L'histoire Complete de la Mafia - Paul Castellano
Category
📺
TVTranscription
00:00 Paul Castellano was the greatest pariah of organized crime that ever existed.
00:05 Paul Castellano was not a real gangster.
00:08 He was a businessman.
00:10 When Paul became boss of the Gambino family,
00:15 there was a huge disagreement from the beginning.
00:18 He was there, in his silk bedroom dress,
00:22 his satin shoes, in his huge house,
00:25 and he was taking all their money.
00:27 He was greedy. He wanted to control everything.
00:30 John Gotti said, "He's useless. Let's get rid of him."
00:34 He himself signed his death warrant for himself.
00:55 Long Island, New York, January 1983.
00:59 Roy DeMeo, a member of the Gambino family,
01:03 says goodbye to his son and drives away in his luxurious car.
01:07 I knew the days of my father were numbered.
01:10 I asked God to please let him come home tonight.
01:13 Roy DeMeo made himself known as the man in charge of the Gambino family,
01:18 Paul Castellano.
01:20 He also made a lot of money through pornography and car theft.
01:25 But he will be assigned to appear for a car theft case.
01:30 Castellano then makes a decision. DeMeo must disappear.
01:35 Seeing that his father is not coming home that night,
01:39 his son Albert thinks he has fled.
01:42 We had a plan.
01:44 If he didn't show up at home,
01:46 it means he ran away and was on the run.
01:50 Without keeping to the plan, Albert patiently waits for his father to contact him.
01:54 I didn't want to declare his disappearance to give him more time.
01:59 That was the plan.
02:01 But finally, I warned the police.
02:03 The FBI and the police department started looking for his car.
02:11 Eight days later, the police found DeMeo's car in a Brooklyn parking lot.
02:16 He never managed to get the car.
02:19 When we popped the trunk,
02:22 we found Roy DeMeo's body rolled up in a log.
02:26 Castellano ordered him to get out of the car,
02:30 and we found DeMeo's body in the trunk of his car,
02:33 with several bullets in his head.
02:36 A demonstration that Castellano was one of the most powerful leaders of the PEGRE.
02:41 Constantino Paul Castellano was born in Bensonhurst,
02:56 a Brooklyn neighborhood in New York, in 1915.
03:01 His parents, Giuseppe and Conchetta, arrived from Sicily a few years earlier.
03:06 At that time, Bensonhurst was the next step on the scale of integration for the Italians.
03:12 It was a middle class suburb.
03:15 Giuseppe found a good job.
03:21 But to feed his three children, he also joined a small group of the PEGRE,
03:25 and also legally sells lottery tickets to Italian immigrants.
03:29 This lottery, called "La Rosa Will",
03:32 provided the PEGRE with the necessary funds
03:35 to extend its activities to more serious and violent scams.
03:39 Not very good at school, Paul abandons his studies in 4th grade
03:45 to follow a butcher training.
03:47 But he also learns the ropes of his father's second job.
03:50 Paul made his first connections with the world of organized crime
03:55 by helping his father with the lottery.
03:58 Working for his father gives Castellano an insight into this outlaw life,
04:02 which is far from his liking.
04:05 His father's stained-glass apron doesn't look like the luxurious costumes
04:10 worn by all these gangsters.
04:12 Young Paul has no doubt about his career choice.
04:15 In New York in the 1930s, the old world of the mafia is disappearing
04:23 to give way to a new generation of gangsters.
04:26 They were American.
04:30 And according to them, the best way to make the world of organized crime work
04:35 was to mix old Sicilian customs with modern American business.
04:40 During the prohibition, business flourishes.
04:44 One of Paul Castellano's cousins, Carlo Gambino, is a member of Cosa Nostra.
04:50 Carlo Gambino was a tough guy. He was not afraid to get his hands dirty.
04:55 When Paul began to visit the world of organized crime,
04:59 he came across Carlo.
05:01 Carlo had made a name for himself in the organization.
05:05 In 1934, Paul Castellano is 19 years old
05:09 and can now wear the famous costumes he has always admired.
05:13 Working for his father in his activities, both legal and illegal,
05:17 allows him to offer himself what is best.
05:20 From his 1.89 meters, Big Paul will be able to make a place in the middle.
05:25 For the weekend of July 4, Castellano and two of his acolytes
05:31 go to a party in Connecticut.
05:33 On the way, they stop in a clothing store,
05:36 but certainly not to make a profit.
05:38 Paul decided to rob the store.
05:41 He told them, "It's going to be easy. It's as simple as stealing candy from a child."
05:46 Castellano then takes out a gun from his glove box
05:49 and the three men enter the store.
