Louis "Fat Lou" LaRasso (1926 – November 11, 1991) was an American mobster and the longtime official

underboss Underboss ( it, sottocapo) is a position within the leadership structure of certain organized crime groups, particularly in Sicilian, Greek, and Italian-American Mafia crime families. The underboss is second in command to the boss. The under ...

of the

DeCavalcante crime family The DeCavalcante crime family, also known as the North Jersey Mafia, is an Italian-American Mafia organized crime family that operates mainly in northern New Jersey, particularly in Elizabeth, Newark, West New York, and various other North Jersey ...

Apalachin meeting

After being promoted to capo by former boss Filippo "Phil" Amari, LaRasso and reputed

Frank Majuri attended the infamous 1957 Apalachin Meeting, as the only ones representing the newly made New Jersey family. Amari himself did not attend, as he reportedly retired due to family rivalry later that year, and was replaced by Nicholas "Nick" Delmore. This saw to it that Majuri was demoted to captain, as well as LaRasso was promoted underboss of the

North Jersey North Jersey comprises the northern portions of the U.S. state of New Jersey between the upper Delaware River and the Atlantic Ocean. The designation of northern New Jersey with a distinct toponym is a colloquial one rather than an administrati ...

rackets.

Sam the Plumber

After Delmore's health turned ill and later died in 1964, he appointed his nephew Simone "Sam the Plumber" DeCavalcante to new boss of his family. DeCavalcante doubled the family's income and membership, and promoted back Majuri as the family

consigliere Consigliere ( , ; plural ) is a position within the leadership structure of the Sicilian, Calabrian, and Italian-American Mafia. The word was popularized in English by the novel '' The Godfather'' (1969) and its film adaptation. In the novel, a ...

, as well as keeping LaRasso as the reputed underboss. After Sam DeCavalcante and LaRasso were sent to prison due to federal authorities monitoring conversations between DeCavalcante and LaRasso discussing

illegal gambling Gaming law is the set of rules and regulations that apply to the gaming or gambling industry. Gaming law is not a branch of law in the traditional sense but rather is a collection of several areas of law that include criminal law, regulatory law, ...

operations worth more than $20 million a year, Giovanni "John the Eagle" Riggi, LaRasso's rival, stepped up as acting boss while DeCavalcante and LaRasso were imprisoned for 5 years. He was a prominent member of Building Laborer's Union Local 394 of

Elizabeth, New Jersey Elizabeth is a city and the county seat of Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.New J ...

A favor for Carlo Gambino

The

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

-based head of the Gambino crime family, Carlo Gambino, asked the DeCavalcante crime family for a favor. The favor was to kill Joseph "Joey Surprise" Feola, an associate in the garbage business deemed suddenly unreliable. According to

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.

, underboss LaRasso lured Feola to a garage, where, according to whispered words picked up on the bug, Feola was strangled, wrapped in a burlap bag and buried. LaRasso later confirmed the hit to Gambino captain James "Jimmy Brown" Failla.

Release from prison

After returning to the DeCavalcante crime family in the early 1970s, LaRasso's position gradually declined as DeCavalcante retired from the New Jersey rackets and moved to

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 ...

, handing the leadership over to Giovanni Riggi. Riggi promoted Girolamo "Jimmy" Palermo as new acting underboss of the family in the late 1970s, leaving LaRasso's position becoming only official.

Demoted by John Riggi

During the 1980s, Riggi continued to run the large labor and construction racketeering operations in North Jersey with help from various capos Giacomo "Jake" Amari and Giuseppe "Pino" Schifilliti. As LaRasso's friend Frank Majuri died and the position of consigliere went to Stefano "Steve the Truck Driver" Vitabile, LaRasso was demoted in the late 1980s to soldier, as Riggi was put on trial for

extortion Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence; the bulk of this article deals with such cases. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, ...

and racketeering charges along with Palermo, leaving Giacomo "Jake" Amari as the new acting underboss.

His murder

After Riggi was sentenced to 15 years in prison in 1990, John "Johnny Boy" D'Amato took over as acting boss with Giacomo Amari as acting underboss and Stefano "Steve the Truck Driver" Vitabile still as consigliere. It was around this time that LaRasso, after a fallout with D'Amato, was reported missing in the summer of 1991 after he failed to show up for his 65th birthday. Reportedly, D'Amato feared LaRasso as a rival and thought he'd turn captain Charles "Big Ears" Majuri, son of Frank Majuri, to follow him in an attempt to take over the DeCavalcante crime family. His body has never been found, however, his killer Vincent "Vinny Ocean" Palermo later turned state's evidence and confessed to the crime. Palermo also became the later acting boss and testified against dozens of New Jersey mobsters.

The aftermath

In 2006, More than a decade later, administration member and consigliere Stefano Vitabile as well as capos Giuseppe "Pino" Schifilliti and Philip "Phil" Abramo were tried and convicted of LaRasso's murder, as well as two others. In addition to extortion and racketeering charges, these high-ranking mobsters were sentenced to life imprisonment. LaRasso's shooters were reportedly Anthony "Tony" Capo, Louis "Louie Eggs" Consalvo and

Gregory Rago Gregory may refer to: People and fictional characters * Gregory (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Gregory (surname), a surname Places Australia *Gregory, Queensland, a town in the Shire of ...

, who, except for Capo, were sent to prison.

References

External links

*http://www.nypost.com/seven/12152007/news/columnists/meat_the__sopranos_407709.htm {{DEFAULTSORT:Larasso, Louis 1926 births 1991 deaths DeCavalcante crime family People murdered by the DeCavalcante crime family Gambino crime family Murdered American gangsters of Italian descent