Joe Masseria
 |
Joe The Boss Masseria |
Giuseppe "Joe The Boss" Masseria (
1879–
April 15,
1931) was an early
Mafia don in the
United States. Masseria controlled all organized crime in
New York City from
1920 until his assassination by
Lucky Luciano in
1931 during the
Castellammarese War.
After emigrating to the United States in
1903 to avoid
murder charges in
Sicily, Masseria became an enforcer for the
Morello Gang in the
Lower East Side of New York City. By
1920, he had assumed command of the gang through a series of assassinations.
Salvatore Maranzano was sent with several other men from Sicily in
1927 to gain control of the American Mafia for Don
Vito Cascio Ferro. Maranzano gained the support of a faction and declared war on Masseria, in what became known as the
Castellemmarese War.
On
April 15,
1931 Joe Masseria was assassinated at the Nuova Villa Tammaro restaurant in
Coney Island. Gangland legend has it that Masseria dined with
Charles "Lucky" Luciano before his death. While they played cards, Luciano excused himself to the bathroom, when
Vito Genovese,
Bugsy Siegel, and others rushed in and shot Joe the Boss to death.
According to a recently discovered
NYPD report, Masseria actually had lunch with his underboss,
Sam Pollaccia, that day. While in the bathroom,
Johnny "Silk Stocking" Giustra entered the restaurant. Both Pollaccia and Giustra then shot Masseria to death. The famous picture of Masseria holding the ace of diamonds, was intentionally arranged by a news photographer.Pollaccia and Giustra had formerly worked under Masseria's late Brooklyn underling
Frankie Yale. After Masseria's murder, Sam Pollaccia disappeared permanantly, most certainly murdered, while Johnny Giustra was shotgunned to death in East Harlem in the summer of 1931.
The survivors of the
Castellammarese War of 1930-31 were smart enough to take credit for Masseria's murder, which is probably how Luciano ended up getting put in Pollaccia's role that day.In a footnote to Masseria's murder, Gerardo Scarpato, owner of the restaurant where Joe the Boss was killed, was murdered himself in September 1931, within days of the killing of
Salvatore Maranzano.