05:51 Paul robs the owner and gives him the $51 he had in his wallet.
05:56 His two partners and he open the box, but they find nothing.
06:01 So it's not the big case Paul had hoped for.
06:04 The three men leave with less than $17 each.
06:08 Witnesses report the number of their registration plate to the police.
06:14 When Paul returns home in Brooklyn, he is arrested.
06:17 During the interrogation, Castellano claims that the other two men were only hitchhikers
06:23 and that he does not know their names.
06:25 Big Paul is the only one to fall and he is sentenced to one year in prison.
06:28 He has been able to get his sentence without complaining.
06:32 He got out after three months
06:34 and he discovered that he had become a real hero in his neighborhood.
06:38 The neighborhood priests congratulate Castellano for not having denounced his friends
06:43 and his cousin Carlo Gambino takes it into account.
06:46 That's when Gambino told him, "Your place is among us."
06:51 Gambino has become one of the most profitable members of one of the five families of the mafia, the Mangano.
06:58 Everything he touches turns to gold.
07:03 When he is appointed captain, he takes young Paul Castellano under his wing
07:08 and introduces him into the world of organized crime.
07:12 Carlo Gambino did not want his cousin to take on the dirty work that others could do for us.
07:19 The two men collaborate and develop new business.
07:24 They will even become even closer.
07:27 In 1937, Paul marries his childhood love, Nina Mano,
07:32 a pretty young girl from the neighborhood who is also the beautiful sister of Carlo Gambino.
07:38 In the 1950s, Castellano became the father of four children.
07:42 He learns from his cousin and founds a successful meat distribution company called Blue Ribbon Meats.
07:50 Paul thought like a businessman.
07:54 Some of his clients to whom he had lent money owned butchers, but they couldn't pay.
08:00 At the time, in normal times, if you couldn't pay, you could say goodbye to your knees.
08:05 But Paul said, "Why do this?"
08:08 Instead, he would take a piece of the business.
08:12 In the early 1950s, Paul's cousin, Carlo Gambino, is rewarded for his sense of business.
08:19 A capo named Albert Anastasia managed to take over the head of the Mangano family.
08:25 He appoints Carlo Gambino as his sub-boss.
08:28 Gambino is now number two,
08:31 and he takes advantage of this position to make his cousin, Paul Castellano, a captain.
08:36 But Gambino is not satisfied with his position as number two.
08:40 He joins other mafiosi to bring Anastasia down.
08:44 Carlo started political maneuvers.
08:48 He decided to get rid of Anastasia,
08:50 and in no time, he came up with a plan to assassinate her.
08:54 On October 25, 1957, Anastasia is going to be raided by a barber in Manhattan.
09:00 While he is relaxing in his chair, his head covered with towels,
09:03 armed men make an eruption and open fire.
09:06 The barber receives five bullets in the middle of his body.
09:12 In a hurry, Anastasia throws herself on the reflection of her killer in the mirror,
09:16 before giving her last breath.
09:18 It was the murder of Anastasia that allowed Carlo Gambino to rise to the top of that crime family.
09:27 Anastasia is eliminated, and Gambino is now in charge of the Mangano family.
09:31 His cousin, Paul, is now number two.
09:34 Paul Castellano was his right hand man.
09:38 He prospered at the same time as Carlo.
09:40 He went wherever Carlo went.
09:42 Everything is going well for Castellano.
09:45 He is happy in terms of housework and business,
09:47 and he has made his place in New York's most powerful mafia family.
09:52 But a police raid will decapitate the elite of the mafia families,
09:56 and represent for him a real challenge.
09:59 In October, 1957, Carlo Gambino is about to become the new head of the Mangano family,
10:10 a powerful family of New York crime.
10:12 His most loyal man is his cousin and friend, Paul Castellano.
10:17 [The Mafia]
10:19 In November, about 100 bosses of the mafia meet for a secret interview in Appalachin, New York.
10:29 Castellano is there as Carlo Gambino's guest.
10:33 His presence indicated the position he now occupied in the media.
10:39 The fact that Gambino was bringing him along was extremely significant.
10:45 There were many things on the agenda,
10:47 but the most important for Gambino is his official appointment as head of the family.
10:51 There were many subjects to deal with, but above all,
10:55 we had to deal with this succession story.
10:57 At 42 years old, Castellano is one of the youngest participants in the meeting.
11:02 It is an honor for Big Paul to be at the table of such a powerful man.
11:06 But, while the meeting is in full swing,
11:10 a local policeman wonders about all these luxury cars parked in the alley.
