Vincent Palermo
Encyclopedia
Vincent "Vinny Ocean" Palermo (born 1944) is a former de facto
boss of the New Jersey
DeCavalcante crime family
who eventually became a government witness
. Fictional mob boss Tony Soprano
is said to be loosely based on Palermo.
In the 1980s he became indebted to a hospital, local doctors and the federal government. The tax liens against his property, which were in his second wife's name, an Italian-American woman named Angela, totalled $68,000. At the time he was paying a large mortgage on a waterfront mansion located in Island Park, Long Island (the mansion had a 100-foot pier). He had two social security numbers and paid alimony to his first wife. He also supports his second family, two daughters, Danielle and Tara, and a son Vincent Palermo Jr., with Michael (from his first marriage) and Renee. His son Michael is a graduate of Fordham University
and a licensed New York stock broker and was an investment banker with Goldman Sachs up until his father's indictment when he went into hiding. Vincent has five sisters, including Claire and Nancy, and one brother. He was raised old-school Italian in Brooklyn. His father was an Italian immigrant who arrived to New York when he was a teenager. Vincent came from a close knit family and was said to have lived a harmonious lifestyle. Vincent was an altar boy during adolescence. When Vincent was sixteen his father died which forced him to leave school and work two jobs to help support his family because his mother was a bedridden asthmatic. He was very protective of children having once stopped a man from beating his son and rescuing a toddler relative who had accidentally fallen into a pool. He attended Sacred Heart Church
in Island Park and watched Annie
with one of his daughters regularly. Vincent drove his daughters to Brownie's meetings. He took in a troubled teenager named Richard and became his godfather
, and let him stay in his home every weekend for a year while Richard studied the Catholic sacraments and prepared to be baptized and receive his first Communion and confirmation.
. DeCavalcante took a liking to his son-in-law and began inviting him to visit his social club in Kenilworth, New Jersey
. He worked at the fish markets in the early morning hours and hung out with mobsters on Sunday afternoons.
Vincent cultivated relationships with others families—a lucrative loan sharking operation with a Gambino capo and bookmaking with another. He was also a close associate of the Genovese crime family
. Vincent up until his racketeering indictment had only been arrested for the misdemeanour of stealing shrimp down at the Fulton Fish Market
. He was known to say very little, speaking to only a very few close associates, and stayed away from mob-run social clubs.
and James "Jimmy" Gallo on the orders from DeCavalcante boss Giovanni "John the Eagle" Riggi
through caporegime Anthony Rotondo
. A former journalist for the Staten Island Advance
newspaper and real-estate developer, Weiss became associated with mobsters from both the DeCavalcante family and the New York Gambino crime family.
Weiss and two mob partners had purchased a vacant property in Staten Island and started illegally dumping large amounts of dangerous medical waste
there. When local authorities uncovered the scheme and started investigating Weiss, the two mob families became nervous. Gambino boss John Gotti
worried that Weiss might become a government witness in exchange for leniency; Gotti requested that the DeCavalcante family murder Weiss to protect them. In the morning of Monday, September 11, 1989, Palermo, Capo and Gallo drove to the New York condominium of Weiss' girlfriend. As Weiss left the building and climbed into his car, Palermo and Capo murdered Weiss by shooting him in the face.
and given his own crew of soldiers. When Riggi was sent to prison in 1989, he appointed John "Johnny Boy" D'Amato
as his acting boss. However, in 1992 D'Amato's disgruntled girlfriend alleged that he was bisexual, and that D'Amato would take her to so-called "swingers
" parties and engage in homosexual activity with other men. To avoid embarrassment to the DeCavalcante family, especially among the New York crime families
, Riggi ordered Palermo and Anthony Capo
to murder D'Amato. It was decided that he was an embarrassment to the family and therefore he had to go to make sure nobody from the New York families found out. In early 1992, D'Amato disappeared and his body was never found; it was rumored that D'Amato was shot and killed in his car.
