30 Most Infamous Mob Hits

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’ll be discussing the gangland slayings that became grisly public reminders of organized crime’s legendary lethality.

Giuseppe Morello

Even bosses and dons aren’t immune to being cut down at the heights of their power. Giuseppe Morello was one of the earliest mob bosses, having founded a New York gang that eventually grew into what’s now known as the Genovese Crime Family. It would be the Castellammarese War that ended Morello’s life as a gangster in 1930, during which he served as an advisor, or consigliere, to Genovese boss Giuseppe Masseria. Morello was working together with an associate by the name of Joe Perriano, when he was gunned down. Some sources claim that Charles “Lucky” Luciano was responsible, while others claim it was a soldier from Chicago.

Charles Gioe

Don’t stick your nose where it doesn’t belong. Charles Gioe learned this lesson the hard way on August 18th, 1954, when he was slain by gunmen loyal to Chicago’s Joey Glimco. Gioe wasn’t an enforcer or known tough guy, preferring instead to work with extortion and blackmail rackets. Still, his success on this front didn’t make Gioe immune to making enemies, such as when this mob associate accidentally became involved in a mob-backed construction argument. Glimco’s people were going back-and-forth with a contractor tasked with building a new Howard Johnson’s restaurant. Charles Gioe just got caught in the proverbial crossfire.

William Bentvena

Things should’ve been looking up for William Bentvena after he was released from a prison sentence in 1970. Organized crime does reward those who keep quiet and don’t rat, after all. Yet, it was during a “welcome home” party for Bentvena where this drug smuggler said the wrong thing to the wrong guy. A joke about shining shoes delivered by Bentvena to the hot-headed Tommy DeSimone proved to be the former’s undoing. DeSimone and some associates beat Bentvena to death, and reportedly buried him at a friend’s local dog kennel. This was an unsanctioned hit, and DeSimone eventually disappeared, with some seeing the Bentvena slaying as the cause.

Fred Weiss

It was a slaying that made the papers, and one that DeCavalcante Crime Family associate Giovanni Riggi admitted to ordering back in 1989. The target was Fred Weiss, a newspaper man who had become mob-connected via his real estate development firm. Weiss’ firm was allegedly dumping medical waste illegally, and they were soon caught by authorities. The DeCavalcante Family hit was reportedly a favor to Gambino boss John Gotti, who felt that Weiss was going to cooperate with the police. Two gunmen shot Weiss outside of his girlfriend’s condo on Staten Island, silencing Fred Weiss for good.

Allen Dorfman

Our lives can lead us down some strange roads. Allen Dorfman was a World War II veteran who was present at the Battle of Iwo Jima. However, he was also a notorious associate to both the mob and Teamster president Jimmy Hoffa. Dorfman worked within the realms of organized labor and was convicted of embezzling funds from pension members. FBI agents bugged his offices, tapped his phones and were preparing for Dorfman’s sentencing when the latter was slain by mob gunmen in 1983. Nobody was convicted for the murder, and it remains unclear upon whose orders the hit was initiated.

Abe Reles

Remember the old saying: “if it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it probably is a duck?” The case of former Murder Inc. hit man Abe Reles is a little different. That’s because this tough and mean mobster actually turned tail and was due to testify against the Gambino Crime Family. Reles’ official cause of death is listed as defenestration, otherwise known as falling out a window. Reles was in police custody during the 1941 “accident,” and it’s since been alleged that these cops were on the take and pushed Reles to his death. However, a second theory claims that Reles was attempting to escape, although he’d previously shown no such desire to leave his room.

Nicholas Guido

They say that “everybody has a price.” We’re not sure if that’s one hundred percent true, but r NYPD detectives Stephen Caracappa and Louis Eppolito didn’t feel obligated to honor their shields and sold out to organized crime dollars. The city of New York paid out five million dollars to the family of one Nicholas Guido back in 2015, after it was discovered that Caracappa and Eppolito shot him on the orders of a rival mob boss. The hit took place back in 1986, with one glaringly tragic caveat: they shot the wrong Nicholas Guido. This was an innocent man who happened to share a name with the target that Caracappa and Eppolito uncovered, utilizing their police database.

