Gerard Pappa
Encyclopedia
Gerard Pappa also known as "Gerry" and "Papa Bear" (c. June 19, 1944 Bensonhurst, Brooklyn
- July, 1980 Borough Park, Brooklyn
), was a former Colombo crime family
associate and eventually a Genovese crime family
soldier and known hitman, who was widely feared for his violent tendencies, which directly attributed to his own murder in 1980.
, Italy
in Bensonhurst where Sammy Gravano
, Anthony Casso
and Frank DeCicco
were all born and raised. Pappa had stick straight jet-black hair, steady blue-grey eyes, and a severe high cheekboned, triangle-shaped face. His last name "Pappa" in Italian stands for "Pope
" because documents dating from the twelfth century state his parent's village as Rocca di Papa which stands for Castrum Rocce de Papa ("Rock Castle of the Pope"), because Pope Eugene III
lived in their village. He is not to be mistaken as a relative of Sammy Gravano criminal associate Michael Papa, a white supremacist who helped Sammy Gravano in the 1990s distribute ecstacy from Arizona to New York City.
He was well known in the mob-infested neighborhoods of Brooklyn and Staten Island. He had been a member of the notorious street gang called the Rampers, which included Thomas Spero, Joe Vitale, Ralph Spero, James Emma and future Gambino crime family underboss
Sammy Gravano. Among the ranks of the street gang he was considered a "Ramper senior". As a rising hoodlum in organized crime circles he committed armed robbery, burglary, car theft and extortion. He was a fierce street fighter and described as one of the "baddest bad asses" Brooklyn had ever produced along with his close childhood friend James Emma and Ralph Ronga. It is suspected that Gerard suffered from an antisocial personality disorder
and multiple personality disorder with severe violent mood swings. He served under the crime family associate, Carmine Persico
and Thomas DiBella before becoming a made man
in the Genovese crime family.
. In the bar were several Gallo loyalists. They were a lot older than the Rampers and had an outstanding argument with member James Emma. They were heavily armed so Gerry and the others loaded up with firearms and headed back to the bar. Sammy later recounted the brutal gun battle in his autobiography,
He was involved in burglaries of local commercial franchises, fencing stolen goods, armed robbery and car theft.
that could be relied upon for discretion. According to Gerard's doctor associate, he discovered that the bullet instead of entering his brain, had grazed Gravano's temple taking off a small shard of skull behind and slightly above his ear. In the hospital, due to Gerard's rescue efforts, Joe Vitale. miraculously survived his nearly fatal gunshot wound.
underboss Sammy Gravano later fathered a son with his wife Debra in 1977. In honor of his former friend and childhood idol he named his son Gerard, after Pappa. Gerard Gravano followed his father Sammy into organized crime and at the age of twenty-nine was arrested for helping his father run an ecstasy drug trafficking operation in Phoenix, Arizona
while under protection from the Witness Protection Program in 2000.
. Sammy was outraged at his friend's act of perceived betrayal. Gravano stated, "Our relationship and friendship and everything died from that point on." He became the subject of many sitdowns between the Gambino crime family and Colombo crime family for his wanton acts of senseless violence that he displayed but was always given a "pass" and allowed to live because of his efficiency as a contract killer.
stool pigeon Peter Savino located at 99 Scott Avenue at the corner of Randolph Street and Scott Avenue in English Kills, Brooklyn
. He later became involved in the extortion of public housing construction firms. While his company's building was being renovated in the Spring of 1980, Pappa murdered two men there and buried their corpses in the cement foundation. The two men were Ralph Spero, the uncle of Angelo Sepe who was a capo in the Colombo crime family and mob associate Richard Scarcella, a hoodlum who had insulted and bullied everyone he came in contact with, including Gerard. Pappa had such disdain for Scarcella that he made sure he was buried in concrete just below where the toilet bowl was installed, so that every time someone urinated or emptied their bowels it would be directly on his face.
The Gambino, Colombo, Genovese and Lucchese families had together created a cartel in 1978, which eventually controlled over $150 million in contracts from the New York City Housing Authority
(NYCHA). The cartel monopolized the industry through Local 580, a Lucchese crime family controlled local of the Iron Workers Union. Through the union, Gerard could solicit bribes, extort payoffs and enforce their monopoly. The cartel worked their controlled industry by charging a tax of approximately $1.00 to $2.00 for almost every window replacement, public and private, sold in New York City
.
