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Step into the chilling world of the Lucchese Mafia as we uncover the brutal rise and fall of Anthony "Gaspipe" Casso, one of the most feared mob bosses in history. From orchestrating cold-blooded hits to controlling the streets of New York, Gaspipe’s ruthless reign left an unforgettable mark on the Mafia underworld. Discover the secrets behind his infamous loyalty betrayals, shocking FBI deals, and ultimate downfall. If you’re fascinated by true crime, Mafia family power struggles, and the shadowy world of organized crime, this deep dive into Casso’s legacy is a must-watch. Don’t miss the full story—hit play now!
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#MafiaHistory
#TrueCrimeStories
#LuccheseFamily
#OrganizedCrime
#AnthonyCasso
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All content in the video is used for educational purposes and fall within the guidelines of fair use. No copyright infringement intended. If you are or represent the copyright owner of materials used in this video and have a problem with the use of said material, please send me an email and we can work it out.
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#MafiaHistory
#TrueCrimeStories
#LuccheseFamily
#OrganizedCrime
#AnthonyCasso
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LearningTranscript
00:00imagine a criminal mastermind so ruthless that even the hardened underworld of organized crime found his actions extreme yet he was as brilliant as he was brutal this is the story of anthony gaspipe casso
00:14a man who climbed to the top of the mafia hierarchy while leaving a trail of blood betrayal and millions in stolen riches but was casso just a killer or could his cunning have made him a success in the legal world
00:28let's uncover the life of one of the most feared mobsters in history anthony casso born may twenty first nineteen forty two in brooklyn seemed destined for the criminal path from the start the third child in his family he grew up in a household that never went without even during the great depression his father michael casso worked as a dockhand in the brooklyn shipyards but had a secret weapon a close friendship with salvatore
00:57big sal katina a capo in the genovese family thanks to katina's influence there was always work for michael and anthony entered a world where mafia connections meant survival and success michael casso known in his circles as gas pipe for carrying an eight inch lead pipe during street fights passed the nickname to his son
01:19while anthony's childhood was filled with love and stability his admiration for his father's world of respect and power drew him toward the streets anthony's school years were unremarkable he struggled with subjects like history and literature but excelled in math numbers fascinated him not for their logic but for their connection to money something anthony loved above all else it was also during this time that young anthony discovered a
01:49another passion guns his father often took him on hunting trips in the forests of new jersey where he became a skilled marksman local dove owners even hired anthony to shoot hawks preying on their birds but it wasn't just target practice that thrilled him he was captivated by the authority and respect his father's mafia friends commanded he wanted that same power for himself despite michael's dreams of seeing his son become a lawyer or doctor
02:19anthony gravitated anthony gravitated toward the streets by his teenage years he joined the south brooklyn boys a group of local troublemakers though not serious criminals the gang offered a stepping stone to bigger opportunities in the underworld at just sixteen anthony dropped out of school and his godfather sal katina secured him a job at the docks the fact that he was underage was no issue
02:49no issue with his son to earn a paycheck and he was under the law at this time in the day was the first time when he was a kid with a shak
02:53and the ad-horm two men she said he could earn a paycheck anthony's charm and street smarts caught the attention of more influential figures
02:55including christopher christie tick for nari a rising star in the lucchese family for nari managed gambling and loan sharking operations and quickly took anthony under his wing starting small casso collected money from bookmakers and loan sharks
03:12and manage two after-hours nightclubs these roles came with their share of conflict and anthony made
03:18it a habit to carry a gun solving problems with force when needed by the spring of 1961 at just
03:2619 years old anthony found himself in serious trouble he intervened when a local thug bobby
03:32bebop harassed a young woman accounts differ on whether anthony acted on his own or at the woman's
03:39request but the confrontation escalated quickly when bebop shoved him anthony pulled a gun and shot
03:46him several times though critically injured bobby survived this incident put a target on anthony's
03:53back not only from the police but from bobby's uncle a captain in the genovese family fearing retaliation
04:01anthony turned to his father and godfather for help they decided he should lay low hiding out at his
04:08girlfriend's family home in the countryside meanwhile his father attempted to bribe local authorities to