11:15 When the gangsters notice the agent lifting their registration plates,
11:19 the situation degenerates.
11:21 This simple check triggered a panic.
11:29 These big bosses of the mafia started running through the fields in their silk suits
11:34 and their Italian shoes, running through the fields.
11:39 Paul Castellano was among them.
11:43 Reinforcements soon joined the chase.
11:46 Roadblocks were installed.
11:48 The authorities managed to arrest 63 gangsters, including Castellano.
11:52 He was then taken to prison, his suit torn and stained.
11:57 Two years later, Castellano was summoned before a grand jury
12:02 to testify about the Appalachian meeting.
12:05 He claims to have been there to visit a friend suffering from a heart disease.
12:12 Castellano refused to cooperate before a grand jury,
12:15 which earned him the respect of other gangsters.
12:19 Castellano is found guilty of association of rapists and sentenced to 5 years in prison.
12:25 But after 7 months, his sentence is annulled.
12:29 He is released and returns home with a high head,
12:32 after winning the consideration of other mafiosi.
12:40 In the 60's, Castellano's cousin and close friend, Carlo Gambino,
12:44 made himself a respected patriarch of one of the most important families of crime in the United States.
12:50 The Mangano are called the Gambinos,
12:54 and Carlo manages their illegal business with a sharp sense of business.
12:58 Thanks to his smart management, the Gambino family consists of 250 members
13:05 and at least twice as many associates.
13:08 Carlo Gambino has made his family what is still considered
13:12 the biggest criminal organization of all time.
13:15 His family earns millions of dollars a year.
13:20 His loyal brother-in-law and brother-in-law, Paul Castellano, also receives the benefits.
13:25 Meanwhile, Castellano's official business is also flourishing.
13:34 The privileged sector of Paul, outside of organized crime, was the poultry business.
13:39 His small business, Blue Ribbon Meats, has become a real industry.
13:44 Dile Meat Purveyors.
13:46 There was a lot of competition in the poultry business,
13:49 but Castellano managed to dominate the whole market.
13:52 Castellano, in fact, takes advantage of what he learned in the mafia.
13:56 He forces the butcher shops and supermarkets to supply himself at home.
14:02 Those who refuse are harassed by the mafia and trade unions.
14:06 In 1976, Carlo Gambino's health deteriorates.
14:12 Castellano temporarily takes charge of the Gambino family's affairs.
14:16 Gambino understood that he had to choose a successor.
14:21 He had a decision to make.
14:23 There are only two men left in the list.
14:27 Gambino's protégé and cousin, Castellano, and his long-time sub-boss, Agnello Niel de la Croce.
14:33 Rumors suggest that de la Croce's loyalty would make him the family's boss.
14:40 But on his deathbed, Gambino surprises everyone by appointing Paul as his successor.
14:45 Carlo wanted someone who looked like him.
14:49 A criminal and a capitalist who would apply his method.
14:53 Reinvesting illegal profits in legal operations.
14:57 De la Croce was the prototype of the street thug.
15:01 The members of the Gambino family then split into two clans.
15:06 Those who support the brilliant businessman, Castellano, and those who support de la Croce, the man of the people.
15:12 The discord came from the fact that those who supported de la Croce did not consider Castellano as a real gangster, but as a businessman.
15:23 The Gambino's organized a meeting to confirm Castellano's appointment and judge de la Croce's reactions to Carlo's controversial decisions.
15:31 De la Croce had a long conversation with Paul.
15:34 Of course, he didn't like this decision.
15:37 But he was entirely devoted to the cause of the mafia, and he said, "If that's what Carlo wants, that's what we'll do."
15:43 Castellano is aware of one thing.
15:46 For the Gambino's to remain unified, he must satisfy de la Croce.
15:50 He therefore offers him to retain his position as a sub-boss.
15:53 De la Croce agrees, but this decision does not suit everyone.
15:57 Among the members dissatisfied with the family, a young, burnt-out head named John Gotti stands out.
16:03 Gotti was unfaithful to de la Croce.
16:07 He wanted him to be the godfather.
16:09 From the first day, he wanted Castellano.
16:12 Although this decision does not suit everyone, the war within the Gambino family is avoided.
16:19 Once a godfather, Castellano is mainly interested in white collar crimes, such as fraud, political corruption, and syndicate looting.
16:28 But he still needs to call on the force.
16:31 This is where Roy Demeo comes in.
16:33 Roy Demeo really looked like a gangster, and he had murder in his blood.
16:38 Demeo is the perfect man for Castellano.
16:41 He was at the head of a ruthless gang of murderers.
16:45 They were the most feared gang in all of New York.
