criminal law proceedings, whereby the prosecutor provides a concession to the defendant in exchange for a plea of guilt or '' nolo contendere.'' This may mean that the defendan ...
because he believed that he would be subjected to repeated prosecutions in multiple jurisdictions if he did not. On September 4, 1999, Gotti Jr. was sentenced to six years and five months in prison and fined $1 million. Federal prosecutors said his uncle, Peter Gotti
Peter Arthur Gotti (October 15, 1939 – February 25, 2021) was an American mobster. He was the boss of the Gambino crime family, part of the American Mafia, and the elder brother of the former Gambino boss John Gotti.
Early life
Gotti was born ...
, became head of the Gambino organization after Gotti Jr. was sent to prison, and he is believed to have formally succeeded his brother shortly before Gotti Sr.'s death in June 2002. Gotti Jr.'s indictment had brought stress on his parents' marriage; his mother, up to that point, unaware of her son's involvement in the Mafia, blamed her husband for ruining her son's life and threatened to leave him unless he allowed Gotti Jr. to leave the mob.
2004 racketeering and kidnapping charges
In 2004, months before he was released from prison, Gotti was charged in an 11-count racketeering indictment which included an alleged plot to kidnap Curtis Sliwa
Curtis Sliwa (; born March 26, 1954) is an American activist, radio talk show host and founder and chief executive officer of the Guardian Angels, a nonprofit organization for unarmed crime prevention. Sliwa was the Republican nominee for the 2 ...
, founder of the Guardian Angels
A guardian angel is a type of angel that is assigned to protect and guide a particular person, group or nation. Belief in tutelary beings can be traced throughout all antiquity. The idea of angels that guard over people played a major role in A ...
, as well as securities fraud, extortion and loansharking. A radio talk show host for WABC, Sliwa had allegedly angered the family by denouncing the elder Gotti as "Public Enemy #1" on his show. During the trial two former associates, Michael DiLeonardo
Michael DiLeonardo (born June 18, 1955) is a former Italian-American mobster who rose to position of caporegime in the Gambino crime family. In the early 2000s DiLeonardo turned government witness and decided to cooperate with the FBI and manage ...
and Joseph D'Angelo, testified against Gotti. Through his attorney Jeffrey Lichtman
Jeffrey Harris Lichtman (born June 5, 1965) is a New York-based criminal defense lawyer.
Early life and education
Jeffrey Lichtman was born on June 5, 1965, in Newark, New Jersey, United States. He grew up in Clark, New Jersey. He attended Emor ...
, Gotti admitted that he had been involved in the Gambino crime family in the 1990s, and had even been slated to lead the organization after his father was sent to jail in 1992, but claimed he had left criminal life behind after his conviction in 1999. Three juries eventually deadlocked on the charges, the last in 2006, and federal prosecutors decided not to pursue a fourth trial.
2008 racketeering charges
In August 2008, Gotti was arrested and indicted on racketeering and murder conspiracy charges brought in Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
. The charges stemmed from an alleged drug trafficking ring Gotti operated along with former associate-turned-government witness John Alite
John Edward Alite (born September 30, 1962) is an American former Gambino crime family associate and a government witness who testified against the crime family and John A. "Junior" Gotti in 2008. That year, Alite pleaded guilty to racketeering ...
, and with the murders of George Grosso in 1988, Louis DiBono in 1990 and Bruce John Gotterup in 1991. Prosecutors charge that the ring distributed at least five kilograms of cocaine
Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...
in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Gotti's trial was later moved to New York, where he pleaded not guilty, and began in September 2009.
In January 2008, Alite pleaded guilty to two murders, four murder conspiracies, at least eight shootings, and two attempted shootings as well as armed home invasions and armed robberies in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Florida, stemming from his alleged involvement in a Gambino crew in Tampa, Florida. Alite agreed to testify in the trial of Gambino family enforcer Charles Carneglia, who was found guilty of four murders and is now serving a life sentence. He then served as a key prosecution witness against Gotti.
During the trial, Gotti allegedly threatened Alite by mouthing the words "I'll kill you", and engaged in a shouting match with his former associate. After the incident, Victoria Gotti
Victoria Gotti (born November 27, 1962) is an American writer and television personality. She is best known for being the daughter of Gambino crime family Mafia boss John Gotti.
Early life
Victoria Gotti was born November 27, 1962, in Brooklyn ...
told the ''New York Daily News
The New York ''Daily News'', officially titled the ''Daily News'', is an American newspaper based in Jersey City, NJ. It was founded in 1919 by Joseph Medill Patterson as the ''Illustrated Daily News''. It was the first U.S. daily printed in ta ...
'' that Alite was "a pathological liar—a rat caught in a proverbial trap, caught in his own lies..." Alite testified that Gotti was responsible for at least eight murders, among other crimes.