Following D'Amato's disappearance, Giacomo "Jake" Amari
became the new acting boss for Riggi. He ran the family until his death from cancer
in 1997.
(no relation to Vincent) to the panel. One individual chosen for the panel, Charles Majuri, was furious that he wasn't appointed acting boss. Majuri decided to murder the two Palermos and take effective control of the DeCavalcante family. Majuri asked Jimmy Gallo to murder Vincent, but Gallo instead told Vincent about the plot.
To protect himself, Vincent decided to murder Majuri instead. Over the years, Majuri had made many enemies by removing fellow mobsters from a union he controlled and taking their money. Vincent was able to recruit DeCavalcante members Joseph Masella, Anthony Capo
, and James Gallo to find Majuri and murder him. However, on the one occasion when they were ready to kill Majuri, they became nervous and decided not to do it. When they reported their failure back to Vincent, he decided that Majuri didn't pose a threat after all and cancelled the murder contract.
(FBI) recruited a mob informant who devastated the DeCavalcante family. This informant was DeCavalcante associate Ralph Guarino
, who had been arrested for robbing an armored truck
carrying $1.6 million to the New York World Trade Center
. To avoid 20 years in prison, Guarino agreed to work undercover for the FBI. Guarino soon started informing on the actions of DeCavalcante members to the FBI. The agency gave him cell phones rigged with surveillance equipment to distribute to other family members. In October 1998, Vincent's trusted lieutenant, Joseph Masella, was shot to death, leaving an opening in the family. Due to secret assistance from the FBI, Guarino's status had been rising in the family. After Masella's murder, Vincent and the rest of the DeCavalcante leadership promoted Guarino to made man.
In 1999, the FBI finally moved in on the DeCavalcante family. Vincent had recently proposed to murder mobster Frank D'Amato and Guarino successfully recorded the conversation. On December 2, the FBI arrested Vincent and 39 other members of the family. Vincent was charged with the attempted murders of Frank D'Amato and Majuri and many other offenses. Hitman Capo also implicated Palermo in the 1989 Weiss killing.
and to planning the murders of John D'Amato
, Joseph Masella, Charles Majuri, Frank D'Amato and Tom Salvata, the manager at his strip club. Palermo also implicated other DeCavalcante family members in various crimes.
After testifying for the government, Vincent Palermo and his family entered the federal Witness Protection Program. However, prosecutors later discovered that Vincent allegedly gave his son Michael Palermo $1 million in cash, possibly jeopardizing his status as a protected witness.
exposed Vinny Ocean's new life in Witness Protection as a strip club operator in Houston, Texas.
Palermo had grown a Van Dyke beard
and the paper ran photos of him. He has been living under the name "Vincent Cabella". Palermo's new strip clubs are called "The Penthouse Club" and the "All Stars Mens Club" and Houston Police say they are a source of drug dealing and prostitution in the Houston area. Palermo claims that many of his Houston friends already know who he is because he was featured in an A&E
television special. He lives in a multi-million dollar gated mansion at 9105 Memorial Drive, Houston, TX 77024.
Palermo's son, Vincent Jr, is said to be involved in the day-to-day running of the strip clubs. Local Houston television station KPRC broadcast an expose on Vinny Ocean on September 15, 2009.
Just 40 days later, Palermo put his Houston mansion up for sale, first for $4 million, but then over the following two years he reduced the price to $2.45 million but it still would not sell so he took it off the market on 3 June 2011. He originally bought the mansion for $895,000 in the early part of the decade.
De facto
De facto is a Latin expression that means "concerning fact." In law, it often means "in practice but not necessarily ordained by law" or "in practice or actuality, but not officially established." It is commonly used in contrast to de jure when referring to matters of law, governance, or...
boss of the New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
DeCavalcante crime family
DeCavalcante crime family
The DeCavalcante crime family is an organized crime family that controls organized crime activities in Elizabeth, New Jersey and surrounding areas in the state, despite operating on the other side of the Hudson River in New York, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the American Mafia...
who eventually became a government witness
Witness
A witness is someone who has firsthand knowledge about an event, or in the criminal justice systems usually a crime, through his or her senses and can help certify important considerations about the crime or event. A witness who has seen the event first hand is known as an eyewitness...
