Salvatore Scala (1944 – December 30, 2008), also known as "Fat Sal" and "Uncle Sal", was a New York mobster who became 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 he ...

'' in 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 ...

. Scala was born in

Fort Lee, New Jersey Fort Lee is a borough at the eastern border of Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, situated along the Hudson River atop the Palisades. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the borough's population was 40,191. As of the 2010 U.S. census, th ...

, to first-generation immigrants from Scala, Italy. Scala was married to Grace Ann Lino, the sister of Gambino mobster Edward Lino and the paternal cousin of

Bonanno crime family The Bonanno 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, and in the United States, as part of the criminal phenomenon known as ...

mobster

Frank Lino Frank "Curly" Lino (born October 30, 1938) is a Sicilian-American former caporegime in the Bonanno crime family who later became an informant. Biography Early life Lino was born in a house on West Eight Street in Gravesend, Brooklyn, New York ...

. Scala was a nephew of

Genovese crime family The Genovese crime family, () also sometimes referred to as the Westside, is an Italian-American Mafia crime family and one of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City and New Jersey as part of the American M ...

mob associates Carmine and Francis Consalvo, and a maternal cousin of

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 ...

mobster

Louis Consalvo Louis "Louie Eggs" Consalvo (born 1958) is a New Jersey mobster and reputed soldier and acting captain in the DeCavalcante crime family. A lifelong resident of Old Bridge Township, New Jersey, Consalvo reportedly joined the North Jersey-based DeCa ...

. In 1983, Scala was arrested for

heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a potent opioid mainly used as a recreational drug for its euphoric effects. Medical grade diamorphine is used as a pure hydrochloride salt. Various white and brow ...

trafficking, but the case was dropped. A close associate of John Gotti, Scala was a suspect in the 1985 murders of Gambino boss

Paul Castellano Constantino Paul Castellano (; June 26, 1915 – December 16, 1985), was an American crime boss who succeeded Carlo Gambino as head of the Gambino crime family. Castellano was killed in an unsanctioned hit on December 16, 1985. Early life Cast ...

and underboss

Thomas Bilotti Thomas "Tommy" Bilotti (March 23, 1940 – December 16, 1985) was an American mobster with the Gambino crime family who served as underboss for two weeks. It was this promotion that helped trigger the 1985 assassination of Gambino boss Paul Caste ...

that brought Gotti to power. However, Scala was never charged in conjunction with either murder. In 1999, Scala was promoted to the rank of ''capo'' and oversaw a crew of ten

made men In the American and Sicilian Mafia, a made man is a fully initiated member of the Mafia. To become "made", an associate first must be Italian or of Italian descent and sponsored by another made man. An inductee will be required to take the oa ...

and associates. On May 18, 2001, Scala was convicted of extorting money from the owner of Cherry's Video, an

adult entertainment The sex industry (also called the sex trade) consists of businesses that either directly or indirectly provide sex-related products and services or adult entertainment. The industry includes activities involving direct provision of sex-related ...

store 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 ...

. Part of the evidence included an undercover video of a Gambino soldier visiting the store. The judge sentenced Scala to 63 months in federal prison. In March 2007, Scala was convicted of

tax evasion Tax evasion is an illegal attempt to defeat the imposition of taxes by individuals, corporations, trusts, and others. Tax evasion often entails the deliberate misrepresentation of the taxpayer's affairs to the tax authorities to reduce the tax ...

and of extorting $2.5 million from

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

's V.I.P. Club, an adult entertainment venue. Scala was sentenced to 72 months in prison."Mob's Role in Strip Club Excuses Taxes, Judge Says"
by Joel Stashenko ''New York Law Journal'', December 10, 2009 On December 30, 2008, Scala died in federal prison in

Butner, North Carolina Butner is a town in Granville County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 8,397 as of the 2020 census. Butner was managed by the state of North Carolina from 1947 through 2007. History A bill passed by the North Carolina General ...

, from

liver cancer Liver cancer (also known as hepatic cancer, primary hepatic cancer, or primary hepatic malignancy) is cancer that starts in the liver. Liver cancer can be primary (starts in liver) or secondary (meaning cancer which has spread from elsewhere to th ...

. He had requested early release on compassionate grounds, but it was denied.

References

External links

New York Sun: Judge Gives Ailing Capo Sympathy, Little Else
by Jerry Capeci

by Allen May {{DEFAULTSORT:Scala, Salvatore 1944 births 2008 deaths American people who died in prison custody American people convicted of tax crimes Gambino crime family American gangsters of Italian descent Prisoners who died in United States federal government detention

References

Further reading

External links