Matthew Ianniello
Matthew Ianniello | |
---|---|
Mobster | |
Allegiance | Genovese crime family |
Conviction(s) | Racketeering (1988) Racketeering (2006) |
Criminal penalty | Sentenced to 13 years imprisonment Concurrently sentenced to 18 months imprisonment (state) and two years imprisonment (federal) |
Matthew Joseph "Matty the Horse" Ianniello (June 18, 1920 – August 15, 2012) was an American mobster with the
Early life
Ianniello was born in 1920 in Little Italy, Manhattan and was one of eight children of his Italian immigrant parents.[1][2]
Ianniello allegedly got his nickname "Matty The Horse" in a youth baseball game. During one game, the opposing pitcher threw a hard pitch into the face of the batter. A fight erupted in which Ianniello knocked down the pitcher, who was older and taller than he. After this episode, someone remarked about Ianniello: "That boy is as strong as a horse."[3]
He worked as a waiter in a restaurant owned by his uncle in the Brooklyn dockyards, and then as a
Ianniello was married to Beatrice May and the couple had four children.[1]
In 1951, Ianniello was arrested on charges of possessing heroin, but the charges were dropped.[1]
In 1960, Ianniello became partners with Edward L. DeCurtis, a longtime associate, in running private after-hours drinking clubs for gay men.[2] Ianniello eventually owned a string of clubs and nightclubs for gay men, including the Gilded Grape and the Hay Market.[1]
Career
In the 1960s, Ianniello joined the Genovese crime family, then run by imprisoned boss Vito Genovese. Ianniello's sponsor was mobster and future acting boss Frank "Funzi" Tieri.[2]
Ianniello eventually controlled Amalgamated Transit Union, bus drivers Local 1181, giving him the power to extort payments from school bus companies in New York City as well as the union drivers.[4]
On February 2, 1965, Ianniello was indicted on contempt of grand jury charges for refusal to testify. However, the charges were dismissed in 1966.[5]
In the early 1970s, Ianniello was promoted to caporegime.[6] Ianniello then controlled over 80 restaurants and sex-oriented clubs in New York City, including most of those located in the Times Square area of Manhattan.[7] Officially, he still had a respectable job with the union.
In 1972,
Soon afterward, several armed Colombo associates stormed into the restaurant and shot and killed Gallo.
In 1985, along with Vincent Asaro, he was alleged to have demanded up to $1 million when seedy properties owned by gangster Michael Zaffarano were sold to legitimate real estate developers.[11]
Indictments
On February 28, 1985, Ianniello was indicted in federal court in New York on charges of racketeering involving the operation of several restaurants, bars and carting companies.
On May 13, 1986, Ianniello was acquitted on all charges in the 1986 indictment on racketeering in the garbage industry.[15] On May 17, 1986, Ianiello was indicted in federal court in New York on new charges of labor racketeering, construction bid rigging, extortion, gambling, and murder conspiracies.[16]
On May 18, 1988, Ianniello was indicted again in Newark, New Jersey on racketeering charges involving the 1984 Genovese takeover of a gravel company in Edgewater, New Jersey.[17] On October 13, 1988, Ianniello was sentenced to 13 years in federal prison after being convicted of the 1986 bid rigging racketeering charges.[18]
Acting boss
In 1995, Ianniello was released from prison. When Genovese boss Vincent "Chin" Gigante went to prison in 1997, Ianniello became acting boss.[1] By 1998, Ianiello was deeply involved in Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1181, a bus drivers union.[19] Through the union, Ianiello forced a medical center to pay $100,000 to renew their lease and then make regular cash payments in order to keep it.[20]
Waste management industry
Between 2001 and 2005, Ianniello received
Death
On August 15, 2012, Ianniello died at his home in Old Westbury, New York of health problems related to heart ailments and other illnesses, including prostate cancer.[1]
In popular culture
Matthew Ianniello is portrayed by actor Garry Pastore in the 2017 HBO series The Deuce.[29]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Vitello, Paul (August 24, 2012). "Matthew Ianniello, 92, Former Mafia Boss". The New York Times.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-928928-03-4.
- ISBN 9781630761257.
- ISBN 978-0-8147-4366-9.
- ^ Gage, Nicholas (September 25, 1972). "Study Shows Courts Lenient With Mafiosi". The New York Times.
- ^ a b "Matthew Ianniello". The Daily Telegraph. August 23, 2012.
- ^ Collins (2002), 126.
- Dotdash. p. 9 of 11.
- ^ Gage, Nicholas (May 3, 1972). "Story of Joe Gallo's Murder". The New York Times.
- The Nevada Daily Mail. p. 3A.
- ^ DESTEFANO, ANTHONY M. (June 15, 2015). "LI mob figure benefited from Times Square redevelopment, according to court papers". Newsday.
- ^ Lubasch, Arnold H. (March 1, 1985). "REPUTED CRIME BOSSES ARRAIGNED". The New York Times.
- ^ Lubasch, Arnold H. (December 31, 1985). "9 OF 10 FOUND GUILTY IN SKIMMING TRIAL". The New York Times.
- ^ "Ianniello Is Sentenced In Racketeering Trial". The New York Times. February 16, 1986.
- ^ Saxon, Wolfgang (May 14, 1986). "SIX DEFENDANTS ARE ACQUITTED IN A MOB TRIAL". The New York Times.
- ^ "U.S. Attorney Reports Indictment of Ianniello". The New York Times. May 16, 1986.
- ^ Uhlig, Mark A. (May 19, 1988). "8 Reputed Members Of Genovese Family Indicted by U.S. Jury". The New York Times.
- ^ "Salerno, Now Serving 100 Years, Gets 70 More in Bid-Rigging Case". The New York Times. October 14, 1988.
- ^ von Zielbauer, Paul (June 3, 2009). "Two Accused of Extorting Bus Companies". The New York Times.
- ^ "Matty 'The Horse' on His Last Ride". The Oklahoman. Associated Press. March 4, 2007.
- ^ Altimari, Dave (May 10, 2007). "24 MONTHS FOR 'THE HORSE'". Hartford Courant.
- ^ Rashbaum, William K. (July 29, 2005). "Metro Briefing - New York: Manhattan: Reputed Mob Family Boss Indicted". The New York Times.
- ^ Muller, Marissa (July 28, 2005). "Reputed Genovese family members indicted". CNN.
- ^ Connor, Tracy (June 10, 2006). "FEDS HOPE NEW RAP REINS IN MOB'S MATTY THE HORSE". New York Daily News.
- ^ "Mob Figures Are Charged With Controlling Trash Hauling in Connecticut". The New York Times. Associated Press. June 10, 2006.
- ^ Rubinsky, Cara (May 9, 2007). "Reputed Mob Boss Sentenced in Trash Case". The Washington Post.
- ^ "Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator". Federal Bureau of Prisons.
- ISBN 9781250013538.
- ^ "WHEN THE MAFIA RULED TIMES SQUARE". Mob Museum. September 26, 2018.
Further reading
- Kelly, Robert J. (2000). Encyclopedia of Organized Crime in the United States. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press. OCLC 41612361.
- Diapoulos, Peter; Linakis, Steven (1976). The Sixth Family. New York: Dutton. OCLC 1991242.