Paul Castellano

Paul Castellano (born June 26, 1915, Brooklyn, New York, U.S.—died December 16, 1985, New York, New York) was an American organized crime figure, the reputed successor to Carlo Gambino as the “boss of bosses” of the Five Families of La Cosa Nostra, sometimes referred to as the Mafia, in New York City. Castellano held power from 1976 until 1985, when he was murdered.

Early life and family ties

Castellano’s parents were immigrants from Sicily. His father was a butcher, and young Paul took up the same trade after leaving school in the eighth grade. In 1934, at age 19, he was convicted of robbery in Connecticut and served three months in prison. After his release he remained in the meat-cutting business but also continued his association with organized crime—a connection that was strengthened by ties of kinship. Castellano was a cousin of Gambino, then a rising mobster, and Castellano’s sister was Gambino’s wife. Both men were members of the Mangano crime family, which eventually became the Gambino family.

Rise in the Mafia and criminal career

In 1957 Castellano attended the notorious Apalachin, New York, gathering of high-ranking mobsters from across the United States. At age 42, he was probably one of the youngest people there. He was arrested after police broke up the meeting, and he refused to provide information, resulting in a conviction for contempt of court and seven months’ imprisonment. In 1975 Castellano was indicted for conspiracy to commit usury (loan-sharking) and for tax evasion, but the case against him collapsed when the prosecution’s star witness refused to testify, allegedly under pressure from the defense. Gambino died of natural causes in 1976 after choosing Castellano to succeed him as the head of his organization.

Discover the fascinating events that shaped the world, straight from our editors.

SIGN UP

By clicking “Sign Up”, you consent to the Britannica Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

Britannica Quiz

American Mobsters Quiz

Castellano was considered the “boss of bosses,” or “the Godfather,” because he presided over the largest and most powerful of the New York City crime families. His organization infiltrated labour unions and such businesses as building construction and food supply, extorting money from legitimate enterprises while also operating traditional rackets such as gambling, pornography, and loan-sharking. However, he disapproved of drug trafficking, supposedly because the harsh legal penalties might tempt accused perpetrators into betraying their superiors. He ran his organization from his mansion on Staten Island.

Indictments

In February 1985 Castellano and eight other high-level mobsters were indicted under the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) as members of a “Commission” that governed organized crime in New York City. However, in September of the same year, before the RICO trial could take place, Castellano and other Gambino family members faced prosecution in another federal trial. They had been charged by U.S. Attorney Rudolph Giuliani with running a large-scale car-theft ring that shipped stolen cars overseas and had committed 25 murders.

Assassination and aftermath

The car-theft trial was still in progress on December 16, 1985, when Castellano and his newly appointed underboss, Thomas Bilotti, were gunned down in the street as they arrived at a steak house in Midtown Manhattan. The murders came only two weeks after the death from natural causes of Castellano’s previous underboss, Aniello Dellacroce, who had headed a rival Gambino faction that disregarded Castellano’s ban on drug dealing. Dellacroce’s death may have emboldened his ambitious and violence-prone protégé John Gotti, who, according to an informant, witnessed Castellano’s murder from a parked car. Gotti, who took control of the Gambino crime family soon after Castellano’s death, was convicted in 1992 of arranging for the murders. Other top mobsters may have allowed the killing in order to keep Castellano from cooperating with authorities in the car-theft case or as punishment for a major security breach—the planting of a microphone and transmitter in his house by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.