Michael Taccetta

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Michael Taccetta
Martin (left) and Michael Taccetta (right) in 1988, after being acquitted on racketeering charges from the longest trial in US history
Born September 16, 1947
Newark, New Jersey, U.S.
Penalty Life imprisonment
Status Alive
Occupation Caporegime of the Lucchese crime family
Boss of the Jersey Crew

Michael Taccetta (b. September 16, 1947) aka. "Mad Dog" is a high-ranking member of the Lucchese crime family, who wound up controlling the entire New Jersey faction of the family in the 1980s. His brother Martin was also in charge for a brief of time. [1]

Contents

[edit] Early life & crimes

Michael Taccetta was born in Newark, New Jersey on September 16, 1947, into the neighbourhood of late Gambino crime family capo Joseph Paterno, who he reportedly began working for in his early teens. Although recognized as an associate of the Gambinos, Taccetta was influenced by his older friend from childhood, Anthony "Tumac" Accetturo, who, at the age of 17, was already recruited by the rival Lucchese crime family, and joined Accetturo's street crew in their North Jersey faction. During the mid 1960s, both Michael and Martin Taccetta started with Accetturo in illegal gambling and loansharking operations, on the orders of Gaetano "Tommy" Lucchese. On December 23, 1971, Taccetta was convicted of conspiracy to operate a lottery and numbers, for which he was sentenced to less than two years in prison, and fined $1,000. He was also identified as a career criminal offender and an associate of other identifyed criminal offenders, such as members of the Lucchese crime family in New Jersey and New York. [2]

[edit] Business in Newark

During the early 1970s, Anthony "Tumac" Accetturo, who currently worked as Taccetta's mentor, was indicted on illegal gambling operations in Newark, New Jersey, and decided to avoid prosecution by escaping to Florida. In this way, Taccetta was chosen by Accetturo to run the day-to-day activities in Newark. In February, 1973, Accetturo was indicted for loansharking and extortion, as he was eventually arrested in Miami, Florida, with his bail set at $10,000. Accetturo would later return and run his Newark operations with Taccetta in early 1975. [3]

[edit] Lucchese Made Man

Upon the year of 1976, the newly made Boss of the Lucchese crime family, Anthony "Tony Ducks" Corallo decided to make his New Jersey faction even stronger, as Accetturo, Taccetta and several others were reportedly inducted into the Lucchese crime family during that same year. Accetturo was put in charge of the North Jersey faction of the Luccheses, as Taccetta was promoted the top protege to Accetturo.

[edit] Expanding Jersey

During the late 1970s, Accetturo would suffer from several indictments, following the State of New Jersey try to extradite Accetturo, but failed due to poor health. Accetturo later relocated his business interests to Miami, Florida and Hollywood, Florida, but remainded the official chief of New Jersey. Michael Taccetta was then chosen again to run the Northern Jersey faction of the Lucchese crime family on Accetturo's behalf, and soon expanded Accetturo's operations, all from illegal gambling and loansharking, to extortion, drug trafficking and money laundering, through his legitimate business Taccetta Group Enterprises, where Taccetta's position was company president. The business was under the control of the Lucchese crime family in New York. [4]

[edit] Philly operations

On March 12, 1980, the Boss of the Philadelphia crime family Angelo "Gentle Don" Bruno was shot to death, as his murder resulted in a huge powerstroke between Philip Testa and Nicodemo Scarfo, both fighting for the total control of the Philadelphia family. When Accetturo heard of this, he ordered Taccetta to establish a new crew of the Lucchese crime family, under the control of Michael Taccetta and the New Jersey faction. Because of the bad relations between the two factions in Philadelphia's crime family, as well as both Taccetta and Accetturo taking advantage of the situation, the relationship between Philadelphia and the Five Families eventually turned even worse. [5]

[edit] Excluded from NJ

In 1983, the State of New Jersey put together an exclusion order on Michael Taccetta, as he was recognized as a high-ranking member of the Northern Jersey organized crime organization. On January 6, 1984, Taccetta was excluded from New Jersey, stemming from his prior convictions in the 1970s. Despite his exclusion, Taccetta kept operating in the North Jersey area. His brother Martin Taccetta would then step up and serve as acting boss on behalf of Taccetta in the mid 1980s. [6]

