Joseph DeFede
Encyclopedia
Joseph "Little Joe" DeFede (born 1934) is a New York City mobster and former acting boss of the Lucchese crime family
who eventually turned informant.
borough of New York City. In his early days, he operated a hot dog vendor truck in Coney Island, Brooklyn, running numbers rackets
on the side. A close friend and handball
partner of Lucchese leader Vittorio "Vic" Amuso
, DeFede was inducted into the family in 1986 after Amuso became boss. DeFede's rise and fall in the New York mob can all be attributed to Amuso. DeFede drove a Cadillac
and owned three race horses that he stabled at Aqueduct Racetrack
in Queens. DeFede was married twice, and is currently wed to his second wife Nancy who entered the Witness Protection Program with him. The couple receive an annual income of $30,000 a year from Nancy's pension and a modest annuity provided by the U.S. Marshals Service.
, who had become a government witness. Amuso chose DeFede because he needed a weaker and more controllable man at the top.
On April 28, 1998, DeFede was indicted on nine counts of racketeering stemming from his supervision of the family rackets in New York's Garment District
from 1991 to 1996. The prosecution reported that the Lucchese family had been grossing $40,000 per month from Garment District businesses since the mid-1980s. In December 1998, DeFede pleaded guilty to the charges and received five years in prison. He was released in 2002.
, head of the family's powerful Bronx faction. Once Crea took over, family profits rose enormously. That was enough to convince Amuso that DeFede had been skimming profits; Amuso reportedly decided to have him murdered.
On February 5, 2002, DeFede was released from a Lexington, Kentucky
prison medical center. Having heard of Amuso's plans to kill him, DeFede immediately became a government informant. DeFede explained the Garment District rackets and the protection rackets in Howard Beach, Queens
. He also provided information leading to the convictions of Crea, Louis Daidone
, Dominic Truscello, Joseph Tangorra, Anthony Baratta
, and a number of family captains, soldiers and associates. While testifying against Gambino crime family
boss Peter Gotti
, DeFede exclaimed that all he made during his reign as acting boss was $1,014,000, or approximately $250,000 per year. DeFede also estimated that a low ranking family soldier would make on average $50,000 per year.
DeFede entered and left the federal Witness Protection Program. He now lives in Florida under an assumed name. He and his wife reportedly live on $30,000 a year, their assets having been depleted by legal bills and the cost of creating new identities.
Lucchese crime family
The Lucchese crime family is one of the "Five Families" that dominates organized crime activities in New York City, United States, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the Mafia . The family originated in the early 1920s with Gaetano "Tommy" Reina serving as boss up until his murder...
who eventually turned informant.
Early years
Born in 1934, DeFede grew up in the QueensQueens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....
borough of New York City. In his early days, he operated a hot dog vendor truck in Coney Island, Brooklyn, running numbers rackets
Numbers game
Numbers game, also known as a numbers racket, policy racket or Italian lottery, is an illegal lottery played mostly in poor neighborhoods in the United States, wherein a bettor attempts to pick three digits to match those that will be randomly drawn the following day...
on the side. A close friend and handball
American handball
American handball is a sport in which players hit a small rubber ball against a wall using their hands.- History :...
partner of Lucchese leader Vittorio "Vic" Amuso
Victor Amuso
Vittorio "Little Vic" Amuso is a New York mobster and, as of 2011, the reputed Boss of the Lucchese crime family. Amuso is currently serving life at the Federal Correctional Complex in Beaumont, Texas on murder and racketeering charges....
, DeFede was inducted into the family in 1986 after Amuso became boss. DeFede's rise and fall in the New York mob can all be attributed to Amuso. DeFede drove a Cadillac
Cadillac
Cadillac is an American luxury vehicle marque owned by General Motors . Cadillac vehicles are sold in over 50 countries and territories, but mostly in North America. Cadillac is currently the second oldest American automobile manufacturer behind fellow GM marque Buick and is among the oldest...
and owned three race horses that he stabled at Aqueduct Racetrack
Aqueduct Racetrack
Aqueduct Racetrack is a thoroughbred horse-racing facility and racino in Ozone Park, Queens, New York. Its racing meets usually are from late October/early November through April.-History:...
in Queens. DeFede was married twice, and is currently wed to his second wife Nancy who entered the Witness Protection Program with him. The couple receive an annual income of $30,000 a year from Nancy's pension and a modest annuity provided by the U.S. Marshals Service.
Acting Boss
In 1994, Amuso was convicted of federal racketeering and murder charges and sent to prison for life. Amuso then named DeFede his acting boss to replace Alphonse D'ArcoAlphonse D'Arco
Alphonse "Little Al" D'Arco , also known as "The Professor", is a New York mobster who became the acting boss of Lucchese crime family. He was the first boss, acting or otherwise, of a New York crime family to become a government witness....
