Tampa Continues To Be The Hotbed Of Organized Crime?

Tampa again finds itself in the center of the latest chapter of mob intrigue. Reported organized crime boss John Gotti Jr. was arrested in New York last Tuesday, and will be arraigned in Tampa on murder conspiracy charges stemming from an investigation that began in the Bay area.

As mob towns go, Tampa is no New York, Chicago or even Philadelphia. But over the years Tampa has found itself with at least a tenuous connection to the latest news from the organized crime world.

In the 1940s, Sicilian immigrant Santo Trafficante Sr., a known member of the Mafia, took over organized crime in Tampa. The Tampa mob ran gambling, loansharking operations, drug trafficking, stolen property rings, strip clubs, fraud and political corruption, according to Scott Deitche, author of the book, "Cigar City Mafia."

When Trafficante Jr. took over, the man authorities called Florida's "boss of bosses" testified in front of a 1978 U.S. House panel that he was involved in a plot to kill Cuban leader Fidel Castro.
He denied knowledge of any mob plot to kill President Kennedy.

In 2006, four alleged members of the Gambino crime family went to trial in U.S. District Court in Tampa on charges of racketeering and extortion. Authorities said the group, led by Ronald "Ronnie One Arm" Trucchio, committed robbery, extortion and murder from New York to Miami. They reportedly ran valet parking businesses at restaurants, hospitals and strip clubs.

In 2007, Trucchio was sentenced to spend life behind bars.

It should have been apparent to poor John Gotti the younger that a career in organized crime was doomed from the very beginning when he got stuck with one of the truly lousiest nicknames in the wiseguy community.

Having a moniker with flair always has been something of a point of pride among the sleeping-with-a-fish crowd.

For example, we've had Joseph "The Animal" Barboza, Sammy "The Bull" Gravano, the legendary (and quite late) Ben "Bugsy" Siegel, Al "Scarface" Capone, John "No Nose" DiFronzo, the even tardier Albert "The Mad Hatter" Anastasia, the self-evident Tommy "Three Fingers" Brown, Matthew "Matty the Horse" Ianiello (the mind spins) and Arnold "The Brain" Rothstein.

Sometimes the nom de plume suggests a certain job skill such as, ahem, Willie "Ice Pick" Alderman, Anthony "Gas Pipe" Casso, Richie "The Boot" Boiardo, and, leaving nothing to the imagination - Michael "Trigger Mike" Coppola.

And who could ever forget John "The Dapper Don," "The Teflon Don," "Mr. Untouchable" Gotti?

Alas, Gotti's son has gotten the short end of the tire iron when it came to doling out nicknames.

Somehow, John "Junior" Gotti does not quite convey the sense of ominous dread a quality Mafia nickname is supposed to accomplish.

Well, it could have been worse. He could have wound up with something John "SpongeBob SquarePants" Gotti.

The younger Gotti, along with two business associates, was indicted this week by federal prosecutors in Tampa on wide-ranging racketeering conspiracy charges. "Junior" is accused of participating in three New York mob hits between 1988 and 1991.

In fact, Gotti has been indicted so many times by the feds, you have to wonder if these latest charges were simply an effort on the part of the government to stay in practice.

Gotti was arrested during a lavish FBI raid on his Oyster Bay, N.Y., home, which involved hovering helicopters and numerous agents storming "Junior's" house.

Just why all the drama was required isn't exactly clear. You know, "Junior" has more experience posing for mug shots than the University of Miami football team.

Maybe these guys watched "Goodfellas" the night before.

No trial date has been set for Gotti and his colleagues, but it does promise to be a sort of poor man's version of "Sopranos-On-The-Hillsborough."

Gotti's mouthpiece, Charles Carnesi, employing the keen legal acumen one can learn only in law school, insisted the only reason his client was indicted was because someone informed on him. Well, that's usually how these things work!

Carnesi then provided a hint of how he intends to represent his client - using the ever-popular "Dumber than a sack of Luca Brasis defense."

"To suit their purposes in Florida, they are saying he is a big-time drug dealer and was making money for the mob," Carnesi contended.

"Up here in New York he is nothing more but an over-muscled young kid who is 44 who might not have been bright, but was his father's son and everyone had to accept him."

Maybe it's time for a new nickname - John "The Dapper Dolt" Gotti. At least it's a start.