Dominic Truscello

Dominic "Crazy Dom" Truscello (born April 29, 1934) is a New York mobster and a reputed captain in the Lucchese crime family.

Early criminal career

Born in Little Italy, Manhattan, Truscello was first identified by federal authorities as a member of the Lucchese crime family sometime between the late 1960s and early 1970s. As a soldier, he operated criminal activities in the Manhattan faction of the family. However, with the 1985 incarceration of the three top positions in the crime family, including longtime Boss Anthony "Tony Ducks" Corallo, and the dissapearing of Corallo's successor, the fierce Brooklyn faction leaders Vittorio "Vic" Amuso and Anthony "Gaspipe" Casso seized control over the family, therefore promoting Truscello to captain over the Prince Street Crew. [http://www.ipsn.org/indictments/ny_mob_indictment_forde.htm] Over the late 1980s, Truscello managed their criminal activities on Manhattan which included racketeering, bid rigging, bribery, extortion and fraud. [http://www.laborers.org/nyt_Local20_9-7-00.html] In the early 1990s, both Amuso and Casso turned fugitives to avoid being prosecuted for murder, making Truscello's influence in the family's construction-business increase.

Lucchese Construction Group

In the early 1990s, a powerful Bronx based captain named Steven "Wonderboy" Crea consumed control over the family on the orders of the exiled Amuso. At the time, Crea went on to ally himself with Truscello and another Brooklyn captain named Joseph "Joey Flowers" Tangorra in what was called the "Lucchese Construction Group", a three-man-panel in the Lucchese crime family who supervised all construction and labor union activity in New York City. [http://www.ipsn.org/ny_%20indictments_press_release.htm] Once becoming on that panel, Truscello profitted from labor racketeering and extortion activities in the Carpenters and Laborers Unions. Truscello was also along and brokered the bribes, the "mob tax" payments and settled disputes over who would dominate a particular construction site. Also, the mobsters were placed on the company payroll so they could report legitimate taxable income to the U.S Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Between 1997 and 1999, there were three construction projects in Queens, Manhattan and the Bronx which contracts totaled about $32 million. [http://www.ipsn.org/ny_%20indictments_press_release.htm] At the time, Crea had managed to become acting boss of the Lucchese crime family after the rival Brooklyn faction-leaders who plottet to kill him, were sent to prison. [http://www.ipsn.org/characters/crea/Steven%20Crea.htm]

Indictment and prison

On September 6, 2000, Crea, Truscello and Tangorra were charged with federal racketeering charges, bid rigging, bribery, corrupting construction and labor union officials, extortion and loansharking. A soldier in Truscello's crew, Joseph Datello, was also charged. Truscello and others were convicted and received a six-year-sentence. [http://www.ipsn.org/indictments/ny_mob_indictment_forde.htm] On January 9, 2006, Truscello was released from federal prison. [http://www.bop.gov/iloc2/InmateFinderServlet?Transaction=NameSearch&needingMoreList=false&FirstName=Dominic&Middle=&LastName=Truscello&Race=U&Sex=U&Age=&x=0&y=0] Reportedly, Truscello remains a member of the Lucchese crime family.

References

Further reading

*Goldstock, Ronald, Martin Marcus and II Thacher. "Corruption and Racketeering in the New York City Construction Industry: Final Report of the New York State Organized Crime Task Force". New York: NYU Press, 1990. ISBN 0-8147-3034-5
*Milhorn, H. Thomas. "Crime: Computer Viruses to Twin Towers". Boca Raton, Florida: Universal Publishers, 2005. ISBN 1-58112-489-9
*Raab, Selwyn. "Five Families: The Rise, Decline, and Resurgence of America's Most Powerful Mafia Empires". New York: St. Martin Press, 2005. ISBN 0-312-30094-8

External links

*http://www.ipsn.org/indictments/ny_mob_indictment_forde.htm
*http://www.laborers.org/nyt_Local20_9-7-00.html
*http://www.ipsn.org/ny_%20indictments_press_release.htm