- Antonio Tomasulo
Antonio Tomasulo-Tommasulo a.k.a. "Bootsie" (
1917 -June 23 ,2003 ) was anItalian-American mobster who served in the New YorkBonanno crime family running a highly lucrative illegalslot machine gambling operation.Biography
Born in
Greenpoint, Brooklyn , Tomasulo became a "made man", or full member of the Bonanno family. Tomasulo earned the nickname "Bootsie" because he always wore boots, no matter the occasion. He worked in the Bonanno gambling operation run first byDominick Napolitano and laterJoseph Massino . He was a regular habituate ofThe Motion Lounge . Not surprisingly, Tomasulo was a life-longasthma sufferer. Antonio was not a relative ofColombo crime family mobstersJoseph Tomasello andJoseph Tomasello-Orapallo .Joker Poker
Tomasulo's gambling empire consisted mainly of "Joker Poker" slot machine games. Instead of the spinning wheels of fruit in a traditional slot machine, "Joker Poker" involved a five-card
poker game. The better the player's hand, the bigger the payout. However, the odds were stacked heavily in the machine's favor. One of his machine's generated up to $15,000 in revenue each week. Tomasulo owned a gigantic fleet of Joker Poker machines placed inpizza parlor s anddive bar s acrossNew York City .As Tomasulo's slot machine empire grew, he soon delegated responsibility for collecting the slot machine revenues to his son Anthony, a Bonanno family associate. Anthony would visit each establishment hosting a machine, get the money out of the machine, and give the store or bar owner half the money.
Donnie Brasco case
In the 1970's, Antonio was introduced to
Donnie Brasco , a new family associate who was a friend of Napolitano. Unknown to Tomasula, Napolitano, and everyone else in the Bonanno family, Brasco was reallyFederal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agentJoseph D. Pistone , a Sicilian-American who had infiltrated the mob. When the FBI finally announced the Brasco indictments, the entire family was stunned. Many Bonanno members and associates would go to prison. In 1985, Tomasula was himself convicted ofracketeering , but the verdict was overturned on appeal. As for Napolitano, he paid with his life for bringing an FBI agent into the family business. Although Tomasula had also been friends with Brasco, the family spared his life.After Napolitano's death, Tomasula continued to work with his slot machines under Massino. Then one day, while sitting on the stoop of his apartment building in
Bensonhurst, Brooklyn , Antonio Tomasula suffered suddenasphyxia brought on by a fatalasthma attack and died.Death of Anthony
After Antonio's death, his son Anthony Tomasulo assumed that he would inherit his father's slot machine empire. However,
Salvatore Vitale , the new acting boss of the family, ruled that when a deceased mobster's rackets automatically revert to the family boss or acting boss. When informed of Vitale's decision by family soldier Michael Cardello, Anthony was livid. He then threatened to murder both Cardello and Vitale to take back the slot machines. Anthony later told another Bonannocapo that he was going to take the matter up withGenovese crime family bossVincent Gigante .Upset with Anthony's threats, Vitale went to Bonanno
consigliere Anthony Spero . Spero gave Vitale permission to kill Anthony, "You better do it. Get it behind you. God forbid he kills you. We all lose." In May 1990 Anthony Tomasulo disappeared and his body was never been found. Vitale inherited Antonio Tomasulo's gambling empire.Murderers Indicted
The
Bonanno crime family acting bossAnthony Urso was indicted on charges ofextortion ,loansharking ,illegal gambling and conspiracy to murder Antonio's son, Anthony Tomasulo. Urso faced life if convicted, and pled guilty. In 2004, Urso was sentenced to 25 years in prison.References
*Pistone, Joseph D. and Woodley,Richard "Donnie Brasco: My Undercover Life in the Mafia" Signet (January 3, 1989)ISBN 0451157494
*Crittle, Simon, "The Last Godfather: The Rise and Fall of Joey Massino" Berkley (March 7, 2006) ISBN 0425209393
* http://www.real-3d-games.com/video-poker-joker-poker.html
* http://www.geocities.com/OrganizedCrimeSyndicates/BonannoFamily.html
* Social Security Death Index
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