Hymie Weiss

It’s the sort of “ripped from the headlines” situation that’s been dramatized over the course of countless gangster pictures and television shows. The death of North Side Gang leader Hymie Weiss was a bullet-riddled affair, a bloody Monday whereby Weiss was felled by a hidden submachine gun. It’s been alleged that Jack McGurn shot Weiss upon the orders of the latter’s rival, Al Capone. Still others claim that it was Capone’s bodyguard, Frank Nitti, who helped organize the hidden gunmen who fired at Weiss and his associates while occupying a nearby building.

Frank DeCicco

The assassinations perpetrated by organized crime can be carried out a number of ways. Car bombings tend to be common, particularly when it comes to crime families operating in Sicily. It was this method of hit that in 1986 finally felled Frank DeCicco, a feared underboss for the Gambino Crime Family. DeCicco was one of the men that helped carry out the infamous hit on Paul Castellano, but this brazen killing didn’t make the man invincible. Instead, DeCicco’s Buick Park Avenue became a fireball after soldiers on orders of the Lucchese Crime Family planted a device, and waited for it to do its fatal work.

Samuel “Mad Sam” DeStefano

The bloody legacy of “Mad Sam” DeStefano is one of the most disturbing from the world of old-school Chicago crime. This was a man that seemed to enjoy his work just a little too much, earning a reputation for torture, mental instability and even devil worship. DeStefano would eventually become known for these bouts of crazed and violent behavior: on the streets, at home and even in the courtroom. This recklessness earned DeStefano a death sentence in 1973, a shotgun assassination that was allegedly carried out by either Fat Freddy Sarno from Boston’s Winter Hill Gang or DeStefano’s own associate, Tony Spilotro.

The M&M Murders


There have been a number of infamous mob hits that received the dramatization treatment on the silver screen. The M&M Murders were one such hit, a gruesome scene that was showcased in director Martin Scorsese’s 1995 classic, “Casino.” The incident in question occurred in 1962, and was perpetrated by two of the mafia’s most easily-angered associates. Tony Spilotro and “Mad” Sam DeStefano eradicated two burglars, James Miraglia and William McCarthy, in truly gruesome fashion. They sought out McCarthy on the first night, torturing him to the point where he then gave up his partner, Miraglia. Spilotro and DeStefano then proceeded to finish the job.

Dino Bravo


The world of professional wrestling is full of larger-than-life characters. But sometimes, truth is stranger than fiction. This is particularly true when it comes to the story of Dino Bravo, a former superstar in the WWF that reportedly ran afoul of organized crime syndicates in his native Canada. Bravo, who was born Adolfo Bresciano in 1948, was allegedly involved with smuggling cigarettes, alongside his professional wrestling duties. The athlete’s situation was dramatized on the docuseries “Dark Side of the Ring,” where it was revealed that Bravo possessed some real reservations about his dangerous side hustle. These reservations were well founded, as Bravo was found dead of multiple gunshot wounds on March 10th, 1993.

Shondor Birns


Organized crime doesn’t take holidays off. Perhaps this explains why the well known Jewish-American gangster Shondor Birns was taken down on Easter’s Holy Saturday back in March 1975. Birns had been feuding with Irish-American mob boss Danny Greene. This feud had escalated to the point where Greene had actually survived an assassination attempt plotted by Birns. The latter, however, wasn’t so lucky. Birns was taken out by a car bomb, the explosion of which was described by police as being one of the strongest they’d ever witnessed. This was the result of the bomb being composed of C-4, a deadly, military-grade explosive.

Philip “The Chicken Man” Testa


Philip Testa’s moniker of “The Chicken Man” may sound silly, but there was nothing humorous about the manner in which he met his demise. “The Chicken Man,” known by this name due to his day job working with poultry, was allegedly whacked by members within his own circle. Testa was walking into his Philadelphia home when a homemade device known as a nail bomb went off. This is an explosive that shoots off deadly nail shrapnel into its target. Testa died on his front porch, but his killers would soon see retaliation for their crimes. Underboss Peter Casella was exiled, while capo Frank Narducci Sr. was shot down for his involvement in the “Chicken Man” hit.


Irving “Puggy” Feinstein


Don’t get too big for your britches. Irving “Puggy” Feinstein learned this the hard way when he ran afoul of the mob back in the late 1930s. Feinstein’s low-level gambling and racketeering operations allegedly hid desires for future expansion. This ambition did not sit well with others in the Organization. A hit was put on Puggy, and the sentence was carried out by the infamous enforcement outfit, Murder, Inc. Harry Strauss, Abe Reles and Martin Goldstein did the deed with an icepick, but Puggy wasn’t going down without a fight. The mobster fought tooth-and-nail with his attackers, literally taking a bite out of Strauss during the hit. Feinstein’s burned body would later be found abandoned in a vacant lot.

