Eddie Garafola

Eddie "Eddie The Chink" Garafola (born 1939) is a Gambino crime family associate who was involved in the construction industry.

Garafola was once described by the "New York Post" as "A larger-than-life figure in the construction industry for more than 20 years". The brother-in-law of former underboss and informant Sammy "The Bull" Gravano, Garafola was charged with racketeering in a classic "Pump and dump" stock fraud and money laundering scheme that allegedly cost investors $41 million over a three-year period. Garafola was specifically charged with trying to extort $100,000 from a stockbroker.

Gravano later claimed that Garafola, in a jailhouse visit, suggested both of them cooperate with the government: "It's my whining brother-in-law Eddie, a whining motherf**ker all my life, who puts the idea in my head. He's caused me nothing but trouble with his devious ways, always looking for the angle. A couple of guys in my crew wanted to whack him. You can't trust him, they said. But he's got a big edge with me. His wife is my sister and I ain't ever going to hurt her, even though he's treating her like shit."

In September 1996, Peter Gotti visited his father John Gotti in prison. Gotti reportedly told Peter, then acting boss, to have [homas Carbonara and Garafola kill Gravano. Carbonara and Garafola reportedly made several trips to Arizona, where the media had revealed Gravano was hiding, to set up a hit. However, Gravano's arrest on drug charges in 2000 ended this venture.

In 2004, Garafola pleaded guilty to the murder of his cousin, Edward Garofalo (Garofalo, not Garafola). As of May 2008, Garafola is imprisoned at the Allenwood Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) in Eastern Pennsylvania. His projected release date is November 16, 2028.

Further reading

*Eppolito, Lou and Bob Drury. Mob: Stories of Death and Betrayal from Organized Crime. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1992. ISBN 1-56025-324-X
*Maas, Peter. "Underboss: Sammy the Bull Gravano's Story of Life in the Mafia". New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1997. ISBN 0-06-093096-9
*Milito, Lynda and Reg Potterton. "Mafia Wife: My Story of Love, Murder, and Madness". New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2004. ISBN 0-06-103216-6

External links

* [http://www.americanmafia.com/Mob_Report/11-12-01_Mob_Report.html American Mafia.com Sammy’s Brother-In-Law Pleads] by Rick Porrello
* [http://www.ca2.uscourts.gov:8080/isysnative/RDpcT3BpbnNcT1BOXDA1LTAzOTItY3Jfb3BuLnBkZg=/05-0392-cr_opn.pdf United States of America vs. JOHN MATERA, THOMAS CARBONARO, and PETER GOTTI]
* [http://www.johntfloyd.com/comments/june/04a.htm JOHN T. FLOYD LAW FIRM Gotti Crime Family Takes a Hit]
* [http://www.bop.gov/iloc2/LocateInmate.jsp Federal Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator Website]