04:15drop the case however the fifty thousand dollar price tag was out of reach for the casso family
04:21to make matters worse bobby and his brother began searching the city day and night vowing to settle
04:28the score this was just the beginning of anthony casso's journey into the heart of organized crime
04:34a path that would make him both revered and feared earning him a reputation as one of the most dangerous
04:40mobsters of his time anthony casso's path was never without danger and one particularly tense moment could
04:47have ended his criminal career before it fully began a rival furious over a previous altercation stormed
04:55into a club where young anthony often hung out armed with a sawed-off shotgun he made a public display of his
05:02intentions announcing that it was meant for anthony the situation seemed dire but anthony's father found an unexpected
05:10solution with the help of sal katina a trusted ally he brokered peace with the rival's family the terms a ten thousand
05:19dollar payment to smooth things over and anthony would turn himself into the authorities at the trial
05:26however the rival conveniently failed to identify anthony as the shooter sparing him from prison despite this
05:33close call anthony was more determined than ever to climb the ranks of the criminal underworld while his
05:40ventures were already lucrative he wanted more teaming up with truck drivers he devised a bold scheme
05:46drivers hauling high demand items like electronics leather goods or clothing would lose their trucks
05:53to anthony for ten thousand dollars they'd report the theft to the police who would eventually recover
06:00the empty truck meanwhile anthony sold the goods through his network of fences making a tidy profit anthony also
06:08cultivated relationships with harbor guards in new york city these guards eager to make extra money helped
06:16him move stolen goods efficiently by 1970 casso's success allowed him to fulfill a dream for his family
06:23he purchased a small country house for his parents tragically michael casso passed away later that same year
06:30leaving anthony devastated to cope he threw himself deeper into his work among his many ventures anthony led a
06:38group known as the bypass gang a highly skilled crew specializing in high-stakes robberies their targets
06:46jewelry stores and bank vaults their methods were meticulous they would wait for banks to close on friday
06:53evenings and then spring into action breaking into vaults and ransacking safe deposit boxes anthony believed the
07:01key to a successful heist lay in preparation and he spared no expense on tools he purchased advanced
07:08equipment including a specialized torch capable of cutting through steel and a van with bulletproof tinted
07:15windows to ensure quick and secure getaways the gang's meticulous planning extended to reconnaissance
07:22often conducted over days they parked their van near the target and appear to leave it unattended
07:28in reality two team members stayed inside discreetly monitoring bank employees comings and goings
07:35noting cars and license plates and studying the bank's routines only when they were certain the coast
07:41was clear would they make their move anthony's attention to detail paid off he even went so far as
07:47to purchase alarm systems identical to those used by his targets allowing the gang to rehearse disabling them
07:54beforehand after a robbery the loot was carefully catalogued casa leveraged his connections with
08:01white-collar criminals to offload stolen bonds and stocks while jewelers and buyers in his network
08:07provided cash for stolen jewelry without asking too many questions the bypass gangs operations were
08:14astonishingly successful over their run they stole an estimated 100 million dollars in cash bonds and
08:22valuables cementing anthony casso's reputation as a mastermind of organized crime did you know one of anthony casso's
08:30crew members frankie beans may had a surprising connection to hollywood he was friends with james kahn the actor who
08:39famously portrayed sonny corleone in the godfather frankie often shared stories about his criminal exploits
08:46particularly the advanced tools casso's crew used to crack safes these tales made such an impression on
08:53con that he passed them on to filmmaker michael mann years later mann used those insights to create the 1981
09:01film thief with a lead character who bore an uncanny resemblance to anthony casso himself as anthony's
09:08reputation grew so did the trust of his mentor christopher christie tick for nari shortly after
09:15the death of anthony's father for nari handed him a critical task one of for nari's associates a marijuana
09:22dealer known as sammy the jew discovered that one of his clients was working as a police informant sammy's
09:29source a contact within the brooklyn district attorney's office confirmed the tip making it a serious
09:36threat for nari tasked anthony with eliminating the snitch anthony carried out the job flawlessly
09:43earning a new reputation not just as a skilled safe cracker but also as a reliable killer by the
09:50early 1970s casso expanded his criminal operations into drug trafficking in 1971 through his long-time