The Big Tuna Murders


Operation Family Secrets was an FBI investigation that uncovered the details of numerous murders that took place within the world of Chicago organized crime. A number of these deaths were the brazen-but-foolish burglars who decided to rob the home of crime boss Tony “Big Tuna” Accardo. This inside job was performed by associates within the mob, and it didn’t take long for Accardo to connect the dots. Soon, everyone involved with the burglary was found slain in gruesome fashion. Then, a number of the hired assassins were also whacked, in order to keep things quiet. As for Accardo, he died of natural health complications at the age eighty-six.

The Blackfriars Massacre


The world of organized crime in Boston, Massachusetts has its own laundry list of infamous murders and hits. One such incident took place at the Blackfriars Pub back in June of 1978. The Downtown Boston spot was closed, but a number of men known to police, as well as a local news reporter, were playing backgammon in the pub’s basement. Their bodies would later be found by authorities, slain “gangland style,” while money and narcotics were found at the scene. The Blackfriars Massacre remains unsolved, with some theories pointing to both the Patriarca Crime Family and the notorious Winter Hill Gang as potential suspects.

Danny Greene


We mentioned earlier how Danny Greene narrowly avoided an assassination attempt by his rival, Shondor Birns. Well, this wasn’t the only time the Irish-American mob boss had cheated death. In fact, Greene had become pretty good at avoiding nearly every attempt on his life, of which there were more than a few. His lucky streak finally ended, however, on October 6th, 1977. Greene was leaving an otherwise innocuous dentist appointment, not knowing that his phone had been tapped. He was killed by a car bomb, but it wasn’t his car that blew up. Instead, hit man Ray Ferritto had planted a bomb in the car next to Greene’s. The boss would be found dead at the scene.

Dutch Schultz

A word to the wise: if even the Organization tells you not to do something, don’t do it. The infamous mobster Dutch Schultz didn’t listen when his request to assassinate New York prosecutor Thomas Dewey was denied. Instead, he tried to go ahead with his plan and paid the price. A hit was put out on Schultz, and, by all accounts, it got messy. Hitmen from Murder, Inc. tried to take out Schultz and his associates at the Palace Chop House on October 23rd, 1935. It was a bullet-riddled affair, with the assassins getting away, while all of Schultz’s gang received grave injuries. They would be taken to a local hospital, but all of them, including Schultz, eventually died from their wounds.

Joe Masseria

You may not be aware of the name Joe Masseria, unless you’re a mob historian, of course. However, most everyone has probably heard of the man responsible for Masseria’s murder: “Lucky” Luciano. Luciano was actually a lieutenant of Masseria’s, while the latter was operating as a boss in the Genovese Crime Family. The hit took place at an Italian restaurant, the Nuova Villa Tammaro, where Masseria was shot repeatedly. Masseria was actually made aware of Luciano’s treachery beforehand, and attempted a counter-hit, but was further betrayed by another associate, Joe Adonis. “Lucky” Luciano’s plan was successful, while some of the gunmen involved included Adonis, as well as other big name mobsters, such as Vito Genovese and “Bugsy” Siegel.


Sam Giancana


Over the years, this Chicago mobster has been linked to CIA efforts to assassinate Fidel Castro during the Kennedy presidency. At the time of his death, “Momo” was sixty-seven years old and known for his gambling and refusal to spread the wealth. In 1974, he even relocated to Cuernavaca, Mexico to avoid legal hassles. But a life of crime caught up to Giancana on June 19, 1975, as he was gunned down while cooking sausage and peppers. Aside from those responsible, nobody knows who killed “Sam the Cigar,” and conspiracy theories persist.


Joe Gallo


Known as “Crazy Joe,” this New York Mafioso was raised in Brooklyn, New York. During the ‘50s, he joined the Profaci crime family, working as a hitman and extortionist. But eventually, Joey started a war with the gang and kidnapped Joe Profaci’s brother-in-law, Joseph Magliocco. That’s not something a crime lord forgets. On April 7, 1972, “Crazy Joe” celebrated his forty-third birthday in Manhattan. Later that night, Gallo was ambushed and shot at Umberto’s Clam House, and later died at Beekman-Downtown Hospital.


