Friends of Ours

Junior Gotti Pins Four Murders On Dapper Don

The planned biopic about the late Gambino boss John Gotti will reveal four additional murders with which the late don was involved based on information from his son Junior Gotti as reported by Bruce Golding for the New York Post.  The Dapper Don apparently had admitted his role in whacking three Irish gansters from the Westies, including James McBratney, in revenge for their 1972 slaying of Carlo Gambino nephew Manny, and orchestrated the murder of neighbor John Favara who killed Gotti's 12-year-old son in a 1980 car accident.

Grieving Children Who Lost Dads To Mob Violence

A lot of children won't be celebrating Father's Day with their dads because the mob cruelly whacked them.

One son missing his dad is Scott Favara as reported by David J. Krajicek for the Daily News.  In 1980 his father John Favara accidently ran over and killed John Gotti's 12-year-old son, and the enraged Gambino mobster ordered the hardworking family man killed in revenge.

Mobster is just another word for monster.

Tony Roach Dead At 71

Anthony "Tony Roach" Rampino, the Gambino mobster whom law enforcement suspected was involved in John Gotti's 1985 coup against Paul Castellano and the 1980 revenge killing of John Favara who accidentally ran over Gotti's 12-year-old son, died yesterday as reported by John Marzulli for the Daily News:  "The colorful mob character had been suffering from heart and respiratory ailments."  At the time of his death  Rampino was serving a 25-to-life sentence on a 1987 heroin trafficking conviction.  Mark Feldman, a former federal prosecutor, calls Rampino "as Mafia as a guy gets without being a made member."  Rampino never was inducted into the Gambino family over concerns about his drug use, and he earned the moniker "The Roach" because he smoked marijuana joints down to the very last bit.

This Family Of Mine

Victoria Gotti is out with This Family of Mine: What It Was Like Growing Up Gotti, and Tom Topousis for the New York Post reports that the memoir "tells the story of her parents' abusive childhoods; her 'Dapper Don' father's notorious career in the Mafia; her traumatizing marriage to a mobster her father warned her not to marry; and her father's decline in prison and death behind bars":

When asked how she accepts that her father directly or indirectly killed people, she replied, "When you chose that life, I think you know what you're signing up for . . . I think he knew going in what was expected of him . . . I believe he knew that there was no living happily ever after. And I don't think he cared.

The Mafia Princess appears with her siblings on "48 Hours Mystery" this Saturday on CBS:

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Gotti Family Photos

Gambino Associate Stays In Jail

A New York judge has rejected the plea by 70-year-old Gambino associate Anthony "Tony Roach" Rampino for early release from jail according to a story by Jose Martinez from the Daily News.  Rampino currently is serving 25-to-life on a 1987 conviction for heroin trafficking; however, he argued that the subsequent 2004 repeal of the draconian Rockefeller drug laws pursuant to which he originally was sentenced warranted a reduction on his time particularly in light of his poor health.  The judge was not moved, and she said:  "Defendant's medical condition or his age would not prevent him from committing a crime or conspiring to do so if released from prison."

Law enforcement authorities allege that Rampino was involved in the 1985 assassination of then-family boss Paul Castellano and the 1980 revenge killing of John Favara who accidentally had run over and killed John Gotti's 12-year-old son.  Mark Feldman, a former federal prosecutor, calls Rampino "as Mafia as a guy gets without being a made member."  Rampino never was inducted into the Gambino family over concerns about his drug use, and he earned the nickname "The Roach" because he smoked every bit of a marijuana joint.

Gambino Stoner Wants Out Of Jail

Anthony "Tony Roach" Rampino, an alleged hitman for the Gambino crime family serving a 25-to-life sentence on a drug trafficking conviction, was in court yesterday at a re-sentencing hearing.  Rampino, who already has spent 21 years in jail, originally was sentenced under the draconian Rockefeller Drug Laws; however, those laws were repealed in 2004, and his sentence now must be reduced.  Rampino conceivably could be re-sentenced to time served and become a free man:

A lawyer for the gangster told a Manhattan judge that Rampino is in poor health and should be resentenced under changes to the Rockefeller-era drug laws. Rampino, who suffers from heart and respiratory problems, has served more than 21 years for his 1987 conviction. "I'm just asking that this court resentence him to [what] he would get if he had committed this crime today, which is 20 years," lawyer Michelle Fox said. Rampino, now 70 . . . appeared at the hearing via a video feed, rocking back and forth in his wheelchair.

The prosecutors think jail remains the approriate home for Rampino:

Prosecutor Eric Seidel said Rampino's health won't make him go straight. "He might not be able to go out and commit a truck hijacking, but he certainly can conspire to commit crimes," he said.

Law enforcement authorities allege that Rampino was involved in the 1985 assassination of then-family boss Paul Castellano and the 1980 revenge killing of John Favara who accidentally had run over and killed John Gotti's 12-year-old son.  Mark Feldman, a former federal prosecutor, calls Rampino "as Mafia as a guy gets without being a made member."  Rampino never was inducted into the Gambino family over concerns about his drug use, and he earned the nickname "The Roach" because he smoked every bit of a marijuana joint.