09:58ally vic amuso anthony was introduced to oscar a florida-based drug dealer oscar supplied
10:05marijuana from south america and even connected casso with a fishing trawler captain who smuggled the
10:12goods these handoffs took place at night far out at sea where marijuana bales were quickly transferred
10:19onto smaller motorboats marijuana sales brought in steady profits but anthony wanted more he soon
10:27ventured into cocaine and heroin distribution to support this growing business he rented a warehouse
10:34in sheep's head bay to store his inventory business was booming and casso's success allowed him to buy
10:40three shrimp trawlers to enhance his smuggling operations rumor even circulated that casso had purchased
10:47a boeing 707 cargo plane to transport drugs directly from south america though this claim remains
10:54unverified as casso's empire grew so did law enforcement's interest in him in the fall of 1972
11:03fbi agents arrested anthony and several members of his crew though anthony quickly posted bail the arrest
11:10was a wake-up call he needed to know who had betrayed him his attorney michael rosen revealed that the
11:17informant was bobby danaish a minor associate who had occasionally helped the crew casso turned to
11:24his trusted friend gregory scarpa a notorious mobster with deep ties to the fbi scarpa discovered through
11:32his law enforcement channels that danaish was being held in topeka kansas casso sent a chilling message to
11:39danaish warning him not to identify anthony in court the threat worked terrified at how quickly anthony
11:47had tracked him down danaish agreed to stay silent this incident taught casso a critical lesson
11:54to stay ahead he needed allies within law enforcement anthony soon partnered with nypd detectives stephen
12:01caracapa and lewis epolito who became his inside men for a hefty price they fed him critical intelligence
12:10tipping him off about investigations and ensuring he stayed one step ahead of the law meanwhile scarpa
12:16continued to share fbi intel with anthony strengthening their bond the two often collaborated from
12:24hijacking truckloads of merchandise to orchestrating robberies at jfk airport scarpa even offered to
12:31sponsor anthony's entry into the colombo crime family but casso declined choosing to stay loyal to his
12:37lucchese connections in 1974 anthony gaspipe casso officially became a made man in the lucchese family
12:45alongside his lifelong friend vic amuso the two joined christopher fornari's crew solidifying their
12:53positions within the organization around this time casso gained another valuable contact within the fbi
13:01an agent named doug mccain mccain provided anthony with insider information about federal investigations
13:09which casso generously shared with mobsters from other families further cementing his reputation as a power broker
13:17in the criminal underworld however casso knew his burgeoning drug empire would eventually draw the attention
13:23of federal authorities that reckoning began when another associate paul bennett turned informant
13:31bennett a skilled engineer who had designed hidden compartments for casso's smuggling vehicles proved to
13:37be far less adept as a drug dealer his betrayal would set the stage for even greater challenges
13:43in casso's rise through the mafia ranks anthony casso's drug empire faced a major blow when one of
13:50his associates paul bennett decided to betray him bennett was arrested while trying to sell 10 pounds of
13:57marijuana facing jail time he cracked under pressure and gave federal agents detailed information about
14:04casso's operations among his revelations was the identity of a fishing trawler anthony used to smuggle
14:12drugs from colombia acting on this tip the feds informed the coast guard and marine patrol when the trawler
14:20docked in far rockaway bay and its crew began unloading law enforcement surrounded the pier the bust yielded
14:27a staggering nine tons of marijuana with a wholesale value of nearly five million dollars furious and
14:34needing to act swiftly anthony turned to his fbi informant doug mccain to uncover how the feds had
14:41learned about the shipment it didn't take long for mccain to point the finger at bennett casso wasted no
14:48time exacting revenge rather than using a hitman from the lucchese family anthony enlisted roy de mayo
14:56a notorious contract killer whose livelihood heavily depended on drug profits roy eager to stay in casso's
15:04favor took care of the job just days later paul bennett was gunned down on the doorstep of his home
15:11but anthony wasn't finished to ensure there were no loose ends he ordered the deaths of the trawler's
15:17captain and his son who had served as the assistant captain in casso's mind their knowledge of his
15:24operation made them a liability the feds could exploit by late 1980 christopher frenari then serving as
15:32consigliere of the lucchese family suggested that casso take on the role of capo he believed anthony had earned
15:39the position through his growing influence and resourcefulness while flattered casso declined and
15:46instead recommended his long-time ally vic amuso for the role vic's promotion marked a new chapter for
