Joseph DiNapoli

Joseph "Joey Dee" DiNapoli (born 1935), is a high-ranking member of the Lucchese crime family, holding the rank of capo or captain, in the family's "Ruling Committee/Panel", controlling the day-to-day operations since 2006, along with Aniello "Neil" Migliore and Matthew Madonna

Capo in the Lucchese Family

Racketeering with Louie DiNapoli

After becoming involved in major labor racketeering and loansharking, DiNapoli went over to stocks and schemes during the mid 1980s, along with his brother Louis DiNapoli, a made man in the Genovese family. This involved setting up three front companies, which actually involved more than a dozen illegal contracts and shell companies, for the work in schools, hospitals and subways. This was a former operation between the brothers, to ease the relationship between the Lucchese and the Genovese crime families, since Louis DiNapoli was listed as a soldier for the Genovese crime family, and Joseph, as a capo for the Luccheses, during the early 1990s by federal prosecutors.

Indictment and imprisonment

On May 17, 1995, Joseph and Louis DiNapoli were indicted for illegally obtaining $5 million in asbestos-removal and construction contracts from New York City and New York state agencies that were intended for minority-owned companies. It appeared that the three companies were owned by an African-American man, a Hispanic man and a woman, but their efforts had been plagued by abuses, including allegations that many companies benefiting from the programs were controlled by white businessmen.

During the following months, Joey DiNapoli was charged with fraud, labor racketeering, and loansharking in two separate counts, all predicts under the RICO act. in 1998, after being acquitted in the racketeering charges, DiNapoli was sentenced to 60 months in prison for loansharking and fraud. The reason for this was that there was no criminal record on DiNapoli, as he was out on a $50,000 bail during trial.

Present Lucchese Family street boss

After being released from prison after 29 months in 1999, DiNapoli went back to his crew in the Bronx. In 2006, with almost half the family on trial, boss Vittorio "Vic" Amuso, decided to create a Three-Man-Panel to run the day-to-day operations in place of the official "Underboss" position. Migliore, Madonna, and DiNapoli, and were selected to help the family survive.

As of 2007, DiNapoli, 72, is still sitting at the "Ruling Committee/Panel", the present administration of the Lucchese crime family, with the newly released Steven "Wonderboy" Crea as "acting boss", reporting to Amuso, who is serving a life sentence. Also, DiNapoli is now allegedly in charge of the entire Bronx faction of the Luccheses, along with Migliore and Madonna.

DiNapoli's second brother, Vincent "Vinny" DiNapoli is a captain in the Genovese crime family.

Further reading

*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
*Justice, Commerce, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies Appropriations United States. Congress. House. Committee on appropriations. Subcommittee on Departments of State. "Departments of State, Justice, and Commerce, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies Appropriations For Fiscal Year". 1979.

External links

* [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=990CE5D91738F93AA25756C0A963958260 12 Charged in Minority Businesses Scheme] by SELWYN RAAB
* [http://nymag.com/nymetro/news/crimelaw/features/10870/ New York Magazine: What’s Left of the Mob] by Jerry Capeci
* [http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2007/12/names_of_those_charged_in_22_b.html Names of those charged in $2.2B gambling ring]