Anthony Scotto
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Anthony M. Scotto (born 1934) was a New York mobster and labor union racketeer succeeding Anthony "Tough Tony" Anastasio as head of the New York waterfront.
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[edit] Early life
Anthony Scotto grew up in the Red Hook (Carroll Gardens) section of Brooklyn. Scotto married Marion Anastasio, whose father was mob captain Anthony Anastasio, whose brother was one of La Cosa Nostra's most powerful bosses, Albert Anastasia. Anastasio, known as "Tough Tony", was an officer in ILA Local 1814, based in Red Hook, and with that controlled the New York waterfront. Scotto went to work for his father-in-law, and also became an officer in the ILA. In 1957, Albert "the Mad Hatter" Anastasia was gunned down in a Manhattan hotel barber shop, and with that came the crowning of Don Carlo Gambino, who the young Scotto was very close to.
It is suspected that Anastasio, knowing Gambino had ordered his brother's murder, had held back many of the waterfront profits his crew had seen from Gambino. Sometime, likely after Anastasia's murder, Anthony Scotto was inducted into the Gambino crime family. In 1963, Anthony Anastasio died of natural causes, and his funeral was attended by masses of South Brooklyn longshoremen and residents who wished to say their last goodbyes. The 29-year old Scotto succeeded Anastasio as head of ILA Local 1814, and would soon after become a caporegime in Gambino's family.
[edit] Entry into labor unions
Scotto took control of New York's longshoremen union affairs of Brooklyn's Local Union 1814 following the death of its president Anthony Anastasio in 1963 (Scotto was the son-in-law of Anthony Anastasio, the nephew of Anthony "Tough Tony" Anastasio). Called a "new breed labor leader" by the press, Scotto quickly rose into high level business and political circles eventually becoming the general organizer of the AFL-CIO International Longshoremen’s Association, one of the three highest positions in the labor union representing over 100,000 members from Maine to Texas.
[edit] Scotto and the Gambino crime family
Scotto became one of the most powerful mafiosos in New York, not because he was a killer, but because his political connections were greater than any other. Scotto even came to befriend the mob's most feared enemy, Robert Kennedy, while he was Attorney General. In 1974, Scotto raised thousands of dollars for Hugh Carey's gubernatorial campaign, and $50,000 for Mario Cuomo's bid to become lieutenant governor. President Jimmy Carter had named Scotto a candidate for the position of Secretary of Labor (while at the same time was slated by Carlo Gambino to become the President of the entire ILA in the U.S.A.), but this was derailed when Scotto was indicted and found guilty of federal bribery and racketeering charges in 1979.
In 1979, Scotto was arrested with father-in-law Anthony Anasasio following a federal investigation revealing a large scale cash payoff operation. Despite a number of character witnesses from politicians such as New York governor Hugh L. Carey and former New York Mayors John V. Linsey and Robert Wagner, Scotto was convicted of extorting $200,000 from waterfront businesses. Scotto denied the charges claiming, with the exception of accepting $75,000 in political contributions, he had "never taken a cent" instead contributing to then New York lieutenant governor Mario M. Cuomo's unsuccessful 1977 campaign for Mayor of New York and Carey's successful 1978 reelection campaign.
Although Scotto and Anastasio were convicted, U.S. District Judge Charles E. Stewart, Jr. was "extremely impressed" by letters from politicians, businessmen and labor leaders requesting leniency and bypassed the maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment and instead sentenced Scotto to 5 years with a $75,000 fine.
Scotto served 39-months of a five year sentence, despite testimony given on his behalf by then governor Hugh Carey, and former New York City mayors Robert Wagner and John Lindsay. Scotto was released from prison in 1984, and has not since been charged with a crime. Scotto has been identified as a made member of the Gambinos by such infamous turncoats as Joe Valachi and Salvatore Gravano. Gambino's successor Paul Castellano was intercepted by a federal wiretap explaining to Thomas Gambino and Thomas Bilotti that "We respected him...It was our union...We were making him advance in our union...Go up, up, up ... the ladder. And ... what's gonna happen, we're gonna have a president." After Castellano's assassination in 1986, newly crowned boss John Gotti demoted Scotto to soldier, and replaced him with another Red Hook raised wiseguy, Anthony "Sonny" Ciccone.
[edit] Later years
During his 20-year plus reign as the leading mobster on the New York waterfront (and quite possibly the most powerful labor racketeer in the entire country), Scotto was also to penetrate DC 37, America's biggest, richest, and most indicted municipal union. Former DC boss Victor Gotbaum reached out to Scotto to help him in his battle against the Teamsters for jurisdiction over New York City's hospital workers. Scotto made his attorney, Bertram Perkel, DC 37's outside counsel (Scotto also appointed Perkel to the New York Port Commission). Eventually, DC 37 would come under the control of the Colombo crime family, namely former family underboss William Cutolo, soldier Frank "Frankie the Gent" Morelli and associate Thomas DiNardo.
As a side note, Scotto's son Anthony Scotto, Jr. is a Gambino crime family soldier that was in Anthony "Sonny" Ciccone's crew, and some investigators suspect that Scotto, Jr. may have taken the reigns from Ciccone who is currently serving a long federal prison sentence.
[edit] References
- Kelly, Robert J. Encyclopedia of Organized Crime in the United States. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 2000. ISBN 0-313-30653-2
- Sifakis, Carl. The Mafia Encyclopedia. New York: Da Capo Press, 2005. ISBN 0-8160-5694-3
- Sifakis, Carl. The Encyclopedia of American Crime. New York: Facts on File Inc., 2001. ISBN 0-8160-4040-0