. Fictional mob boss Tony Soprano
Tony Soprano
Anthony John "Tony" Soprano, Sr. is an Italian-American fictional character and the protagonist on the HBO television drama series The Sopranos, on which he is portrayed by James Gandolfini. The character was conceived by The Sopranos creator and show runner David Chase, who was also largely...
is said to be loosely based on Palermo.
Background
Vincent Palermo was divorced once and remarried. In his earlier years he owned and operated a successful wholesale fish business in the Fulton Fish Market, where he earned the nickname "Vinny Ocean".In the 1980s he became indebted to a hospital, local doctors and the federal government. The tax liens against his property, which were in his second wife's name, an Italian-American woman named Angela, totalled $68,000. At the time he was paying a large mortgage on a waterfront mansion located in Island Park, Long Island (the mansion had a 100-foot pier). He had two social security numbers and paid alimony to his first wife. He also supports his second family, two daughters, Danielle and Tara, and a son Vincent Palermo Jr., with Michael (from his first marriage) and Renee. His son Michael is a graduate of Fordham University
Fordham University
Fordham University is a private, nonprofit, coeducational research university in the United States, with three campuses in and around New York City. It was founded by the Roman Catholic Diocese of New York in 1841 as St...
and a licensed New York stock broker and was an investment banker with Goldman Sachs up until his father's indictment when he went into hiding. Vincent has five sisters, including Claire and Nancy, and one brother. He was raised old-school Italian in Brooklyn. His father was an Italian immigrant who arrived to New York when he was a teenager. Vincent came from a close knit family and was said to have lived a harmonious lifestyle. Vincent was an altar boy during adolescence. When Vincent was sixteen his father died which forced him to leave school and work two jobs to help support his family because his mother was a bedridden asthmatic. He was very protective of children having once stopped a man from beating his son and rescuing a toddler relative who had accidentally fallen into a pool. He attended Sacred Heart Church
Sacred Heart church
-India:* Sacred Heart Malankara Catholic Church, Mylapra, also known as Sacred Heart Church, in Kerala, India* Sacred Heart Church, Puducherry * Sacred Heart Forane Church Thiruvambady,Kozhikode,Kerala-Indonesia:...
in Island Park and watched Annie
Annie (film)
Annie is a 1982 American musical film directed by John Huston and choreographed by Arlene Phillips. The film is an adaption of the 1977 stage musical of the same name, which in turn was based on the 1924 Little Orphan Annie comic strip by Harold Gray. The movie features music by Charles Strouse,...
with one of his daughters regularly. Vincent drove his daughters to Brownie's meetings. He took in a troubled teenager named Richard and became his godfather
Godparent
A godparent, in many denominations of Christianity, is someone who sponsors a child's baptism. A male godparent is a godfather, and a female godparent is a godmother...
, and let him stay in his home every weekend for a year while Richard studied the Catholic sacraments and prepared to be baptized and receive his first Communion and confirmation.
DeCavalcante's son-in-law
In the early 1960s he met and married the niece of Sam DeCavalcanteSam DeCavalcante
Simone Rizzo "Sam" DeCavalcante , known as "Sam the Plumber", was a member of the New Jersey Mafia. Claiming descent from the Italian royal family, DeCavalcante was nicknamed "The Count"...
. DeCavalcante took a liking to his son-in-law and began inviting him to visit his social club in Kenilworth, New Jersey
Kenilworth, New Jersey
Kenilworth is a Borough in Union County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 7,914.Kenilworth was incorporated as a borough by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on May 13, 1907, from portions of Cranford and Union Township, based on the...
. He worked at the fish markets in the early morning hours and hung out with mobsters on Sunday afternoons.
