Costabile "Gus" Farace, Jr. (June 21, 1960

Bushwick, Brooklyn Bushwick is a neighborhood in the northern part of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. It is bounded by the neighborhood of Ridgewood, Queens, to the northeast; Williamsburg to the northwest; East New York and the cemeteries of Highland ...

– November 17, 1989

Bensonhurst, Brooklyn Bensonhurst is a residential neighborhood in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bordered on the northwest by 14th Avenue, on the northeast by 60th Street, on the southeast by Avenue P and 22nd ...

) was an

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 ...

criminal and mobster. He was an associate of the

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 ...

who murdered a teenage male prostitute and a federal

Drug Enforcement Administration The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA; ) is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Justice tasked with combating drug trafficking and distribution within the U.S. It is the lead agency for domestic en ...

(DEA) agent in New York City. He was shot and killed by an unknown assailant in 1989.

Biography

Early years

Farace was born on June 21, 1960, in Bushwick, to Mary and Costabile "Gus" Farace, Sr., a first-generation immigrant from

Camastra Camastra is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Agrigento in the Italian region Sicily, located about southeast of Palermo and about southeast of Agrigento. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 2,133 and an area of .All de ...

, Agrigento province

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

. At the age of five he moved with his family from Bushwick to

Tottenville, Staten Island Tottenville is a neighborhood on the South Shore of Staten Island, New York City. It is the southernmost settlement in both New York City and New York State. Tottenville is bounded on three sides by water: the south side abuts New York Bight wh ...

. He sometimes used the name "Nicholas" as an alias while a fugitive and gave several alternate dates of birth: August 20, 1959, January 1, 1960, and June 20, 1960. He stood at 6'3", weighed 220 pounds, and sported a tattoo of a girl on his lower calf, another girl tattoo on his right leg, and a butterfly on his stomach. Later that year, Farace's family moved to

Prince's Bay, Staten Island Prince's Bay is the name of a neighborhood located on the South Shore of New York City's borough of Staten Island. Prince's Bay is bordered to the north by Huguenot, to the south by the Raritan Bay, and to the west by Pleasant Plains. The neighb ...

. His father Gus opened a small grocery store, G&S, in the island's

Great Kills Great Kills is a neighborhood within the borough of Staten Island in New York City. It is located on the island's South Shore, and according to many local geographers, it is the South Shore's northernmost community. It is bordered by Richmondtow ...

neighborhood on Hylan Boulevard. The store closed in 1983. Costabile, Sr. and his brother Frank were fringe members of a

Colombo crime family The Colombo crime family (, ) is an Italian American Mafia crime family and is the youngest of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City within the criminal organization known as the American Mafia. It was duri ...

illegal gambling ring. Farace was a paternal first cousin of Dominick Farace, the son of Frank Farace. He also was a cousin to Michael A. Farace, Michael J. Farace, and Vincent Farace. Vincent Farace is a recognized

made man 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 ...

in the Bronx faction of the

. Costabile attended Totten Intermediate School 34 in Tottenville (the former site of

Tottenville High School Tottenville High School is located at 100 Luten Avenue, in Huguenot, Staten Island, New York. Tottenville H.S. is in Administrative District 31, and is operated by the New York City Department of Education. The school's principal is Gina Battista, ...

until it moved to its present location in 1972), where he was considered the class flirt in eighth grade. As a child he was considered the class clown, a poor student, popular, and gregarious. He played Peewee football in

Wolfe's Pond Park Wolfes Pond Park is a large public park located on Staten Island's South Shore. It is bounded on the south by Holton Avenue, on the east by Raritan Bay, on the west by the Staten Island Railway, and on the north by Chisholm Street, Luten Avenue, ...

. In 1975, he entered

and joined a street gang of adolescent delinquents called "the Bay Boys", named after the Upper New York Bay near Tottenville. The gang liked to intimidate people and start fights. In January 1977, he was pulled over for reckless driving and, after searching him, the police found a gun on his person. Three weeks later, he was arrested for forgery, but he avoided a jail sentence because he was a youth. He listed his occupation as a grocer.

Hate crime in Greenwich Village

On October 7, 1979, Farace murdered a 17-year-old boy and brutally beat the victim's 16-year-old companion. Farace and three friends were on a street in the

Greenwich Village Greenwich Village ( , , ) is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street to the north, Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the south, and the Hudson River to the west. Greenwich Village ...

section of Manhattan when the two boys allegedly propositioned them. Enraged, Farace and his accomplices — later identified , David Spoto, and Robert DeLicio — forced the two teenagers into the Farace group's car and drove them to the beach at

. Once there, the men beat the boys using driftwood and other objects, then left them for dead. The 17-year-old, Steven Charles of

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat, seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County and the second largest city within the New Yo ...