[edit] US longest trial

In 1986, as prosecutions which resulted in the Mafia Commission Trial were set up in New York, where Anthony "Tony Ducks" Corallo and the entire administration of the Lucchese crime family were brought on trial, Taccetta and Accetturo would be arrested during that same year, along with 18 other top mobsters of the Northern New Jersey faction of the family. The indictment was the result of a four-year investigation, provided by the law enforcement of New Jersey. The charges were 76 counts of labor racketeering, illegal gambling, loansharking, extortion, drug trafficking, money laundering, conspiracy and murder for hire. The longest trial ever in the United States, it went for more than 21 months, as it has been placed in the Guinness Book of Records. Stunningly, all 20 defendants were found not guilty on the RICO predicates, but as the trial was over due, rivalry was being developed in what was called the Jersey Crew. [7]

[edit] Accetturo rivalry

During the trial, both Taccetta and Accetturo agreed that it wasn't the right time for a war, however, in 1988, it became clear that Taccetta had claimed war on Accetturo, as the North Jersey crew broke up into two factions. One of the main reasons were that Accetturo had promoted his son, Anthony Accetturo, Jr. to reorganize the Jersey crew upon his retirement, which was something Taccetta had been eager to take over since the early 1980s. When the trial ended in acquittals for the defendants on all charges, Accetturo returned to Florida for his own safety.

[edit] Whack North Jersey

After the conviction of Anthony "Tony Ducks" Corallo in 1986, and his protege Anthony "Buddy" Luongo was found murdered, Brooklyn, New York faction leaders Vittorio "Vic" Amuso and Anthony "Gaspipe" Casso chose themselves as the new bosses of the Lucchese crime family. Only problem was that Amuso hadn't been satisfied with their profit from the New Jersey faction in the late 1980s, as he demanded 50% of both Taccetta and Accetturo's profit, where they both refused. Vic Amuso, a man of great fear and reportedly with dozens of murders on his hands, announced his order, which led "Whack Jersey". Summoned to a meeting in Brooklyn, New York with Amuso, the entire North Jersey faction, who were fearful of being massacred, went into hiding. Over the next 12 months, most of the New Jersey crew members came back to the family. Vittorio "Vic" Amuso told the returned crew members that Accetturo needed to be disposed off. Reportedly, Taccetta is to have sent messages to Amuso in Brooklyn, asking a contract to be placed on Accetturo's life. Amuso is reportedly to have agreed, as Taccetta was now under the wings of Vittorio "Vic" Amsuo. [8]

[edit] Weakening New Jersey

With Accetturo out of the way, Michael and Martin Taccetta were reportedly the leaders of the New Jersey faction, as Taccetta started cooperating with the head of the Gambino crime family, John Gotti, through Gambino caporegime, Thomas "Tommy" Gambino. During the last years of the 1980s, Taccetta's faction was much weakened due to encreased law enforcement and bad relations to Vittorio "Vic" Amuso. The new administration was accordingly to "NewJersey.Com", Michael Taccetta as the Boss of faction, Michael Perna as the Underboss and Martin Taccetta as the official Consigliere. Reportedly, it was around this time that law enforcement started seeing the NJ faction of the Lucchese crime family as its own family. [9]

[edit] Trial & imprisonment

In the early 1990s, the entire New Jersey faction's administration was put on trail, including the elder Anthony "Tumac" Accetturo, who had been imprisoned due to the contract both Taccetta and Amuso had put on his life in the late 1980s. As it couldn't be any worse, the two of them began another internal war against each other, which eventually led Accetturo to become a government informant, testifying against the remaining defendants, as Michael and Martin Taccetta were given 25 years for racketeering, narcotics, extortion, loansharking, conspiracy and murder in 1993. Taccetta reportedly went on to control The Jersey Crew, as he was doing his sentence in Atlanta. [10]

[edit] Currently imprisoned

Although his years as leader of the Lucchese crime family's New Jersey faction, Taccetta managed to develop several internal wars, both with Accetturo and later Thomas Ricciardi, who also turned state's evidence to convict Taccetta. His brother Martin, though sentenced to life, was let out of prison in 2005 after his repeal showed that he was framed in his murder trial. Marty is back out on the streets of New Jersey as a made man of the New Jersey Lucchese crew under Ralph Perna. As of 2008, Michael Taccetta, at age 60, is still imprisoned in Atlanta.

[edit] In popular culture

[edit] Further reading

  • Raab, Selwyn. The Five Families: The Rise, Decline & Resurgence of America's Most Powerful Mafia Empire. New York: St. Martins Press, 2005. ISBN 0-312-36181-5
  • Rudolph, Robert C. The Boys from New Jersey: How the Mob Beat the Feds. New York: William Morrow and Company Inc., 1992. ISBN 0-813-52154-8

[edit] External links

Preceded by
Anthony Accetturo		 Jersey Crew Boss
1980-2005		 Succeeded by
Martin Taccetta