Vincent cultivated relationships with others families—a lucrative loan sharking operation with a Gambino capo and bookmaking with another. He was also a close associate of the Genovese crime family
Genovese crime family
The Genovese 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 Genovese crime family has been nicknamed the "Ivy League" and "Rolls Royce" of organized crime...
. Vincent up until his racketeering indictment had only been arrested for the misdemeanour of stealing shrimp down at the Fulton Fish Market
Fulton Fish Market
The Fulton Fish Market is a fish market in The Bronx, New York, United States. It was originally a wing of the Fulton Market, established in 1822 to sell a variety of foodstuffs and produce...
. He was known to say very little, speaking to only a very few close associates, and stayed away from mob-run social clubs.
Murder of Fred Weiss
In 1989, Palermo murdered Staten Island, New York resident Fred Weiss along with Anthony CapoAnthony Capo
Anthony "Tony" Capo is a hitman in the DeCavalcante crime family who became a government witness.- Made Man :A resident of South Beach, Staten Island, Capo became an associate of the DeCavalcante crime family during the early 1980s under powerful Elizabeth, New Jersey faction leader Giovanni...
and James "Jimmy" Gallo on the orders from DeCavalcante boss Giovanni "John the Eagle" Riggi
Giovanni Riggi
Giovanni "John the Eagle" Riggi is a New Jersey mobster and member of the DeCavalcante crime family since the 1940s, before the family had acquired its name. Riggi was the leader of the "Elizabeth crew" in the family when he was a Caporegime. He had been the acting boss during the 1970s and has...
through caporegime Anthony Rotondo
Anthony Rotondo
Anthony Rotondo is a former capo in the DeCavalcante family of New Jersey and police informant.- Early life :Anthony Rotondo lived with his father Vincent "Jimmy the Gent" Rotondo, and his father expressed wishes for his son to become a lawyer. Rotondo graduated from the Nazareth High School, and...
. A former journalist for the Staten Island Advance
Staten Island Advance
The Staten Island Advance is a daily newspaper published in the borough of Staten Island in New York City. The only daily newspaper published in the borough, and the only borough to have its own major daily paper, it covers news of local and community interest, including borough politics. As of...
newspaper and real-estate developer, Weiss became associated with mobsters from both the DeCavalcante family and the New York Gambino crime family.
Weiss and two mob partners had purchased a vacant property in Staten Island and started illegally dumping large amounts of dangerous medical waste
Medical waste
Medical waste, also known as clinical waste, normally refers to waste products that cannot be considered general waste, produced from healthcare premises, such as hospitals, clinics, doctors offices, veterinary hospitals and labs.-Europe:...
there. When local authorities uncovered the scheme and started investigating Weiss, the two mob families became nervous. Gambino boss John Gotti
John Gotti
John Joseph Gotti, Jr was an American mobster who became the Boss of the Gambino crime family in New York City. Gotti grew up in poverty. He and his brothers turned to a life of crime at an early age...
worried that Weiss might become a government witness in exchange for leniency; Gotti requested that the DeCavalcante family murder Weiss to protect them. In the morning of Monday, September 11, 1989, Palermo, Capo and Gallo drove to the New York condominium of Weiss' girlfriend. As Weiss left the building and climbed into his car, Palermo and Capo murdered Weiss by shooting him in the face.
Family scandal
Some time after the Weiss murder, Palermo was appointed caporegimeCaporegime
A caporegime or capodecina, usually shortened to just a capo, is a term used in the Mafia for a high ranking made member of a crime family who heads a "crew" of soldiers and has major social status and influence in the organization...
and given his own crew of soldiers. When Riggi was sent to prison in 1989, he appointed John "Johnny Boy" D'Amato
John D'Amato
John "Johnny Boy" D'Amato was a New Jersey mobster and former Acting boss of the DeCavalcante crime family. After being recruited by Gambino crime family Boss John Gotti to take over the family, and amidst rumors that he was homosexual, D'Amato was murdered in January 1992.- Captain :After being...
as his acting boss. However, in 1992 D'Amato's disgruntled girlfriend alleged that he was bisexual, and that D'Amato would take her to so-called "swingers
Swinging
Swinging or partner swapping is a non-monogamous behavior, in which both partners in a committed relationship agree, as a couple, for both partners to engage in sexual activities with other couples as a recreational or social activity...