16:48 When Castellano wants to kill someone, Roy is in charge of attracting targets to the Gemini Lounge, his bar in Brooklyn.
16:55 He then kills the victims, cuts the bodies, and gets rid of them at the dump.
17:00 Once the bodies were at the dump, it was impossible to find them.
17:07 The Demeo crew's philosophy was "no bodies, no crime."
17:16 Castellano closes his eyes on the violence of Demeo's methods.
17:20 He only appreciates the money his activities bring to the family.
17:24 He eventually accepts to make an exception for his ability to solve delicate situations,
17:30 and his ability to bring money in collaboration with an Irish gang called the Westies.
17:36 It's the beginning of a very fruitful collaboration.
17:39 Castellano's business is flourishing, but the problems of private order will soon threaten his empire.
17:49 At the end of the 70s, Paul Castellano raises millions of dollars
17:56 thanks to his business and his illegal business as the head of the Gambino mafia family.
18:02 By infiltrating the unions of the building, he gets a commission on any concrete used to build the skyscrapers in Manhattan.
18:09 As a result, New York's buildings become the most expensive in the country.
18:13 Castellano uses a part of his income to build a 3.5 million dollar house in Staten Island.
18:30 Without any modesty, he calls it "the White House".
18:33 He therefore lives in luxury with his wife Nina, but their marriage is in danger.
18:38 "They were sharing a room. The tension between them was to be cut with a knife."
18:42 That year, Nina hires a 30-year-old Colombian immigrant, Gloria Olarte, as a maid.
18:48 Big Paul falls immediately under the charm.
18:51 "One day, we were alone at home, I was doing the dust.
18:55 He asked me to make him a coffee and he said, 'Why are you so shy?'
18:59 I said, 'Because I don't speak English well and because you are my boss.'
19:06 Then he said, 'Sit down with him at the table.'
19:11 And he said to me, 'Don't be afraid of me.' "
19:15 But the young woman is not afraid.
19:17 Even better, she commits to a relationship with the 64-year-old godfather.
19:21 Castellano begins to pay more attention to his young mistress than to his family affairs.
19:27 In the 80s, he is increasingly lonely and rarely leaves his home in Staten Island.
19:32 The captains of his gang regularly come to greet him by bringing him envelopes filled with money.
19:38 "These capos passed the magnificent iron-forged gate,
19:42 they walked along the beautiful white columns at the entrance,
19:45 and they found Paul Castellano, sitting, dressed in a beautiful silk room dress and velvet slippers."
19:54 "For them, he was a dark character, a man of the high, and they didn't respect him."
20:00 It is difficult for Castellano to keep an eye on his men since his luxurious residence.
20:05 One of Castellano's rules dates from the reign of Carlo Gambino.
20:09 Gang members are not allowed to deal drugs.
20:12 Convinced that drugs are harmful to business, Castellano institutes two decrees.
20:19 No dealer can become a member, and any member of the family involved in drug trafficking will be executed.
20:26 "At the time, if you asked Castellano if his family was dealing, he would answer,
20:33 'Of course not, never in my life, no member of my family is involved in drugs.'
20:36 He suspected them, he took their money, but could he prove it? No, he didn't want to prove it."
20:41 Castellano considers himself more of a businessman than a gangster.
20:47 However, he is not afraid to do what it takes to protect his family.
20:51 Frank Amato, a little rascal who married Paul's only daughter, Connie, will discover him in a brutal way.
21:01 "Frank Amato was a juppon runner and he was violent.
21:05 Connie had a miscarriage, Paul Castellano immediately deduced that it was because his daughter had been beaten."
21:13 Big Paul is furious and asks his killer, Roy DeMeo, to solve the problem.
21:17 "Castellano went to ask DeMeo to get rid of Amato."
21:23 DeMeo offers Frank to join him in his bar in Brooklyn, the Jiminy Lounge.
21:29 "They killed him and cut his body in pieces, we never found him again.
21:34 Frank Amato was killed because Castellano thought he was responsible for his daughter's miscarriage, just for that."
21:41 At the same time, federal investigators now have a powerful tool to fight organized crime,
21:47 and sponsors such as Paul Castellano, the RICO, or the Decree on Organized Crime.
21:54 This law allows to inculpate the criminal organization leaders for crimes committed by their subordinates.
22:00 "The FBI has rediscovered its way of working.
22:05 They have created a series of brigades, each one aimed at a specific family.
22:10 So there was the Gambino team, and their sole function was to put together a case against the Gambino family."
22:19 "When Rudy Giuliani became Attorney General, he decided to use the RICO law to attack the delegation,
22:26 the five families that run the organized crime cartel in this country."
