Philip Rastelli
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Philip Rastelli | |
|---|---|
 ]]
|
|
| Born | January 31, 1918 Brooklyn, New York, USA |
| Died | June 24, 1991 Ossining, New York, USA |
Philip "Rusty" Rastelli (January 31, 1918 - June 24, 1991) was a mobster in the Bonanno crime family.
Rastelli lived in Brooklyn and was involved in loansharking and drug trafficking. He murdered his wife Connie's first husband who wouldn't leave her by throwing him off a building. Connie is said to have driven his getaway car after holdups, run an abortion ring, and attacked one of his many mistresses. In 1962, Connie was shot to death after she threatened to inform on Rastelli's drug trafficking unless he paid her off as part of a divorce settlement. The authorities believe Phillip Rastelli either committed this crime or ordered it, but there was never enough evidence to charge him.
He took over the Bonanno Family in 1973 but was convicted of extortion four-years later. Carmine Galante effectively took over the Family following his release from prison but Rastelli remained the official boss. He made Sonny Black his underboss after his help in murdering Carmine Galante. However, following Galante's murder in 1979, Rastelli was once again the undisputed boss, controlling things from behind bars through the use of acting bosses. There was a dispute within the Bonanno Family about whether Rastelli should be the boss which led to a Mafia war. This resulted in the murders of several people including Sonny Red Indelicato, who was one of those who opposed Rastelli becoming the new boss. This power struggle and its bloody results were witnessed by FBI agent Joseph D. Pistone working undercover under the guise of Donnie Brasco.
Rastelli ordered his men not to get involved in the drugs trade, but many disobeyed, which was only natural as the Bonanno family has a branch which deals exclusively in drugs.
In the Mafia Commission Trial of 1986/87, Rastelli received a 12 year sentence in addition to the sentence he was currently serving. On July 21, 1991 he was released from prison for humanitarian reasons and died in a Queens hospital 3 days later on July 24, 1991 of natural causes, aged 73.
