Huge Mob Bust Bags Dozens in NY, Sicily

Cops believe 'Sal the Ironworker' was trying to take over Montreal Mafia

(NEWSER) - The criminal career of former New York City mob boss Salvatore Montagna came to an end in a frigid river in suburban Montreal yesterday. The body of the 40-year-old former chief of the Bonanno crime family, known as "Sal the Ironworker," was found after a witness said they heard gunshots and saw a man jump in the water. Police believe Montagna leaped into the river in a desperate attempt to elude his attacker, the Montreal Gazette reports. The cause of death has not been disclosed. More»

They debated who would cover stabbing victim's costs

(NEWSER) - Not even mobsters can avoid haggling over medical bills. In digging through the papers related to this week's massive mafia bust , the New York Post finds this gem: A low-ranking member of the Gambinos committed a breach of mob ethics by stabbing a rival in the Colombos without clearing it with higher-ups. As a result, the families has several meetings to figure out who would pay the victim's huge medical bills. More»

Selling teen sex a 'new low' for crime family: fed

(NEWSER) - New York City's Gambino crime family reached a "new low" with the trafficking of a minor to have sex with high-stakes poker players, a US attorney said yesterday as he announced charges against 14 alleged mobsters. Twelve of them are already in custody. Other charges include loansharking, drug trafficking, assault, extortion, and attempting to intimidate a jury, CNN reports. "No crime seemed too depraved if it was a money-maker, including the sexual exploitation of a 15-year-old," said the FBI agent heading the investigation. More»

Author describes ritual that 'made' Junior

(NEWSER) - Victoria Gotti insists she doesn’t condone crime. But in her new tell-all book, The Family of Mine, Mafia don John Gotti's daughter compares mobsters to Robin Hood and his merry men, claims they’re better than corrupt politicians, and says she sees no difference between paying into a protection racket and paying taxes to the police. She also insists her father didn’t commit all the murders ascribed to him, and paints him as a tough but adoring parent. More»

(NEWSER) - A mob hitman who used acid to melt his victims' bodies has been sentenced to life, reports the New York Daily News. Charles Carneglia smirked in a Brooklyn courtroom as he listened to statements from his four victims' relatives, including one who called him an "animal" with a "dark soul." Carneglia "led a profane life; his sole role in the Gambino family was to kill and dispose of bodies," said the prosecutor. "He relished the job." Carneglia claimed "liar after liar" testified against him. More»