Natale "Joe Diamond" Evola (pronounced "ay-voh-LAH") (February 22, 1907 – August 28, 1973) was a New York mobster who briefly became boss of the Bonanno crime family.
Born in the Bay Ridge section of Brooklyn to parents Filippo and Francesca, who was natives of Castellammare del Golfo, Sicily. He was the brother of Paul, Joseph and Anna. Evola's arrest record would eventually include coercion, possession of gun, and federal narcotic law violations. Evola was heavily involved in narcotics trafficking and in labor racketeering in the Garment District of Manhattan.
In 1957, Evola was identified at the infamous Apalachin Meeting in Apalachin, New York and later charged, along with twenty other organized figures, for conspiracy; however, the case was later overturned. In 1959, Evola and Vito Genovese of the Genovese crime family were charged with conspiracy to distribute narcotics. Following family boss Joe Bonanno's retirement in 1968, Evola reportedly became the boss of the family. Heavily involved in the trucking industry in the Garment District, Evola cooperated with crime family leaders Genovese and Carlo Gambino of the Gambino crime family.
On August 28, 1973, Natale Evola died of cancer. He is buried in Calvary Cemetery in the Woodside, Queens section of New York.
| Business positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Frank "Russo" Mari |
Bonanno crime family Underboss 1968–1971 |
Succeeded by Phillip "Rusty" Rastelli |
| Preceded by Paul Sciacca |
Bonanno crime family Boss 1971–1973 |
Succeeded by Phillip "Rusty" Rastelli |
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