22:31 "The Department of Justice knows that the destruction of the Mafia will require a large number of people.
22:38 Rudy Giuliani therefore formed an organized crime brigade."
22:41 "Rudy Giuliani's office called to ask that FBI agents be assigned to this brigade."
22:50 "The FBI agents set the double standards.
22:54 Infiltrated officers would get together with the members of the Gambino gang to try to destabilize them."
22:59 "They would simply walk into a group of Mafia members.
23:04 They would put on a hat and say, 'Hi Tony, how's it going?' and give each other a kiss."
23:09 "The hat in question was unknown to neither Devin nor Adam, but the other guys would look at it and say, 'Do you know this FBI agent?'"
23:16 One of the agents even sympathized with Castellano's mistress, Gloria Olarte.
23:21 "He would follow me everywhere I went.
23:26 I was a little scared, because I didn't understand what was going on.
23:33 But he was very nice to me, and he explained to me that nothing would happen to me."
23:37 They even end up sympathizing and occasionally meet around a café to talk about Big Paul's daily life.
23:43 But it's ultimately a well-spoken gangster who manages to break through Castellano's White House walls.
23:50 In the 1980s, Paul Castellano leads the Gambino family with an iron fist.
23:57 But the more powerful he becomes, the more greedy he becomes.
24:02 "Paul Castellano has set a rule, 'From now on, I take 15%.'
24:07 Everybody says, 'Wait a minute, he's already full of asses.
24:12 Why should he touch even more?'"
24:24 This unilateral decision makes John Gotti furious, a man of great influence loyal to his subordinate, Agnello della Croce.
24:31 But della Croce manages to contain Gotti's turmoil.
24:35 "Agnello della Croce kept calm and insisted on his loyalty to Castellano, even when Castellano thought he was lost.
24:43 Gotti didn't like that, and neither did della Croce.
24:46 But he kept a lid on things."
24:51 Castellano's life at home is not easy either.
24:54 His diabetes problems have made him impotent.
24:57 He can no longer satisfy his mistress, Gloria Olarte.
25:00 The solution chosen by Big Paul to remedy this problem will raise indignation in this very macho environment.
25:07 "Castellano made a huge mistake.
25:12 He told people that he had become operational again due to a penile implant.
25:21 That was a big mistake.
25:23 That got around and that was so shocking.
25:27 Oh my God.
25:29 And you add to that the fact that his men were furious about being treated like dogs,
25:33 his empire was crumbling under his feet."
25:37 Unlucky in housing, Big Paul also begins to encounter difficulties with his men.
25:44 But until now, the FBI's Gambino Brigade has not managed to infiltrate his home in Staten Island.
25:50 Until the day when, in March 1982, the Federals found a flaw in the Gambino's armor.
25:57 The modest soldier and drug dealer, Angelo "Quack Quack" Ruggiero.
26:02 "Ruggiero was known as Quack Quack because since his childhood, when he met John Gotti, he never shut him up.
26:10 Not only did he deal heroin, but he would yell at him on all the roofs."
26:14 By eavesdropping on Ruggiero's Long Island home, FBI agents hear him say that he broke one of the family's golden rules.
26:22 "On the tapes, he talked about heroin, but also about how much he hated Paul Castellano.
26:29 He said, 'This bastard is too smart.'"
26:32 In November, Ruggiero's eavesdropping provided the Federal agents with enough evidence
26:38 to convince the judge to install more microphones, this time at Castellano's.
26:42 But infiltrating the overprotected White House won't be easy.
26:47 First, they need to determine where Castellano organized his meetings.
26:53 Paul's mistress, Gloria Ollarte, provides them with the answer,
26:58 by having a coffee with the FBI agent she was friends with.
27:02 "Castellano would manage all his affairs around a huge table.
27:07 One of those classic Italian tables that could have resisted an atomic attack,
27:10 and that was in the middle of the kitchen."
27:13 The FBI agents go through the perimeter.
27:19 "There was no alarm system, no dogs, only people at home."
27:24 In fact, there is always someone at Castellano's.
27:28 While the FBI is looking for a way to put the White House on the list,
27:34 the agents look at Roy DeMeo's car theft business and what his activities have to do with Castellano.
27:39 "Castellano was very impressed when Roy DeMeo pointed himself out and gave him his envelopes full of money.
27:44 The problem is, it made him an accomplice."
27:48 When one of DeMeo's car thieves gets arrested, Roy tells Paul.
27:54 The parent is afraid of being associated with DeMeo's illegal activities.
