Michael "Mike the Butcher" Virtuoso, who owns old-school Williamsburg butcher shop Graham Ave Meats & Deli, has unexpectedly pleaded guilty to extortion charges thanks to his side business as a loanshark for the Bonanno mafia. more ›

Have you ever wondered what the guy who played Furio on The Sopranos is doing these days? According to the Post, he's been palling around with real-life mobster Andrew "Andy Mush" Russo of the Colombo crime family and he may or may not have had a beef with Joe Pesci's cousin! more ›

Sandwich lovers in Williamsburg took a hit this summer when Mike "The Butcher" Virtuoso, owner of Graham Ave Meats & Deli (purveyors of a truly excellent Italian sandwich called "The Godfather"), was busted for alleged Mob ties. Now, more details are emerging about Virtuoso's business wheelings and dealings, and they're not specifically too good. more ›

A Brooklyn firefighter is facing 20 years in prison for allegedly serving as muscle for a mob coke ring. Anthony Cilento, of Ladder 166, claims he left the ring when he entered the Fire Department Academy in 2008. But prosecutors paint a different picture: "The defendant's relationship with the Bonanno family is corroborated by consensual recordings made...over a full year into his service to the New York City Fire Department," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicole Argerentieri. more ›

A bail hearing for a Colombo mobster accused of assaulting his rival in Staten Island turned into something of a food fight yesterday, with dueling pizzerias at the center of the battle. more ›

The best quote of the day is from the Daily News' mob law enforcement source, who discusses the appointment of the new Gambino crime family boss. The ascension of Domenico Cefalu, a 64-year-old convicted drug trafficker who was born in Sicily and lives with his mother, "marks a stunning break with the late John Gotti's infamous era," according to the News. And the source says, "I think they picked a Sicilian because they're tired of the old, fat, lazy American Italians who turn into rats." more ›

If you're an alleged gangster with a strict, court-mandated 7 p.m. curfew, that probably cramps your style. Which is why Anthony Durso, nicknamed "Baby Fat," is asking a judge for some help. The Daily News got a hold of the letter his lawyer wrote to a federal judge, "He goes home and eats dinner with his mother and stepfather and then has to stay home every night with them. He is a 27-year-old man and would like to have some leisure time away from his parents and his home. He would like to leave his home after work and perhaps go on a date or just go out of the house." more ›

Do you remember back in January when the FBI made what it hailed as the biggest mafia raid ever? One traumatized pooch sure does, and his alleged mobster owner is trying to use his puppy's problems to get leniency from the courts. Seriously. more ›

Say it aint so! Michael "Mike the Butcher" Virtuoso, owner of Williamsburg's Graham Ave Meats & Deli, was arrested yesterday on extortion charges, thanks to his side business as a loanshark for the Bonanno mafia. But what will become of his signature sandwich?! more ›

When we last left alleged Lucali stabber Battista "Benny" Geritano, he was making an obscene gesture with his sandwich to a Daily News photographer, presumably in celebration that the attempted murder charges were dropped against all parties involved. However, the reputed mobster tested positive for marijuana while on parole, and now faces up to two years in prison despite allegedly using a Whizzinator while he submitted his samples. Maybe there was something in his sandwich? more ›

With the capture of notorious Boston gangster James "Whitey" Bulger yesterday, we're all in Mafia-mode today. And lo and behold, there was a Mafia-related auction close-to-home yesterday: a NJ man paid nearly $11,000 for a vintage government file filled with photos and facts about more than 800 Mafia members during the 1950s and early 1960s, including Meyer Lansky, Salvatore "Lucky" Luciano and Carlo "Don Carlo" Gambino. more ›

Unlike most knife fights, this one seems to have a happy ending. Murder charges have been dropped against Lucali pie man Mark Iacono and reported Genovese family associate Batista Geritano related to the April daytime meleé in a Carroll Gardens deli. As predicted, because both men refused to speak to authorities about what exactly happened inside the now-closed Joe's Superette, authorities had little to bring before a grand jury. "They've been uncooperative," a spokesman for the DA in the case told the Brooklyn Paper, "They haven't been talking the whole time." Iacono and Geritano reportedly have known each other since childhood, and the spat was reported to have been caused by a love triangle between the two men and Geritano's girlfriend. more ›

The death penalty trial of convicted mob boss Vincent Basciano, aka Vinnie Gorgeous, who was already serving a life sentence, resulted in no death. But it did result in a steady paycheck for Basciano's court-appointed lawyers, and the flushing of millions of taxpayer dollars down the can. Which is exactly what Judge Nicholas Garaufis warned prosecutors before the trial started. Now Times columnist Jim Dwyer does some back-of-the-envelope calculations and guesstimates that the whole trial cost "more than $10 million in public money." Hey, that's show biz! Think those bologna sandwiches don't pay for themselves? more ›

Diabetic Colombo mafia don Thomas "Tommy Shots" Gioeli has taken to his blog to beg prosecutors to charge him for the 1982 death of former nun Veronica Zuraw (which they say he already has admitted to). "I demand that AUSA Elizabeth Geddies or FBI Agent Scott Curtis charge me with the crime of killing a former nun so I have the opportunity to show the government's persecution of me and prove my innocence at trial," he posted on a blog he co-writes with his daughter. "I will not stop blogging the truth." more ›

