A joint investigation between the DEA and FBI culminated this morning with the arrest of five high-ranking members of the Bonanno crime family, officials announced. The five alleged gangsters include "made" Bonanno member Vincent Badalamenti, a.k.a. “Vinny TV, and Nicholas "Nicky Mouth" Santora, who previously did 15 years in prison after undercover FBI agent Joseph Pistone—dubbed "Donnie Brasco"—infiltrated the family by posing as a gangster in the late 1970s. In the movie about that investigation, Santora (played by Bruno Kirby) was killed; in real life he was released from prison in 2009, and now it looks like he's going back. more ›

Former Bonanno crime-family boss Vincent "Vinny Gorgeous" Basciano really appreciated it when Judge Nicholas Garaufis lent the well-groomed mobster some dress clothes for trial; he also really appreciated it when Garaufis advised against giving him the death penalty for a 2008 murder conviction. He appreciated it so much, he started writing tons of letters to the Judge. And now, the Judge has demanded he stop writing him. It's like a friendlier version of Cape Fear! more ›

Ex-mobster Salvatore Vitale, the former Bonanno crime family underboss who became one of the most significant government informers in U.S. mafia history, was sentenced to time served and shipped off to the witness protection program today. "Good Lookin Sal," 62, had previously admitted to participating in 11 murders, along with a host of other crimes such as extortion and gambling. But according to Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis, “Quite simply, Vitale has likely been the most important cooperator in the history of law enforcement efforts to prosecute the Mafia." more ›

Early yesterday morning, a Staten Island man was fatally gunned down in the Arden Heights section. The Staten Island Advance reports, "He tried to run across the street but couldn't dodge the lethal shower of lead -- seven shots, at least," and it turns out that Anthony Seccafico, 46, was a part of the Bonanno crime family. Seccafico, who was headed to his construction job in Manhattan, "had been arrested a number of times dating to the early 1980s, and in 2002 was among 20 people arrested in a sweep of a Bonanno gambling and loansharking operation in Manhattan." The Post says that Seccafico may have recognized his killer—"Killing a made man is historically forbidden in the Mafia unless it is sanctioned by higher-ups in the family, sparking fears that a gang war may erupt." A Post source referred to Seccafico as being a "head case" with a "short fuse," adding, "There's always a guy you're not surprised [gets killed]." more ›

Sixty-two men associated with the Gambino, Genovese and Bonanno crime families were arrested yesterday in a federal, state and local coordinated sweep in the New York region. A number of Gambino-related arrests were also made in Italy, and authorities have described this as the biggest mob bust in decades. Brooklyn U.S. Attorney Benton Campbell said, "Our goal is and always has been simple: to dismantle the Gambino organized-crime family in a coordinated and consistent fashion." more ›

This morning, federal agents have arrested over 50 members of the Gambino, Genovese and Bonanno crime families in New York City, New Jersey, and Long Island. Authorities are calling this the "biggest mafia bust in more than 20 years." more ›