15:53the family while casso turned his focus to innovating his drug smuggling operations adapting to the changing
16:01landscape casso began importing marijuana through city island in the bronx transporting it by truck to a
16:08brooklyn warehouse at the same time he expanded into cocaine trafficking sourcing the product from
16:15colombia his shipments arrived via small planes landing at private airstrips in fort lauderdale for
16:22one particularly large shipment anthony reportedly paid the colombians one million dollars a testament to
16:29the lucrative nature of his dealings one of casso's key partners in the drug trade was gerard papa
16:36gerard also had a hand in new york's construction business through arista windows a company he co-owned
16:43with peter savino their firm secured lucrative city contracts thanks to the lucchese family's control
16:49over local 580 the union overseeing metalwork and windows anthony himself invested five hundred thousand
16:56dollars into the business helping gerard and peter set up a warehouse and renovate their operations
17:04but gerard's darker tendencies soon surfaced in the spring of 1980 he murdered two men and concealed
17:10their bodies in the foundation of the warehouse under construction one victim shorty spiro was a colombo
17:19family member and the unauthorized killing did not go unnoticed on june 16th 1980 gerard paid the
17:27ultimate price killed by a colombo hitman as retribution despite this the window business thrived
17:35generating profits not just for the lucchese family but for the colombo gambino and genovese families as
17:41well each window installation brought in substantial earnings for the mob around the same time anthony met
17:49marat balagula a soviet immigrant who had made his fortune in the gasoline racket when marat ran into
17:56trouble with the colombo family he sought help from christopher frenari offering a share of his profits in
18:02exchange for protection this partnership further expanded anthony's reach into lucrative rackets
18:08beyond traditional mafia operations however trouble loomed on the horizon for the lucchese family for years they controlled long island's waste disposal industry
18:21but a small privately owned firm run by robert kabaka refused to cooperate with the mob after enduring repeated threats kabaka turned to law enforcement for help
18:32seeing an opportunity federal agents convinced kabaka to wear a wire and secretly record meetings with mafia representatives while kabaka couldn't catch salvatore
18:43avellino the lucchese member overseeing the garbage racket on tape his cooperation led to a judge approving a wiretap on avellino's home phone the feds soon realized
18:55avellino rarely used avellino rarely used his home phone as he spent most of his time chauffeuring lucchese boss anthony tony ducks corralo in 1983 agents installed a recording device in avellino's car capturing numerous conversations in which corralo discussed the inner workings of the lucchese family and its dealings with other mafia organizations these tapes became crucial evidence in the commission case a landmark federal prosecution under the rico act
19:23under the rico act that brought down several high-ranking members of new york's five families paul castellano was notably absent from the courtroom docks as the other family bosses awaited trial that would change on december 16th 1985 when castellano was assassinated in downtown manhattan a story detailed in our john gotti and salvatore gravano videos as these mob trials loomed anthony cassos russian
19:53associate marat balagula found himself in trouble michael franzese of the colombo family approached balagula demanding a cut of his profits unsure how to handle the situation balagula sought advice from casso who brought christopher for nari into the fold for nari brokered a deal ensuring everyone shared in balagula's lucrative
20:15fuel tax scam over time this racket became one of the most profitable ventures in organized crime second
20:22only to drug trafficking balagula feeling untouchable as brighton beach's most powerful figure underestimated a new threat
20:31vladimir reznikov a fearsome enforcer from the russian underworld decided to challenge his authority
20:39on june 12th 1986 reznikov stormed into balagula's office wielding an ak-47 he opened fire killing one of
20:49balagula's associates and injuring others the chaos didn't end there reznikov later confronted balagula at
20:57the odessa nightclub pointing the rifle directly at his head he demanded six hundred thousand dollars threatening to
21:04wipe out balagula's entire family if he didn't pay up by the next day the encounter left balagula so shaken
21:11he suffered a heart attack despite his condition balagula managed to relay the situation to casso who viewed
21:19the threat as a personal insult casso reassured balagula requesting a photo of reznikov the next day as
21:28reznikov arrived at the odessa to collect his money balagula was nowhere to be found
21:34frustrated reznikov headed to his car just as he opened the door casso's men anthony center and joey testa both
21:43veterans of roy de mayo's crew eliminated him with a hail of bullets meanwhile the lucchese family faced its own
21:51trials family boss tony corralo fully aware the government aimed to lock him up for life began considering his successor
