Friends of Ours

Philly Mobster Gino DiPietro Gunned Down On The Streets In Broad Daylight

Reputed mob associate Gino DiPietro was gunned down in South Philly yesterday afternoon as reported by William Bender and Morgan Zalot for the Daily News:  "police were tight-lipped about the shooting Wednesday, but one law-enforcement source said DiPietro, believed to be a mob associate, may have made enemies by cooperating with authorities while incarcerated." 

Meanwhile, federal prosecutors have rested their case in the racketeering trial targeting the alleged gambling operations of the Philly mob including its reputed boss Joe Ligambi, and the defense will begin its presentation next week.

The last three Philly mob murders -- John "Johnny Gongs" Casasanto in 2003, Raymond "Long John" Martorano in 2002 and Ron Turchi in 1999 -- all remain unsolved as reported by Morgan Zalot for the Daily News.

Philadelphia News, Weather and Sports from WTXF FOX 29

Feds Investigate Philly Mob Cold Cases

Last May the feds charged reputed Philly mob boss Joe "Uncle Joe" Ligambi and several co-defendants with racketeering involving loan sharking, gambling, sports betting and video poker machines, and investigators are probing three gangland murders -- consigliere Ron Turchi, associate John "Johnny Gongs" Casasanto and associate Raymond "Long John" Martorano -- which occurred during Ligambi's alleged reign as reported by George Anastasia from The Philadelphia Inquirer.

A Bad Year For The Philly Mob

2011 was a bad year for South Philly mobsters, and George Anastasia from The Inquirer and Dave Schratweiser from WTXF take a look back at the indictments which targeted reputed Philly mob boss Joe "Uncle Joe" Ligambi and reputed Lucchese soldier Nicky Scarfo Jr.

Ligambi was the lead defendant in a gambling case brought last May, and Scarfo -- the son of former Philly mob boss Nicodemo "Little Nicky" Scarfo -- was the lead defendant in an extortion case brought last November.

Of course, it all could get worse for the Philly mob in 2012.

Three gangland murders during Ligambi's alleged reign -- consigliere Ron Turchi, associate John "Johnny Gongs" Casasanto and associate Raymond "Long John" Martorano -- remain unsolved, and Louis "Bent Finger Louie" Monacello, one of Ligambi's co-defendants in the gambling case, apparently is cooperating with the feds which may shed some light on the bloody underworld in the City of Brotherly Love.

Mobster's Narco Son Cries Enough!

Let's play the world's smallest violin for George Martorano.

In 1984 Martorano pleaded guilty for bringing a planeload of pot into the country, and was given life without parole.

And he's still fighting the sentence contending that he's being punished for the sins of his father who was South Philly mobster Raymond "Long John" Martorano as reported by Daniel Denvir for City Paper:

"Long John Martorano was a major player in the underworld, and made a lot of money in the underworld doing things that were illegal," says George Anastasia, the undisputed dean of Philly mob watchers. "Whether it was loan sharking, extortion, illegal gambling or drug dealing. He paid a price for that, and so did members of his family."

After years of dead-end appeals, George's supporters are eager to tell the story of a man whom one of his lawyers, Ted Simon, believes to be "the longest-serving first-time offender for a nonviolent federal offense in the U.S." While they seek to win over the court of public opinion, his lawyers have the much tougher job of winning over a three-judge panel on the Third Circuit Court of Appeals. This will probably be the last attempt to set George free.

Poor little Georgie now may not like the baggage that comes from being a mobster's son but query whether he previously enjoyed the benefits from daddy's reputation when otherwise making his own way in narcoland.