27:58 He's afraid that the unpredictable Roy DeMeo will break under the pressure of the FBI and will not tell the agents.
28:04 Paul Castellano said, "Wait a minute, there's only one person who can testify against me, it's Roy DeMeo."
28:12 Castellano summons the capo John Gotti to his house and orders him to act against DeMeo.
28:18 But like all gangsters, Gotti is afraid of DeMeo and his gang.
28:23 "You never refuse an order from the boss, but he basically just went on a rampage and made reservations about it.
28:32 Castellano had to go elsewhere to deal with the Roy DeMeo problem."
28:37 Castellano dispenses Gotti to act and addresses another trusted captain, Nino Gacci.
28:43 "Nino was a very dark character, very quiet, who didn't talk much.
28:52 My father respected him and felt indebted to him."
28:58 On January 10th, 1983, DeMeo leaves his home in Long Island, but plans to be back in the evening to celebrate his daughter's 22nd birthday.
29:06 "My father was not the kind to miss a Sunday family dinner. He was always there on the weekend and never missed his children's birthdays."
29:15 Even if the details remain vague, investigators think that Nino Gacci would have invited DeMeo to a car dealership run by one of his acolytes.
29:25 "My father knew he was going to get killed. He sat me down and said, 'I'm sorry you had to go through all this.'"
29:33 Just as DeMeo enters the dealership, Gacci pulls out his gun and shoots him in the head.
29:39 Eight days later, the police find DeMeo's body in the trunk of his car.
29:50 "We opened the trunk and found him in a fetal position with his hands on his head because he had been shot in the head."
29:56 Albert, DeMeo's son, has learned that he should never go against Paul Castellano.
30:03 "He was found on my birthday. I went to the morgue to identify his body with my uncle.
30:10 It was a completely unreal situation.
30:14 You can't trust that kind of stuff. Seeing your father's body seven times and his head blown off. Nobody can."
30:21 The federal authorities suspect Castellano of being behind DeMeo's murder, but they have no tangible evidence.
30:27 Despite everything, a new opportunity to trap Castellano is about to come.
30:33 The FBI will finally find a way to install microphones inside the White House.
30:40 [The FBI]
30:42 In 1983, Paul Castellano's life is in a state of chaos.
30:50 Nina, his wife for 46 years, has left the family home.
30:54 However, the federal authorities are about to move in.
31:07 In the spring, the FBI finally finds a way to install a listening system.
31:11 The agents decide to disrupt Castellano's cable television reception and wait for him to call a repairman.
31:18 "Cable television was relatively new at this time frame.
31:25 So this idea suited one of our many scenarios."
31:32 When Castellano starts to have reception problems, he asks his favorite capo, Tommy Bilotti, to call the repairman.
31:39 The FBI special agent, Joe Cantamessa, intercepts the call.
31:44 "Sometime thereafter, a technician shows up.
31:48 And as often was the case, I'm the technician.
31:53 I'm in an undercover capacity. I am properly attired. I am properly equipped."
32:01 Castellano orders Bilotti to closely monitor the technician.
32:05 He escorts the repairman to every television in the house.
32:09 They end up going to the kitchen, where Castellano organizes his secret meetings.
32:14 "I entered the kitchen. I knew thanks to the team that their business was discussed around the table."
32:20 After examining the area, Cantamessa declares that he has spotted the problem.
32:24 It is cables inside the cupboards that cause reception problems.
32:29 He will have to dismantle the cupboards to fix this.
32:31 Cantamessa assumes the role of the grumpy repairman and is not very helpful.
32:37 He is so convincing that Bilotti swallows the whole story.
32:41 "I said, 'It's not my job to do this. You're going to have to call the carpenter.'
32:48 They were really angry."
32:51 The grumpy repairman eventually gives in.
32:55 "Three of us, in this assembly, we removed a large part of the kitchen so I could replace this cabling.
33:02 I complained all the way. I was watching. I made this to be a big production."
33:09 Cantamessa sets up the microphone near the kitchen table.
33:14 After his departure, Castellano's mysterious reception problems cease.
33:19 The agents set up a listening post in a nearby building and begin monitoring the most powerful mafia in the country.
33:25 In just five months, the FBI recorded 600 hours of conversations between Castellano and the members of the Gambino clan.
33:33 "It was unbelievable. You had not only Castellano, the head of the organization,
33:40 but also all these capos talking about organized crime.
33:46 Day after day, hour after hour, we discovered all the problems of the mafia."
33:50 The recorded conversations prove that Castellano is at the head of this criminal organization
33:56 and reveal that the Gambinos are linked to other families of New York crime by their search of the textile industry.