21:59despite being a natural choice casso declined the position instead recommending vic amuso for the top
22:06spot amuso became the new boss with casso stepping in as consuliera christopher fernari casso's long-time
22:15mentor was also convicted and leadership of his crew passed to peter fat pete kyoto as john gotty rose to
22:22power in the gambino family vincent the chin giganti boss of the genovese family sought revenge for
22:30castellano's murder after several failed attempts to assassinate gotti giganti turned to casso for help
22:38casso devised a plan to take out gotti using explosives a bold and unconventional move for the mafia
22:45with the help of giganti's bomb expert herbie pate casso planted a device under frank de chico's car
22:52de chico a gambino family underboss and gotti loyalist was supposed to be traveling with gotti that
22:59day on april 16 1986 the bomb detonated but gotti wasn't in the car de chico died in the explosion
23:08and the assassination attempt on gotti failed later that year casso narrowly avoided becoming a victim
23:16himself james heidel working under gambino capo angelo ruggiero led a hit team targeting casso
23:24although ruggiero denied gotti's involvement rumors swirled that the attempt stemmed from casso taking too
23:30large a cut of the heroin trade heidel and his team faced a daunting task casso's deep connections
23:38within the mafia law enforcement and the fbi made him a difficult target after weeks of searching
23:44for his address the hitmen learned that casso would be meeting an associate at the golden bull restaurant
23:51to settle a dispute over stolen bonds the plan was to strike when casso exited his car however their
23:58attempt was foiled on that quiet sunday evening the street was nearly empty allowing casso to notice
24:06a suspicious vehicle he spotted a shotgun barrel emerging from a car window just in time to duck
24:12for cover before he could grab his gun from under his seat the would-be assassins fired but their shots missed
24:19their mark casso's nearmis only solidified his reputation as a man who was nearly impossible to kill
24:26a fact that would haunt his enemies for years to come although wounded anthony casso managed to escape
24:33his car and dash into the nearby restaurant his would-be assassins having struggled to open their car door
24:41were delayed just long enough for their target to get away casso was left questioning who might have
24:47ordered the hit he had plenty of enemies but the amateur nature of the attack puzzled him why had such an
24:54important job been handed to inexperienced gunman determined to find answers casso quickly recovered
25:01from his minor injuries and launched an investigation his first stop was gregory scarpa who revealed that
25:08the man behind the botched hit was james heidel casso recognized the name but didn't know much about him
25:15thanking scarpa casso turned to his fbi informant doug mccain for more information mccain confirmed that
25:23heidel had ties to the gambino family through his great uncle daniel marino and even provided the
25:29address where heidel was staying with his mother with this lead casso enlisted two corrupt police officers
25:37epileto and caracapa to apprehend heidel on october 18 1986 heidel was kidnapped stuffed into the trunk of
25:46a car and taken to one of casso's safe houses there under a brutal interrogation heidel spilled everything
25:54he named everyone involved in the assassination attempt including angelo ruggiero as well as others
26:01in the car that night and those waiting as backup heidel's confession convinced casso that john gotti
26:07himself was behind the attack casso decided to stage a trial of sorts he invited gotti and salvatore
26:15sammy the bull gravano to hear heidel's testimony firsthand gotti refused to attend instead sending
26:22two trusted capos joe butch corral and handsome jack giordano to represent him in their presence
26:30heidel repeated his accusations as soon as he finished casso had him executed on the spot the gambino emissaries
26:39insisted gotti had no part in the plot and assured casso that ruggiero would face consequences despite
26:47their assurances casso launched his own campaign of retribution systematically eliminating anyone he
26:54suspected of involvement even fat vinnie the racketeer casso was supposed to meet the night of the attempted
27:00hit wasn't spared he was killed by epileto and caracapa and his body was later discovered in the trunk of
27:08his car ruggiero however evaded casso's wrath on december 5th 1989 he succumbed to cancer sparing him
27:18a violent end by then casso had much bigger problems federal investigators had flipped peter savino a
27:26former partner in gerard papa's aristo windows racket savino agreed to wear a wire and the recordings he
27:33captured surpassed all expectations notably savino managed to record candid conversations with vincent
27:41gigante the genovese boss despite gigante's public persona as a mentally unstable man these tapes
27:48revealed him as a calculating and lucid leader casso learned of savino's betrayal through his fbi informant
27:55doug mccain realizing the severity of the situation casso quickly informed gigante of the recordings