, who had become a government witness. Amuso chose DeFede because he needed a weaker and more controllable man at the top.
On April 28, 1998, DeFede was indicted on nine counts of racketeering stemming from his supervision of the family rackets in New York's Garment District
Garment District, Manhattan
The Garment District, also known as the Garment Center, the Fashion District, or the Fashion Center, is a neighborhood located in the Manhattan borough of New York City. The dense concentration of fashion-related uses give the neighborhood, which is generally considered to span between Fifth Avenue...
from 1991 to 1996. The prosecution reported that the Lucchese family had been grossing $40,000 per month from Garment District businesses since the mid-1980s. In December 1998, DeFede pleaded guilty to the charges and received five years in prison. He was released in 2002.
Informant
During the late 90's, Amuso's relationship with DeFede began to sour. Suspecting that DeFede was hiding money from the family, Amuso replaced him as acting boss with Steven CreaSteven Crea
Steven L. Crea , also known as "Wonderboy", or "Herbie", is a New York mobster heavily involved in labor racketeering who eventually became the acting boss of the Lucchese crime family.-Rise to power:...
, head of the family's powerful Bronx faction. Once Crea took over, family profits rose enormously. That was enough to convince Amuso that DeFede had been skimming profits; Amuso reportedly decided to have him murdered.
On February 5, 2002, DeFede was released from a Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...
prison medical center. Having heard of Amuso's plans to kill him, DeFede immediately became a government informant. DeFede explained the Garment District rackets and the protection rackets in Howard Beach, Queens
Howard Beach, Queens
Howard Beach is a suburban neighborhood in the southwestern portion of the borough of Queens in New York City. It is bordered in the north by the Belt Parkway and South Conduit Avenue in Ozone Park, the south by Jamaica Bay in Broad Channel, the east by 102nd-104th streets, and the west by 78th...
. He also provided information leading to the convictions of Crea, Louis Daidone
Louis Daidone
Louis "Louie Bagels" Daidone is a New York mobster and former acting boss of the Lucchese crime family.-Sidewalk soldier:...
, Dominic Truscello, Joseph Tangorra, Anthony Baratta
Anthony Baratta
Anthony "Bowat" Baratta is a New York City mobster and former capo in the Lucchese crime family.-Capo of the "Harlem Crew":In 1978, Baratta became a made man in the Lucchese crime family operating under the family's Bronx faction...
, and a number of family captains, soldiers and associates. While testifying against Gambino crime family
Gambino crime family
The Gambino crime family is one of the "Five Families" that dominates organized crime activities in New York City, United States, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the Mafia . The group is named after Carlo Gambino, boss of the family at the time of the McClellan hearings in 1963...
boss Peter Gotti
Peter Gotti
Peter Gotti, also known as "One Eyed Pete", "Petey Boy", "One Eye" , is a New York mobster who is the former boss of the Gambino crime family and the older brother of deceased Gambino boss John Gotti.-Background:...
, DeFede exclaimed that all he made during his reign as acting boss was $1,014,000, or approximately $250,000 per year. DeFede also estimated that a low ranking family soldier would make on average $50,000 per year.
DeFede entered and left the federal Witness Protection Program. He now lives in Florida under an assumed name. He and his wife reportedly live on $30,000 a year, their assets having been depleted by legal bills and the cost of creating new identities.
Further reading
- Capeci, Jerry. The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Mafia. Indianapolis: Alpha Books, 2002. ISBN 0-02-864225-2
- Fitch, Robert. Solidarity For Sale: How Corruption Destroyed the Labor Movement and Undermined America's Promise. New York: PublicAffairs, 2006. ISBN 1-891620-72-X
- Jacobs, James B., Coleen Friel and Robert Radick. Gotham Unbound: How New York City Was Liberated from the Grip of Organized Crime. New York: NYU Press, 2001. ISBN 0-8147-4247-5
- Milhorn, H. Thomas. Crime: Computer Viruses to Twin Towers. Boca Raton, Florida: Universal Publishers, 2005. ISBN 1-58112-489-9
External links
- New York Times: Ex-Crime Boss Testifies In Gotti Trial by William Glaberson
- New York Times: Former Crime Boss Testifies by Benjamin Weiser
- New York Times: Guilty Plea In Mafia Case by Benjamin Weiser
- New York Times: Reputed Crime Boss Enters a Guilty Plea
- New York Times: After Mob, Joe DeFede, Ex-Crime Boss, Is Scraping By