Frank Abbatemarco

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Francesco "Frankie Shots" Abbatemarco (July 4, 1899 – November 4, 1959) was a New York captain in the Profaci-Colombo crime family, his murder is known for starting the first Colombo mafia war which was on and off for 12 years.

Early life

Abbatemarco was born in 1899 in

teamsters firm, he also worked as a truck driver. He married Lucy Abbatemarco in 1921 and moved in together into the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn. He had a son a year after named Anthony "Tony Shots" (1922–2005), who later became the underboss of the Colombo crime family in the 1970s.[3][4]

Criminal career

His first prison sentence was in October 1922, which was several months after he had his first son. He was sentenced to 2 years on a conspiracy to sell morphine charge alongside 4 other criminals and served his time at the Atlanta federal prison. Abbatemarco became a soldier in the Profaci (Colombo) crime family in 1928, shortly after Yale and his brother were murdered. He was arrested on August 27, 1931, for vagrancy however he was acquitted of all charges two weeks later. Another arrest would occur in 1932 in New Jersey on suspicion charges but was subsequently released. A year later in May 1934, he was arrested on an unknown charge and only spent several days in police custody before they released him. Abbatemarco became a high level earner for his crime family and began operating several illegal gambling operations during the 1930s, including a lucrative lottery in South Brooklyn. By the 1940s Abbatemarco was elevated to the rank of caporegime (captain) and ran a crew that specialized in racketeering and burglary.[5] He recruited teenager Carmine Persico in the early 50s; who was the imprisoned boss of the Colombo crime family from 1973 till his death in 2019. On March 25, 1952, Abbatemarco amongst his son, Joe Gallo, his brother Lawrence Gallo and 18-year old Persico were arrested by the Special Rackets Squad of the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office for racketeering related charges and the operation was alleged to have earned them $2.5 million. Abbatemarco and his son were charged with conspiracy to operate a lottery and both pleaded guilty, however 7 of the other accused did not. He received a year in prison at Riker's Island Penitentiary.

Death

On November 4, 1959, Abbatemarco was gunned down by assassins as he left a tavern owned by his cousins, the Cardello brothers. Abbatemarco and his crew stopped paying tribute to boss

rackets by Profaci however he gave them to his own relatives. Abbatemarco's murder would start the first Colombo war. He is buried at the Holy Cross Cemetery in Brooklyn.[6]
His son Anthony went into hiding for 2 years and sought revenge. He assisted Profaci in killing Lawrence Gallo however he mistakenly shot a police officer and was charged with attempted murder. A month after his cousin Joseph Magnasco would be murdered. During the war Abbatemarco somewhat helped the Gallo brothers and changed sides several times in order to stay alive. The war ended after Joe Gallo was assassinated in 1971. Anthony Abbatemarco would later serve as underboss from 1973 to 1977.

References

  1. ^ "Michael "Mike Schatz" Abbatemarco". American Mafia. 6 August 2015. Retrieved 4 October 2017.
  2. ISBN 9781861059529
    .
  3. ^ "Abbatemarco, Anthony (1922-2005)". American Mafia. Retrieved 4 October 2017.
  4. ^ "1977 News Summary". The New York Times. 5 June 1977. Retrieved 4 October 2017.
  5. ^ "Bios. of early Colombo members". American Mafia Charts. 16 January 2016. Retrieved 4 October 2017.
  6. ^ "Frankie Abbatemarco is the opening casualty in the Profaci family civil war". The New York Daily News. Retrieved 4 October 2017.
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