" parties and engage in homosexual activity with other men. To avoid embarrassment to the DeCavalcante family, especially among the New York crime families
Five Families
The Five Families are the five original Italian-American Mafia crime families which have dominated organized crime in America since 1931. The Five Families in New York remain as the powerhouse of the Italian Mafia in the United States.-History:...
, Riggi ordered Palermo and Anthony Capo
Anthony Capo
Anthony "Tony" Capo is a hitman in the DeCavalcante crime family who became a government witness.- Made Man :A resident of South Beach, Staten Island, Capo became an associate of the DeCavalcante crime family during the early 1980s under powerful Elizabeth, New Jersey faction leader Giovanni...
to murder D'Amato. It was decided that he was an embarrassment to the family and therefore he had to go to make sure nobody from the New York families found out. In early 1992, D'Amato disappeared and his body was never found; it was rumored that D'Amato was shot and killed in his car.
Following D'Amato's disappearance, Giacomo "Jake" Amari
Giacomo Amari
Giacomo "Jake" Amari was the powerful Underboss and later Acting Boss of the DeCavalcante crime family.- Background :According to the testimony provided by Vincent "Vinny Ocean" Palermo, the later Acting Boss of the DeCavalcante crime family, Amari was a prominent and ruthless captain before being...
became the new acting boss for Riggi. He ran the family until his death from cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
in 1997.
Power struggle
With Amari's death, there was no clear candidate to become the new acting boss. To avoid potential fighting for power, boss Riggi, still in prison, restructured the family and created a ruling panel to run it. Riggi appointed long time family members Vincent Palermo and Girolamo "Jimmy" PalermoGirolamo Palermo
Girolamo "Jimmy Dumps" Palermo is the longtime underboss of the DeCavalcante crime family in Elizabeth, New Jersey, under the imprisoned boss Giovanni "John the Eagle" Riggi.-Murdering Al Colicchio:...
(no relation to Vincent) to the panel. One individual chosen for the panel, Charles Majuri, was furious that he wasn't appointed acting boss. Majuri decided to murder the two Palermos and take effective control of the DeCavalcante family. Majuri asked Jimmy Gallo to murder Vincent, but Gallo instead told Vincent about the plot.
To protect himself, Vincent decided to murder Majuri instead. Over the years, Majuri had made many enemies by removing fellow mobsters from a union he controlled and taking their money. Vincent was able to recruit DeCavalcante members Joseph Masella, Anthony Capo
Anthony Capo
Anthony "Tony" Capo is a hitman in the DeCavalcante crime family who became a government witness.- Made Man :A resident of South Beach, Staten Island, Capo became an associate of the DeCavalcante crime family during the early 1980s under powerful Elizabeth, New Jersey faction leader Giovanni...
, and James Gallo to find Majuri and murder him. However, on the one occasion when they were ready to kill Majuri, they became nervous and decided not to do it. When they reported their failure back to Vincent, he decided that Majuri didn't pose a threat after all and cancelled the murder contract.
FBI informant
In 1998, the Federal Bureau of InvestigationFederal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
(FBI) recruited a mob informant who devastated the DeCavalcante family. This informant was DeCavalcante associate Ralph Guarino
Ralph Guarino
Ralphie Guarino was an FBI informant and a former associate of the Decavalcante Crime Family, the New-Jersey based crime family that is sometimes considered to be the inspiration for The Sopranos...
, who had been arrested for robbing an armored truck
Armored car (valuables)
A common meaning of armored car is as an armored van or truck, used in transporting valuables, such as large quantities of money . The armored car is a multifunctional vehicle designed to protect and ensure the well being of the transported individuals and/or contents...
carrying $1.6 million to the New York World Trade Center
World Trade Center
The original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...
