Surviving the Mob - Dennis Griffin [0]
the Mob
A Street Soldier’s Life Inside the Gambino Crime Family
Dennis N. Griffin
and Andrew DiDonato
Huntington Press
Las Vegas Nevada
Surviving the Mob
A Street Soldier’s Life Inside
the Gambino Crime Family
Published by
Huntington Press
3665 Procyon St.
Las Vegas, NV 89103
Phone (702) 252-0655
e-mail: books@huntingtonpress.com
Copyright ©2010, Dennis Griffin, Andrew DiDonato
ISBN: 978-1-935396-27-7
Library of Congress Control Number: 2010934074
$14.95us
Cover Photos: Brooklyn Bridge & Lower Manhattan skyline ©Mario Savoia/Dreamstime.com; Blood Paper ©ctvvele/Dreamstime.com
Photo Insert Pages: Background, Vintage Postcard ©Mikle15/Dreams-times.com; Courtesy of Andrew DiDonato, pgs. 1, 2, 3, 9, 10 top, and 12; Courtesy of Billy Cutolo, Jr., pg. 4 top; Internet photos, pgs. 4 bottom, 5 top, 6 bottom, 7 bottom, and 8 top; Courtesy of NYPD, pgs. 5 bottom, 7 top, 8 bottom, 10 bottom, and 11; Courtesy of New York Daily News, pgs. 6 top
Production & Design: Laurie Cabot
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be translated, reproduced, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the express written permission of the copyright owner.
Dedication
This book is dedicated to the three most important people in my life. To my wife Lupe, whose love, kindness, and support have made me into a better person in so many ways. And to my daughter Mia, who has brought me happiness beyond anything I could ever have dreamed of.
And especially to my son Andrew, whom I love and miss more than words can say. The choices I made early in my life didn’t allow me to be there for him as I should have been. I will regret those decisions for the rest of my life. My greatest hope is that through the pages of this book, he will find the long-awaited answers to his questions and come to know who I really am.
Andrew DiDonato
Acknowledgments
The information in this book was derived from a variety of sources, but primarily from Andrew DiDonato himself. However, many other resources provided valuable information to this project, including the New York Post, New York Times, New York Daily News, Jerry Capeci’s Gang Land News, Mafia Today, Mafia News Today, and the websites of the FBI and the United States Department of Justice.
I also want to extend my special thanks to William Cutolo Jr. for his contribution to the discussion of the murder of his father, William “Wild Bill” Cutolo.
Several other people deserve mention, but due to their unique situations or for other reasons, they desire to stay in the background. Respecting their wishes, they will remain nameless, but not unappreciated.
Denny Griffin
Contents
Prologue
Introduction
1
A Near-Death Experience
2
Learning the Trade
3
Making Connections
4
Up and Coming
5
1984
6
1985
7
1986
8
Gambling and the New York Mob
9
1987
10
1988
11
Trial
12
... and Tribulation
13
Back on the Street
14
Free Again
15
1995
16
Beginning of the End
17
Fugitive
18
Decision Time
19
Tremors
20
1999
21
2000
22
A New Beginning
23
A Court Date Nears
24
The Junior Gotti and Mike Yannotti Trial
25
Closing in on Nicky
26
Lessons
Index
Prologue
In the summer of 2009, I received an email from a lady who said she had a friend—an erstwhile mobster—who had a story to tell. She said if I was interested to give her a call. I did.
During my conversation with the woman, I was told that her friend was a former associate—a street soldier—of the Gambino crime family out of New York City. In 1997 he flipped and became a government witness. He testified at several high-profile Mob trials, including John Gotti Junior’s.
Although he voluntarily left the federal Witness Protection Program, he was still an active witness, who would more than likely have to testify in pending cases. Therefore, his security was an issue.