34:02 In August 1983, the agents are ready to use the information collected by the microphones placed at Angelo Cuacuacrujero.
34:15 "The FBI listened to all the tapes.
34:18 Angelo revealed to them, hour after hour, all the information he wanted to have on the organization of the Gambinos, and even more."
34:25 On August 8, the Federals arrest Ruggiero and four other men for heroin trafficking.
34:30 As the leader of the gang of traffickers, John Gotti suddenly finds himself face to face with the wall.
34:37 He knows that if Castellano heard Ruggiero's conversations, he is a dead man.
34:43 Not only did these men mention drug trafficking, thus breaking a golden rule of Castellano,
34:48 but they also do not speak of Big Paul in very praiseworthy terms.
34:52 "These tapes were very compromising for Ruggiero.
34:56 Because they talked about drug trafficking, and he was speaking against Castellano.
35:00 He was treating him as a scoundrel, a snob, a scumbag."
35:04 Castellano does not like Ruggiero's capo, John Gotti.
35:09 Hearing about his arrests, he wishes to reverse Gotti's actions and dissolve his gang.
35:13 But his sense of business dictates him to avoid a civil war within the Gambinos.
35:18 "He did not know how to handle it.
35:23 If he started killing each other, the organization would be over."
35:28 The undersecretary, Niel de la Croce, tries to maintain peace.
35:34 He advises Castellano to wait for the prosecutors to disclose the recordings before making a decision.
35:39 Big Paul agrees.
35:41 "De la Croce covered up Gotti, even though he knew he was wrong.
35:46 He had to take the risk by loyalty to the men of his faction."
35:50 While Castellano waits to learn more about these recordings,
35:55 the Federals consolidate their case against him.
35:58 In March 1984, they are ready to take action.
36:03 They arrest Castellano and nine other men linked to the car theft network of Roy DeMeo.
36:07 "It was a real mess.
36:13 Castellano was charged for the role he had played in the DeMeo network."
36:18 Castellano is now accused of murder, car theft, drug trafficking, extortion, proxenitism and robbery.
36:32 Big Paul pays his 2 million dollars bail and is released the next day.
36:36 But even if he is released from prison, his problems are far from being solved.
36:41 In 1984, Paul Castellano was released on bail.
36:47 He still embraces millions at the head of the Gambino family.
36:51 The FBI agents are collecting evidence when they learn some important information.
36:56 A gathering of the five bosses of the New York mafia, known as the Commission.
37:02 "There was a commission meeting in Staten Island,
37:04 where Paul Castellano and other members of the commission were involved.
37:08 They basically discussed the industry of the building and ways to make top dollar
37:16 without being discovered by the law."
37:20 The FBI knows that this could make the investigation go much further.
37:30 Hidden in an old truck, a surveillance team keeps an eye on the meeting place in Staten Island.
37:36 One by one, the bosses leave the house under the FBI's objectives.
37:41 These photos will serve to fuel the RICO file against the organized crime in New York.
37:48 On February 25, 1985, the prosecutor Rudy Giuliani takes action.
37:57 The FBI and New York police are deployed throughout the city
38:01 and arrest Castellano and the most influential gangsters of the five mafia families in New York.
38:06 "Everything collapsed for them.
38:11 The car traffic, the commission case, they were all accused one by one."
38:16 That night, Paul learns that the evidence against him
38:20 comes from a set of microphones in his own house.
38:24 When Castellano discovers everything, he is completely devastated.
38:27 Castellano goes to prison.
38:30 He pays his 4 million dollar bail and is released after a single night.
38:34 Castellano asks his sub-boss, Agnello De La Croce,
38:40 to record the Ruggiero case that the prosecutors finally handed over to the defense attorneys.
38:45 But De La Croce tries to buy time.
38:48 "He didn't want these recordings to fall into Castellano's hands.
38:53 As his sub-boss, he could have things dragged out to try to get out of it.
38:58 But Castellano never gave up."
39:00 De La Croce is aware that if Castellano manages to listen to the gangs
39:04 and hears them talk about drug trafficking and the unresolved injury,
39:07 it will be the end of Captain John Gotti and his men.
39:10 De La Croce manages to postpone the trial until his death.
39:16 In December 1985, he succumbs to cancer.
39:21 Castellano does not attend any of the ceremonies in memory of his loyal sub-boss.
39:25 He believes that being present at the funeral of a gangster-sounding mobster
39:29 would not solve his problems with justice.
39:32 "Castellano had warned the family that he didn't want to draw attention to him
39:37 during the vigil, but his relatives still got upset."