. To avoid 20 years in prison, Guarino agreed to work undercover for the FBI. Guarino soon started informing on the actions of DeCavalcante members to the FBI. The agency gave him cell phones rigged with surveillance equipment to distribute to other family members. In October 1998, Vincent's trusted lieutenant, Joseph Masella, was shot to death, leaving an opening in the family. Due to secret assistance from the FBI, Guarino's status had been rising in the family. After Masella's murder, Vincent and the rest of the DeCavalcante leadership promoted Guarino to made man.
In 1999, the FBI finally moved in on the DeCavalcante family. Vincent had recently proposed to murder mobster Frank D'Amato and Guarino successfully recorded the conversation. On December 2, the FBI arrested Vincent and 39 other members of the family. Vincent was charged with the attempted murders of Frank D'Amato and Majuri and many other offenses. Hitman Capo also implicated Palermo in the 1989 Weiss killing.
Government witness
Facing serious charges and possible capital offenses, Vinny decided to become a government witness. He confessed to killing Weiss and mobster Louis LaRassoLouis LaRasso
Louis "Fat Lou" LaRasso was a New Jersey mobster and the longtime official Underboss of the DeCavalcante crime family.- Apalachin meeting :...
and to planning the murders of John D'Amato
John D'Amato
John "Johnny Boy" D'Amato was a New Jersey mobster and former Acting boss of the DeCavalcante crime family. After being recruited by Gambino crime family Boss John Gotti to take over the family, and amidst rumors that he was homosexual, D'Amato was murdered in January 1992.- Captain :After being...
, Joseph Masella, Charles Majuri, Frank D'Amato and Tom Salvata, the manager at his strip club. Palermo also implicated other DeCavalcante family members in various crimes.
After testifying for the government, Vincent Palermo and his family entered the federal Witness Protection Program. However, prosecutors later discovered that Vincent allegedly gave his son Michael Palermo $1 million in cash, possibly jeopardizing his status as a protected witness.
New life as strip club owner in Houston, Texas
On September 14, 2009, the New York Daily NewsNew York Daily News
The Daily News of New York City is the fourth most widely circulated daily newspaper in the United States with a daily circulation of 605,677, as of November 1, 2011....
exposed Vinny Ocean's new life in Witness Protection as a strip club operator in Houston, Texas.
Palermo had grown a Van Dyke beard
Van dyke beard
A Van Dyke is a style of facial hair named after 17th century Flemish painter Anthony van Dyck. A Van Dyke specifically consists of any growth of both a moustache and goatee with all hair on the cheeks shaven...
and the paper ran photos of him. He has been living under the name "Vincent Cabella". Palermo's new strip clubs are called "The Penthouse Club" and the "All Stars Mens Club" and Houston Police say they are a source of drug dealing and prostitution in the Houston area. Palermo claims that many of his Houston friends already know who he is because he was featured in an A&E
A&E Network
The A&E Network is a United States-based cable and satellite television network with headquarters in New York City and offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, London, Los Angeles and Stamford. A&E also airs in Canada and Latin America. Initially named the Arts & Entertainment Network, A&E launched...
television special. He lives in a multi-million dollar gated mansion at 9105 Memorial Drive, Houston, TX 77024.
Palermo's son, Vincent Jr, is said to be involved in the day-to-day running of the strip clubs. Local Houston television station KPRC broadcast an expose on Vinny Ocean on September 15, 2009.
Just 40 days later, Palermo put his Houston mansion up for sale, first for $4 million, but then over the following two years he reduced the price to $2.45 million but it still would not sell so he took it off the market on 3 June 2011. He originally bought the mansion for $895,000 in the early part of the decade.
External links
- American Mafia.com The 'Sopranos' Trial Part Three: Reversal of Fortune for Mob Canary by James Ridgway de Szigethy
- American Mafia.com: New Jersey by Devin McDonald