28:03meanwhile the walls were closing in the fbi was building a strong racketeering case against casso
28:10and his ally vicomuzzo facing imminent indictments the two consulted their lawyers and decided their best
28:18option was to go into hiding their plan was to lay low assess the evidence against them and eventually
28:25surrender to fight the charges in court casso knew that disappearing would make him a top target for
28:30the fbi his name would dominate headlines and he would undoubtedly land on the agency's most wanted
28:37list before going underground he passed leadership of the lucchese family to alphonse darko and devised a
28:45communication system with his loyalists he meticulously recorded the phone numbers and addresses of key
28:52associates across brooklyn long island and the bronx through this network casso intended to maintain
28:59control from the shadows by may 1990 casso left new york heading to northern new jersey to hide two weeks
29:08earlier amuso had relocated to scranton pennsylvania where he had already purchased a safe house
29:14shortly after casso's departure federal agents raided his new york home with a warrant for his arrest
29:21marking the beginning of a high stakes game of cat and mouse anthony casso's wife played her part well
29:28telling the fbi that she had no idea where her husband was meanwhile casso known as gas pipe was quietly
29:36managing his affairs from the shadows avoiding any direct contact with his family he only sent his wife short
29:43notes every two weeks to reassure her of his safety always accompanied by bags of cash to further conceal
29:51his identity casso grew a beard and often wore sunglasses and baseball caps his only regular meetings were with
29:58alphonse darko whom he met in discreet public locations like malls or restaurants despite his low
30:06profile casso was fixated on exacting revenge against peter savino the informant who had betrayed him
30:13however the fbi had placed savino under tight security at a military base in hawaii making him
30:20untouchable frustrated but undeterred casso turned his attention back to running the lucchese family from
30:27the shadows in the spring of 1991 family member peter fat pete kyoto was indicted on rico charges facing the
30:36possibility of life in prison kyoto decided to plead guilty to lesser charges hoping for a lighter sentence
30:43unfortunately for casso and vicomuzo kyoto's plea implicated them both furious casso ordered kyoto's
30:51death realizing there was a hit on him kyoto became increasingly cautious limiting his outings and
30:58preparing for sentencing which he thought would bring him safety behind bars what casso didn't know was
31:04that kyoto had no intention of cooperating with authorities he simply wanted to serve his time
31:10quietly kyoto's survival instincts kicked in but so did his arrogance before fleeing to upstate new york
31:18he stopped at a staten island service station to prepare his car for the long journey casso's men
31:24including dark os sun joe saw this as their chance however their attempt was poorly executed kyoto spotted
31:32the hitmen and open fire but despite firing six shots he missed his targets the hitmen however unleashed
31:40a hail of bullets hitting kyoto 12 times miraculously his excess weight acted as a shield preventing the
31:48bullets from hitting vital organs after recovering in the hospital a furious and frightened kyoto agreed to
31:56cooperate with the government he became a key witness against casso amuso and other lucchese members
32:03casso enraged by the betrayal sent a chilling threat to kyoto if he testified his elderly parents would be
32:11murdered mafia traditions had long prohibited targeting blood relatives but casso broke this rule despite
32:18kyoto taking the threat seriously enrolling his family in witness protection the lucchese family didn't
32:25stop there the hitmen targeted kyoto's uncle frank signorino whose body was found stuffed
32:32in a car trunk they also went after kyoto's sister patricia capazzo ambushing her as she returned home
32:39after dropping her kids at school though critically injured she survived further motivating kyoto to
32:46testify against the lucchese leadership casso blamed alphonse darko for these escalating failures
32:53accusing him of incompetence by july 1991 casso and amuso called a meeting with their capos
33:00and stripped darko of his leadership role shifting control to a collective paranoid and increasingly
33:07isolated darko began to fear for his life convinced the fbi was his only escape he defected and provided
33:15critical information about the family's inner workings simultaneously casso and amuso faced resistance
33:22from anthony to a long time lucchese capo who ran the family's new jersey and florida operations
33:30despite being loyal to previous leadership at chedro clashed with the younger generation's demands for
33:37more money by 1987 at chedro was on trial for rico charges but his old school code of omerta kept him
33:45silent when he was acquitted casso and amuso saw this as an insult and launched a campaign to
33:51eliminate him and his crew most of a chedro's men defected to casso's side but 14 stayed loyal casso
33:59ordered their executions and sent hitmen after a chedro and his son in florida familiar with the area the