39:41 Castellano's absence makes the gang's men furious, especially John Gotti.
39:47 "Gotti told the others, 'Look at this guy.
39:50 He doesn't even attend his sub-boss' funeral.
39:54 This is an unacceptable violation of one of the most sacred protocols of the mafia."
39:59 Gotti is even more upset when Castellano names John Bilotti,
40:03 whom he considers a stay-at-home, as the new family's new sub-boss.
40:07 Gotti thought he deserved this promotion,
40:10 and he plans to not let this scandal continue.
40:14 "Once the gang of Gotti learned that Bilotti was going to join the circle of the leaders,
40:18 they understood that they would have to be killed or be killed."
40:22 Gotti wants to get rid of Castellano,
40:25 but he needs the approval of the other members of the commission.
40:28 "If you want to shoot a big boss, you need an authorization,
40:31 otherwise you're next."
40:33 Gotti goes to the field.
40:35 It seems that only the Genoese family, long-time friend of Castellano,
40:39 is willing to give up their position.
40:43 The decision is made by Gotti to kill Castellano.
40:45 He will kill Castellano.
40:48 Gotti and Angelo Ruggiero recruit members within the Gambino family
40:53 to assassinate Castellano.
40:56 A soldier named Sammy "The Bull" Gravano
40:59 agrees to participate with the help of several other men.
41:03 On December 16, 1985,
41:07 Castellano must find the murderer of the gang of the gang of the Gambino family.
41:12 At 5 p.m., the traffic is very dense in the streets of Manhattan,
41:15 near the chic restaurant where the father has an appointment.
41:18 "It was Christmas, the streets were crowded,
41:23 the hotels were all full.
41:25 It's always a busy time."
41:28 At 5 p.m., Gotti and his men are in position.
41:32 Four shooters are placed near the entrance of the restaurant.
41:35 "Two shooters, one shooter,
41:40 two shooters on the opposite side of the street."
41:42 To be sure,
41:45 one shooter is at the end of the street,
41:48 and another not far from the restaurant.
41:51 Gotti and Gravano communicate with them through talkies.
41:54 "John Gotti and Sammy Gravano
41:57 were waiting in a car parked on the other side of the 3rd Avenue.
42:00 On the sidewalk next to the restaurant,
42:03 they were waiting for the police.
42:07 They were waiting for the police."
42:10 At 5.30 p.m., Tommy Bilotti parks his car in front of the restaurant.
42:14 Big Paul is sitting on the passenger seat.
42:17 While Paul opens his door,
42:20 four men in a raincoat approach the car.
42:23 Two of the shooters open fire on Paul Castellano
42:27 and shoot him in the head and in the chest.
42:31 The other two shoot him in the head and in the chest.
42:36 The other two kill Bilotti.
42:38 Passers-by start to scream and scatter.
42:43 Castellano's head is in the doorway.
42:47 Tommy Bilotti's body lies in a pool of blood.
42:52 The shooters flee through the crowd.
42:56 "Gotti and Gravano got out of the car
43:03 and stopped near Bilotti's body
43:06 to make sure that the two men were dead."
43:10 Paul Castellano is declared dead on the spot,
43:14 victim of the type of execution he has so often ordered before.
43:18 After the murder, Gotti becomes the godfather of the Gambinos.
43:25 But his reign will be burdened with problems with justice.
43:30 After years of judicial proceedings, in 1992,
43:33 the "Don Anteflon", as he was nicknamed,
43:36 will be accused of several murders, including Castellano's.
43:39 He will be sentenced to life in prison.
43:42 "Gotti was sent to a high security prison
43:45 where he was locked up 23 hours a day.
43:49 The fact that he is John Gotti means nothing there."
43:53 He will die of cancer 10 years later.
43:57 Immediately after Castellano's death,
43:59 his mistress, Gloria Olarte, returns to live in Colombia.
44:03 His wife, Nina, moves back to the White House.
44:07 She shares the house with her daughter, Connie,
44:10 until 1992, when she sells the house for 5 million dollars.
44:14 Although the Gambino family still exists today,
44:19 Paul Castellano's fall will mark the end of a prosperous era.
44:24 He will have managed his family as skillfully as a Wall Street businessman,
44:27 but he will never have managed to get himself in the shoes of a street gangster,
44:30 which will lead to his loss.
44:33 "We will remember Castellano as the guy who forgot where he came from,
44:39 who forgot he was a gangster."
44:42 "In the history of the Mafia,
44:46 we will remember Paul Castellano as an imperfect boss
44:51 who learned from the greatest organized crime leaders,
44:54 but who somehow didn't get it."
44:58 [Music]