, died on the beach. The 16-year-old, Thomas Moore of Brooklyn, was critically injured, but dove into the pond and managed to elude his attackers. Moore then walked to a nearby residence for assistance. Later on October 8, the police arrested Farace, DeLicio, and Spoto. Four days later, Moore identified Farace and the other suspects from a

police lineup A police lineup (in American English) or identity parade (in British English) is a process by which a crime victim or witness's putative identification of a suspect is confirmed to a level that can count as evidence at trial. The suspect, al ...

. On December 10, 1979, Farace pleaded guilty to first-degree

manslaughter Manslaughter is a common law legal term for homicide considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is sometimes said to have first been made by the ancient Athenian lawmaker Draco in the 7th ce ...

. The state had accepted his manslaughter plea rather than go through the uncertainty and expense of a trial, and of even winning a conviction in virulently anti-gay Staten Island (they particularly feared that Farace and his co-defendants would use the "gay panic defense"). Farace was sentenced to 7 to 21 years in prison.

Relationship with organized crime

It was in

prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, corre ...

that Farace first met Gerrard "Jerry" Chilli, Sr. As Robert Stutman writes in ''Dead on Delivery'': "Blamed for some infraction of the inmate’s code, Petrucelli was about to be killed with a set of barbells in a weight room brawl when Farace interceded, saving his life." Chilli unofficially "adopted" Farace, who at that point was in his late twenties, as a

protégé Mentorship is the influence, guidance, or direction given by a mentor. A mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. In an organizational setting, a mentor influences the personal and p ...

, and stayed in contact when Chilli got out of prison. Farace used his contacts with old friends, and new ones he met in prison, to start a marijuana selling business, which soon expanded into other drugs. In June 1988, Farace was released from prison. By June 3, 1988, Farace had become partners with his friend Gregory Scarpa, Jr. who worked out of his criminal headquarters at Wimpy Boys Athletic Club. Scarpa's father, Gregory Scarpa, Sr., was a secret FBI informer. Farace married Antoinette Acierno, a sister of a criminal associate.

Murder of DEA Agent Hatcher

After being released on

parole Parole (also known as provisional release or supervised release) is a form of early release of a prison inmate where the prisoner agrees to abide by certain behavioral conditions, including checking-in with their designated parole officers, or ...

on June 3, 1988, Farace soon got into trouble again. He began selling small amounts of

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly used recreationally for its euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from the leaves of two Coca species native to South Am ...

and

marijuana Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in various t ...

, and in late February 1989, set up a cocaine deal with Everett Hatcher, an undercover federal

(DEA) agent. At approximately 10:00 p.m. on the evening of February 28, 1989, Farace was to meet Hatcher at a remote

overpass An overpass (called an overbridge or flyover in the United Kingdom and some other Commonwealth countries) is a bridge, road, railway or similar structure that crosses over another road or railway. An ''overpass'' and '' underpass'' together for ...

on the West Shore Expressway in the Rossville section of

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey b ...

to complete the deal. Hatcher had met Farace to discuss purchasing cocaine from him on several occasions. During the course of the drug transaction, Hatcher got separated from the surveillance team. When the team finally found Hatcher, he had been shot through the head three times in his unmarked

Buick Regal The Buick Regal is a line of mid-size cars marketed by Buick since 1973. For nearly its entire production, the Regal has served as the premium mid-size/intermediate offering of the Buick product range. Introduced as a submodel of the Buick Centu ...

. The window was rolled down and the Regal's engine was on, but Hatcher's foot was on the brake. Police theorized that Farace shot Hatcher from a van as it passed Hatcher's car. The van was found abandoned three days later on a street about two miles northeast of the murder scene. This location was less than half a mile from the

Arthur Kill Correctional Facility Arthur Kill Correctional Facility was a medium security correctional facility on Arthur Kill Road in Charleston, Staten Island, New York City. It operated from 1976 to 2011, run by what was then the New York State Department of Correctional Servic ...

, where Farace had spent the last two years of his manslaughter sentence. It is not known why Farace killed Hatcher; one theory is that Farace had become suspicious of Hatcher from rumors he had heard.

Manhunt

Hatcher's death was the first murder of a DEA agent in

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 ...

since 1972. He was also believed to have been the first law enforcement officer killed in the line of duty on Staten Island. After Hatcher's slaying, a nationwide

manhunt Manhunt may refer to: Search processes * Manhunt (law enforcement), a search for a dangerous fugitive * Manhunt (military), a search for a high-value target by special operations forces or intelligence agencies Social organisations * Manhun ...

for Farace commenced. The

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice ...

placed Farace on the Ten Most Wanted list. Local and federal law enforcement increased their surveillance of

Cosa Nostra The Sicilian Mafia, also simply known as the Mafia and frequently referred to as Cosa nostra (, ; "our thing") by its members, is an Italian Mafia-terrorist-type organized crime syndicate and criminal society originating in the region of Sicily ...

members, stopping them to take photographs and ask questions. As pressure increased on the

Bonanno 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 the ...