34:07at chedro's evaded capture even using corrupt local cops to their advantage eventually federal
34:13prosecutors brought new charges against at chedro and faced with health issues he decided to cooperate
34:20after casso's men murdered his wife his defection marked another major blow to the lucchese leadership
34:27by mid-1991 vic amuso's luck ran out he was arrested in scranton pennsylvania after an anonymous tip
34:36and was denied bail with amuso incarcerated casso assumed full control of the family but paranoia spread
34:44like wildfire at a september meeting darko now visibly haggard became convinced that he was next on casso's hit list
34:53after spotting a known assassin he fled the meeting and immediately turned himself over to the fbi
35:00amuso meanwhile languished in prison refusing a bizarre escape plan orchestrated by casso suspecting
35:08it was a trap in january 1993 he was convicted of rico charges and sentenced to life in prison casso
35:17still on the run believed he could outlast the government's case against him however on january 19 1993
35:25the fbi tracked him down using cell phone records another theory suggests his downfall was due to an
35:32associate burton kaplan who inadvertently led authorities to his location once incarcerated casso
35:39wasted no time building alliances with corrupt prison guards he attempted several escape plans from bribing
35:46guards to smuggle weapons to plotting to overpower prison staff during transfers however his schemes failed
35:54often foiled by sheer bad luck or heightened security following major events like the 1993 world trade center bombing
36:02despite his ingenuity casso's days of freedom were over while vic amuso vetoed gas pipe casso's ambitious escape plan
36:11the government presented casso with a life-altering offer plead guilty and face a twenty two year sentence
36:19with the possibility of release in fifteen years for good behavior despite this lifeline casso hesitated he deemed
36:27even fifteen years too steep and compared unfavorably to the lenient five and a half years phil leonetti of philadelphia secured through cooperation
36:37in february 1994 casso finally agreed to cooperate pleading guilty to an astounding seventy two charges he was transferred to the la tuna prison in texas the very cell that once housed joe valaci the mobster who had famously exposed the mafia's structure decades earlier
36:56yet casso's collaboration with federal agents quickly turned turbulent when casso began revealing damning accounts of corruption like his dealings with crooked cops eppolito and caracapa agents welcomed the information
37:11however the moment he mentioned dealings with doug mccain or the drug transactions with sammy gravano
37:18he was sharply silenced gravano who had been the star witness in major mafia trials was clearly off limits if casso testified about gravano's drug activities
37:29it could dismantle gravano's credibility exposing him as a perjurer and jeopardizing high-profile convictions though casso testified before senate committees
37:39and provided chilling details of mob atrocities investigators became wary of his utility his status as the sole witness to many crimes undermined his credibility
37:52even years later when gravano faced charges for drug trafficking which corroborated casso's claims the government remained disinterested in gaspipes testimony
38:02in 1998 the government dropped casso from the witness protection program citing his repeated violations observers suspected this was a convenient excuse to sever ties with him
38:15his appeal to reverse the decision failed and casso was sentenced to an astronomical four hundred and fifty five years in prison without parole amid this turmoil
38:26his wife lillian remained a rare source of solace despite gaspipes infidelities and crimes she refused to abandon him raising their children alone however tragedy struck
38:39when frankie sortino of the colombo family extorted lillian claiming casso's cooperation had harmed his associates with no one to protect her lillian surrendered one hundred thousand dollars
38:52but was soon hounded for more gaspipes but was soon hounded for more gaspipes powerless behind bars desperately wrote to federal authorities for help
39:00but his pleas fell on deaf ears in february two thousand five lillian died of a heart attack leaving gaspipes devastated
39:09casso's health deteriorated in prison with diagnoses of heart disease cancer hypertension and respiratory issues
39:17in march 2020 amid the covid 19 pandemic he was transferred to a tucson jail and later a hospital after testing
39:25positive despite his attorney's compassionate release requests he remained incarcerated on december 15th
39:332020 anthony gaspipe casso passed away at 78 if you've been captivated by this deep dive into the infamous life
39:41of anthony gaspipes casso there's so much more to uncover about the shadowy underworld of organized crime
39:49hit subscribe to inside secret world of mafia titans for gripping stories exclusive insights and untold truths
39:56about the most powerful figures in mafia history don't miss out join our community of true crime enthusiasts today
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