Vinnie Goregous just isn't adjusting well to this whole "on trial for murder and racketeering" thing. First, he needed to borrow a dress shirt from the judge. Now, Vincent Basciano is unhappy with the cuisine on offer from the US Marshal, whose selection is limited to one slice of bologna on bread. Where's the beef? Fuggedaboutit! more ›

It might cost you $50,000 for messing around with a mobster's wife, but think of all that peace of mind you get as a result: a cuckolded mobster testified yesterday in the trial of former Bonanno crime-family boss Vincent "Vinny Gorgeous" Basciano, and related the sordid tale of his own wife's affair, and the unusual tax brought against him. "They wanted to take [the restaurant owner] to the basement of the restaurant and kill him...Instead of him getting killed, he'd have to pay a tax. It was basically a penalty," said Salvatore Volpe. more ›

The FBI is again pursuing the 2004 disappearance of Genovese boss Dominick Cirillo's son, Nicholas, after ex-Bonanno boss Joseph Massino testified that Cirillo ordered his drug-addicted son killed...on Mother's Day, of all days! One source said Nicholas was high on crack during a fight just before his disappearance: "There was concern the kid [Nicholas] was out of control and he was going to cause problems for the [Genovese] family." more ›

Friday afternoon Benny Geritano and Lucali's owner Mark Iacono got into a knife fight on Smith Street, for unclear reasons (nobody is cooperating with the authorities). What is clear is that both men have been charged in the fight. Iacono has been charged with assault and Geritano, though initially only charged with assault, yesterday saw his charges upgraded to attempted murder and was smacked with a $250,000 bail. Geritano is due back in court on Thursday. Update: Scratch that, the Brooklyn DA today upgraded the charges against Iacono to attempted murder as well. more ›

Both ex-con Benny Geritano and Lucali's Pizza owner Mark Iacono have been charged with assault after a knife fight on Friday left them both in the hospital, and right now neither of them are speaking to police about how the fight started. One possibility is that Geritano, an associate of the Genovese mob, was trying to make Iacono pay up. “One motive being looked at is the possibility he was trying to shake down the owner for a slice of the business,” one official told the Times. more ›

Police have identified the man who brutally stabbed Lucali's Pizza owner Mark Icaono yesterday as Benny Geritano, an ex-con who was charged with murder in the 1990s and is currently on probation. And sources also say he may have been off his medication. "Mark was trying to get the guy to calm down," the source told the Daily News. "They made their way up the block and the guy started stabbing Mark." Geritano is also a reported associate of the Gambino family. more ›

Joseph Massino, the former Bonnano crime family head currently serving a life sentence, has been testifying against fellow Bonnano crime associate Vincent "Vinny Gorgeous" Basciano and we're learning all sorts of things. Terms like "Clip. Boob. Strip. Brokester. Chase." How Massino's wife received $50,000 in a Dom Perignon bottle from Basciano after Massino was arrested. And that he had $7 million in cash and hundreds of gold bars in his Howard Beach home. more ›

Six years ago, the world of La Cosa Nostra was rocked by Bonnano crime family head Joseph Massino when he agreed to testify for the government against acting don Vincent "Vinnie Gorgeous" Basciano, who was accused of killing a mob associate. Now, as Massino is expected to sing today, it's time to get sentimental about the mob. Over the weekend, the Daily News' headline declared, "Mafia legends 'turning in graves' as ex-Bonanno boss to rat out Vinny Gorgeous at trial," while the NY Times reports today, "When he takes the witness stand on Tuesday, he will make history as the first official boss of one of New York’s five mob families to break ranks and testify for the government." more ›

Mobsters can often be quite charming in the movies, but it seems that they're not nearly as persuasive in real life: several Brooklyn federal judges are at their wits end with alleged mobsters and mafia associates bizarre (or entitled) bail requests. Reputed Genovese associate Peter Pace recently complained that his electronic bracelet doesn't allow him to stroll on his outdoor patio or garden in his backyard. "Move your tomatoes inside. I don't want to be bothered with this," Judge John Gleeson responded. more ›

Getting naked as an initiation ritual for fraternities we knew about—but getting naked as an initiation ritual for the mafia? Better than "wildings" on Easter, we guess. Gangland [sub. required] reports that recent court testimony has confirmed that the Genovese crime family started stripping their inductees back in 1989 after the feds had secretly taped one of the family's inductions. more ›

One of the alleged mobsters arrested in last week's massive criminal sweep has been accused of "reaching out" to wayward mafia members prior to the bust, and threatening them if they didn't recommit to the family. Andrew "Andy Mush" Russo, the alleged acting street boss of the Colombo family, has a coldhearted and bloody reputation, but he has at least one big-name friend defending him: actor James Caan. more ›

The Post has a hilarious article about the horrifying state of alleged mobster fashion, lamenting that the days of sharply dressed wise guys—a la the Dapper Don John Gotti, Jr. in his Italian suits and Carlo Gambino and Paul Castellano who "looked sharp in three-piece suits and starched white shirts"—are over, at least judging from photographs of those arrested in the federal authorities' massive organized crime takedown last week. Seriously—if your mob nickname is "Fatty" (or "Lumpy" or "Fats"), isn't it too expected that you'll be wearing a boring black t-shirt during your arrest? more ›