, its leadership decided to kill Farace. Following the Hatcher murder, Gregory Scarpa, Sr. told David Krajcek of the '' Daily News'' that the Farace and Scarpa families were no longer close. No one from the Scarpa family had gone to Farace's wedding to Toni Acierno a few months earlier. Scarpa feared that a strong connection would send his convicted drug dealer son, Gregory Jr., to a distant federal prison. Meanwhile, Farace was hiding with friends and criminal associates around the Greater New York area. He first stayed with Margaret "Babe" Scarpa, an old girlfriend who was Chilli's daughter. Soon after Farace had departed, the police raided Scarpa's house and arrested her; at the scene, DEA official Stutman told Chilli he could blame Farace. At this point, an aggravated Chilli wanted Farace killed. A new mob associate with the Lucchese family, John Petrucelli, was helping Farace find places to hide. Chilli met with Petrucelli and Lucchese capo Mike Salerno to discuss the situation. Chilli demanded that Petrucelli kill Farace, but Petrucelli refused. Two months later, Petrucelli was found dead with a hood over his head, which is a Sicilian message for "never keep secrets from the family".

Shooting and death

Less than ten months after the Hatcher murder, the manhunt for Farace would be over. At 11:08 p.m. on November 17, 1989, police dispatchers received a

9-1-1 , usually written 911, is an emergency telephone number for the United States, Canada, Mexico, Panama, Palau, Argentina, Philippines, Jordan, as well as the North American Numbering Plan (NANP), one of eight N11 codes. Like other emergency n ...

emergency call about a car parked at 1814 81st Street in the

Bensonhurst Bensonhurst is a residential neighborhood in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bordered on the northwest by 14th Avenue, on the northeast by 60th Street, on the southeast by Avenue P and 22n ...

section of

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 ...

. The car contained one male occupant, with another male lying face down on the sidewalk, both of whom had just been shot. (The call came in as "shots fired", no other specifics.) Police rushed to the scene and found the two men, one dead and the other seriously wounded. The dead man was identified as Costabile Farace. He had gunshot wounds to the head, neck, back and leg. According to witnesses, a van had driven alongside Farace's car and shot the two men nine times. This was the same method Farace had used to kill Agent Hatcher. The survivor in the car was identified as Joseph Sclafani, a member of Farace's organization. Sclafani said he fired two shots at the assailants. In a different version of this story, per the responding officer, Farace was still breathing when police arrived. They placed him in a trauma suite, but he died ''en route'' to the hospital. Sclafani was outside of the vehicle, having been shot out of his shoes. Officers handcuffed him on the scene for weapons possession.

Aftermath

The

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

Archdiocese of New York The Archdiocese of New York ( la, Archidiœcesis Neo-Eboracensis) is an ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church ( particularly the Roman Catholic or Latin Church) located in the State of New York. It encompasses the boroug ...

refused to grant Farace a public

funeral mass A Requiem or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead ( la, Missa pro defunctis) or Mass of the dead ( la, Missa defunctorum), is a Mass of the Catholic Church offered for the repose of the soul or souls of one or more deceased persons, ...

, citing his notorious life and death. However, the Archdiocese did permit his remains to be buried in the church-owned

Cemetery of the Resurrection The Cemetery of the Resurrection is a Catholic cemetery on the southern shore of Staten Island, in New York City. Notable burials * Joseph Armone (1917–1992), organized crime figure * William Cutolo, Sr. (1949–1999), Underboss of the Colomb ...

Pleasant Plains, Staten Island Pleasant Plains is a neighborhood located on Staten Island, New York City, New York. It is bordered by Woodrow to the north, the Lower New York Bay to the south, Richmond Valley to the west, and Prince's Bay to the east. The neighborhood is rep ...

, the same area where Hatcher was murdered. On September 17, 1997, then-Bonanno mobsters James Galione and Mario Gallo admitted in court to murdering Farace. A third mobster, Louis Tuzzio, who was slain in 1990, was the third member of their team. Daniel "Dirty Danny" Mongelli was convicted of killing Tuzzio in 2004 and was released from prison in 2020 after catching

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quick ...

. A made-for-TV movie, ''Dead or Alive: The Race for Gus Farace'' (1991) starred

Tony Danza Tony Danza (born Anthony Salvatore Iadanza; April 21, 1951) is an American actor. He is known for co-starring in the television series ''Taxi'' (1978–1983) and '' Who's the Boss?'' (1984–1992), for which he was nominated for an Emmy Award a ...

as Farace. The movie alleged that the mob was trying to kill Farace before the FBI could apprehend him. The movie ''

Out For Justice ''Out for Justice'' is a 1991 American neo-noir vigilante action thriller film directed by John Flynn and co-produced by and starring Steven Seagal as Gino Felino, a veteran police detective who sets out to avenge his partner Bobby's murder by ...

'' starring Steven Seagal was based on Gus Farace's manhunt.