On December 1, 2009, the 12 jurors announced that they had failed to reach a unanimous verdict on all the charges and the judge declared a mistrial. After the trial, jurors said that they did not find witnesses, particularly Alite, to be credible. One of the jurors said, "they should stop this now—it's ridiculous," while another said, "It's abusive. It's almost become a mockery."[ Gotti, ]Federal Bureau of Prisons
The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Justice that is responsible for the care, custody, and control of incarcerated individuals who have committed federal crimes; that i ...
Register # 00632-748, was released on December 1, 2009. After Gotti's fourth mistrial, federal prosecutors had indicated that they would not seek another trial against Gotti. In January 2010, the government decided not to pursue further charges against Gotti.
Gotti Jr. maintains that he has since left the Gambino family, and in a 2015 interview with the ''New York Daily News'', Gotti denied claims that he was an informant, claiming that he did give the FBI information but that it was false information and that no indictments resulted from the information he gave agents.
In November 2013, Gotti was stabbed while breaking up a fight in Syosset, New York
Syosset (also known as Little East Woods or Locust Grove) is a hamlet and census-designated place in the Town of Oyster Bay, in Nassau County, on the North Shore of Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 19,259 at the 202 ...
.
Personal life
In 1990, Gotti married Kimberly Albanese. They have six children and live in Oyster Bay Cove
Oyster Bay Cove is a village located within the Town of Oyster Bay in Nassau County, on Long island, in New York. The population was 2,197 at the 2010 census.
History
The village incorporated in 1931, and on January 14, 1932, residents unani ...
on Long Island
Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...
's North Shore. His son, John Gotti III, is a professional MMA
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...
fighter.
Gotti authored a 2015 book, ''Shadow of My Father''.
Biographical film
In September 2010, Fiore Films announced that it had secured the rights from Gotti to produce a movie about his life, in particular his relationship with his father. According to ''Variety'', several producers had expressed interest, but Gotti chose Fiore, a small, newly created production company. The movie, tentatively titled ''Gotti: in the Shadow of My Father'', was to be directed by Barry Levinson
Barry Lee Levinson (born April 6, 1942) is an American filmmaker, comedian and actor. Levinson's best-known works are mid-budget comedy drama and drama films such as '' Diner'' (1982); ''The Natural'' (1984); ''Good Morning, Vietnam'' (1987); ' ...
. John Travolta
John Joseph Travolta (born February 18, 1954) is an American actor. He came to public attention during the 1970s, appearing on the television sitcom ''Welcome Back, Kotter'' (1975–1979) and starring in the box office successes ''Carrie'' (19 ...
was cast to star as Gotti's father, and Travolta's wife, Kelly Preston
Kelly Kamalelehua Smith (October 13, 1962 – July 12, 2020), known professionally as Kelly Preston, was an American actress. She appeared in more than 60 television and film productions, including ''Mischief'' (1985), ''Twins'' (1988), '' ...
, played his on-screen wife, Victoria Gotti. Junior Gotti was played by Spencer Lofranco
Spencer Rocco Lofranco (born October 18, 1992) is a Canadian actor. He made his film debut in the 2013 romantic comedy ''At Middleton'' as Conrad Hartman, and portrayed the lead role of James Burns in the 2014 crime drama '' Jamesy Boy''. He then ...
. The production of the film eventually lost Barry Levinson. On July 25, 2016, principal photography on the film, renamed to '' Gotti'', had begun, with Kevin Connolly as director. The film was released on June 15, 2018. On June 9, 2018 the documentary TV miniseries
A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format h ...
''Gotti: Godfather and Son'' was released.
References
Further reading
* ''Mob Star: The Story of John Gotti'' by Gene Mustain & Jerry Capeci
Gerald Capeci () is an American journalist and author who specializes in coverage of the Five Mafia crime families of New York City. Capeci has been described by news organizations, such as CNN and BBC, as an expert on the American Mafia. ...
in 2002, .
* Capeci, Jerry. ''The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Mafia''. Indianapolis: Alpha Books, 2002. .
* ''Gotti: The Rise & Fall'' by Jerry Capeci in 1996, .
* ''Shadow of My Father'' by John A. Gotti in 2015, .
External links
John A Gotti
from John A Gotti's official website
Junior Gotti
– Biography.com
''Biography'' is an American documentary television series and media franchise created in the 1960s by David L. Wolper and owned by A&E Networks since 1987. Each episode depicts the life of a notable person with narration, on-camera interviews ...
John Gotti Jr
from New York Daily News
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gotti, John A.
1964 births
Living people
People from Queens, New York
American gangsters of Italian descent
American memoirists
American people of Russian descent
American prisoners and detainees
Bosses of the Gambino crime family
Gambino crime family
Gotti family
New York Military Academy alumni
Prisoners and detainees of the United States federal government
People convicted of racketeering
American people convicted of fraud
American gangsters
People from Oyster Bay Cove, New York
People from Howard Beach, Queens
Organized crime memoirists
Non-fiction writers about organized crime in the United States
American male non-fiction writers