Anthony Spilotro


This Chicago gangster was the inspiration for Joe Pesci’s character in the 1995 film “Casino.” And if you’re familiar with the Martin Scorsese classic, then you know that Anthony Spilotro suffers a horrific fate. In 1963, “The Ant” was officially a “Made Man,” and in 1976, he established “The Hole in the Wall Gang.” Spilotro eventually became suspected of skimming allegations at the mob’s Las Vegas operations. He swiftly disappeared in 1986 and was later found buried with his brother Michael. Police suspected Spilotro may have been involved in almost two dozen murders.


Jack McGurn


Born Vincenzo Gibaldi, this man ultimately settled in Chicago and began boxing as a teenager. By 1923, however, Jack McGurn joined Al Capone’s crime organization and became known as the “Machine Gun.” He’s known for killing singer Joe E. Lewis and allegedly helping plan the infamous St. Valentine’s Day Massacre. Exactly one day and seven years after the massacre, McGurn was gunned down in Chicago, and the killers left a telling clue: a Valentine with a poem. Jack McGurn, a Sicialian immigrant, was thirty-three years old, and his half-brother Anthony De Mory was also murdered two weeks later.


Angelo Bruno


Known as “The Gentle Don,” this iconic gangster was actually known to avoid violence. For twenty years, Bruno headed the Philadelphia mafia, but he began making enemies within the organization because of his greed. On March 21, 1980, his own underboss, Antonio Caponigro, allegedly had “The Docile Don” killed outside his home on a south Philadelphia street. This did not go over well with the Commission, the Mafia’s ruling body, which had not given their okay for the hit. As a result, Bruno’s death was immediately avenged, as Caponigro was murdered for ordering his own boss’ murder.

Paul Castellano


For years, “Big Paulie” was a legend of the New York mafia. By 1975, he succeeded Carlo Gambino as head of the Gambino Crime Family and once reportedly put a contract out on an undercover FBI agent. In the mid-80s, Castellano was arrested for racketeering, just as an associate named John Gotti put a deadly plan in motion. On the evening of December 16, 1985, Castellano and his underboss Thomas Bilotti were both gunned down outside Manhattan’s Spark Steakhouse, a brazen act that announced a changing of the guard.


Carmine Galante


Born in Harlem to Sicilian immigrants, this man became involved with organized crime before his teenage years. In the ‘40s, Carmine Galante worked as a hitman and later teamed up with Joseph Bonanno, leader of the Bonanno Crime Family. After twelve years in prison from 1962 to 1974, Galante attempted to run the drug trade, which greatly disappointed the Five Families. On July 12, 1979, the sixty-nine-year-old Galante was murdered in Bushwick, Brooklyn at Joe and Mary’s Italian-American restaurant. The Commission had officially ordered the hit, and Galante famously died with a cigar in his mouth.


Albert Anastasia


The American mafia exists because of this Italian immigrant. In 1919, Albert Anastasia first arrived in the United States and was soon sentenced to death for a 1921 murder. But “The Mad Hatter” received a new lease on life when several witnesses disappeared. By 1957, Anastasia was a fifty-five-year-old legend in the criminal underworld. But the crime boss met a violent end when associates of Carlo Gambino, including the aforementioned Joe Gallo, allegedly murdered Anastasia at a midtown Manhattan barber shop. Decades later, it remains one of the most aggressive power moves in mob history.

Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel


Along with his friend Albert Anastasia, this Jewish mobster was a founding member of Murder, Inc. Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel is also responsible for developing a small desert town called Las Vegas. Born in Brooklyn, Bugsy began a life of crime as a young man, and his organizational skills led him all the way out west. Unfortunately for Siegel, his brash demeanor and lavish lifestyle made him many enemies, and one of them showed up at his Beverly Hills home on June 20, 1947. As Bugsy read the L.A. Times inside, an unknown assassin fired through a window, killing the gangster.

Saint Valentine’s Day Massacre

Throughout history, individual mob hits have symbolized a transfer of power. In 1929, Al Capone made a major move by taking out several members of an Irish gang led by George “Bugs” Moran. Two supposed police officers arrived at a North Chicago warehouse and, along with two other hitmen, massacred seven gangsters with Thompson submachine guns and shotguns. A contract killer named Frank Gusenberg survived the attack, but he refused to identify the assassins before passing away hours later. It’s the stuff of movies, but it’s also a disturbing real-life mob hit that sheds light on the brutality of Prohibition-era America.




Do you think that movies and television overly-glamourize the lives of organized crime? Let us know in the comments.