The extortion and bid rigging of window replacement and renovation contracts in New York City would continue until his Genovese crime family mob associate Peter Savino turned state's evidence and testified against Victor Amuso
, Venero Mangano
and many other powerful mobsters.
mob associate John Pappa who was born on July 19, 1974 in Bensonhurst. Crime writer David Amoroso compared Gerard's son John to the character Christopher Moltisanti
portrayed by Michael Imperioli
in The Sopranos
. His son John was only five years old when his father was brutally murdered. As an adolescent and young adult, his son John kept a framed picture of his father on his bedroom dresser and on his arm he had tattooed "Pappa Bear" as a tribute to his late father. John also had a striking resemblance to his father. After Gerard was murdered, his wife took their only son and moved to Holmdel, New Jersey where his son showed skill at playing varsity soccer in high school. His mother later said that he could not stay out of the mob-populated neighborhoods of Bensonhurst, Brooklyn
and Staten Island
. John Pappa idolized his late father Gerard and wanted to pursue a life of organized crime like his. He aligned himself with the Lucchese crime family, joining the crew of James Galione, a Lucchese crime family
soldier who was the son of Gambino crime family made man Ralph Galione. John Pappa showed the ruthlessness inherited from his father when he murdered Colombo crime family capo Joseph Scopo on October 20, 1993.
and his nephews Nicholas and Joseph Cataldo Jr., the sons of Colombo crime family mafioso Joseph Cataldo. Knowing how hard Gerard would be to kill, that he was always armed, very fast and very game, they were hiding in the luncheonette's rear kitchen when he arrived. They approached him from behind and shot him in the head with a sawed-off shotgun
, literally blowing his head to pieces. He was killed instantly. Sammy Gravano would later speak of feeling great sadness and remorse for the lost of his childhood friend. Genovese crime family mob boss Vincent Gigante
was suspected of handing down the murder contract, but was acquitted of his alleged involvement in the murder in 1997.
Bensonhurst, Brooklyn
Bensonhurst is a neighborhood located in the southwestern part of the New York City borough of Brooklyn.-Geography:Sometimes erroneously thought to include all or parts of such neighborhoods as Bath Beach, Dyker Heights, and Borough Park, or to be defined by the streets where the concentration of...
- July, 1980 Borough Park, Brooklyn
Borough Park, Brooklyn
Borough Park , is a neighborhood in the southwestern part of the borough of Brooklyn, in New York City in the United States....
), was a former Colombo crime family
Colombo crime family
The Colombo crime family is the youngest of the "Five Families" that dominates organized crime activities in New York City, United States, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the Mafia ....
associate and eventually a Genovese crime family
Genovese crime family
The Genovese crime family , is one of the "Five Families" that dominates organized crime activities in New York City, United States, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the Mafia . The Genovese crime family has been nicknamed the "Ivy League" and "Rolls Royce" of organized crime...
soldier and known hitman, who was widely feared for his violent tendencies, which directly attributed to his own murder in 1980.
Biography
Gerard was 36 when he was murdered by rival members of the Colombo crime family. Gerard was known to the police and criminal associates as an ice-cold killer. He known known as "Pappa Bear" to his wife and mistresses because of his "teddy bear" nature he displayed when in their presence or simply "Pap" to his criminal associates. He was the son of first generation emigrants from Rocca di PapaRocca di Papa
Rocca di Papa is a small town and comune in the province of Rome, Lazio, Italy. It is one of the Castelli Romani about 25 km south east of Rome on the Alban Hills. It is bounded by the other communes of Velletri, Rocca Priora, Monte Compatri, Grottaferrata, Albano and Marino...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
in Bensonhurst where Sammy Gravano
Sammy Gravano
Salvatore "Sammy the Bull" Gravano is a former underboss of the Gambino crime family. He is known as the man who helped bring down John Gotti, the family's boss, by agreeing to become a Federal Bureau of Investigation informant and turn state's evidence.Originally a mobster for the Colombo crime...
, Anthony Casso
Anthony Casso
Anthony "Gaspipe" Casso is a former New York City mobster who served as underboss and acting boss of the Lucchese crime family until he was arrested in 1993, becoming a cooperating witness for the Federal Government...
and Frank DeCicco
Frank DeCicco
Frank DeCicco also known as Frankie D and Frankie Cheech was a New York mobster and labor racketeer for the Gambino crime family...
were all born and raised. Pappa had stick straight jet-black hair, steady blue-grey eyes, and a severe high cheekboned, triangle-shaped face. His last name "Pappa" in Italian stands for "Pope
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
" because documents dating from the twelfth century state his parent's village as Rocca di Papa which stands for Castrum Rocce de Papa ("Rock Castle of the Pope"), because Pope Eugene III
Pope Eugene III
Pope Blessed Eugene III , born Bernardo da Pisa, was Pope from 1145 to 1153. He was the first Cistercian to become Pope.-Early life:...
lived in their village. He is not to be mistaken as a relative of Sammy Gravano criminal associate Michael Papa, a white supremacist who helped Sammy Gravano in the 1990s distribute ecstacy from Arizona to New York City.
He was well known in the mob-infested neighborhoods of Brooklyn and Staten Island. He had been a member of the notorious street gang called the Rampers, which included Thomas Spero, Joe Vitale, Ralph Spero, James Emma and future Gambino crime family underboss
Underboss
Underboss is a position within the leadership structure of Sicilian and American Mafia crime families. The underboss is second in command to the boss...
Sammy Gravano. Among the ranks of the street gang he was considered a "Ramper senior". As a rising hoodlum in organized crime circles he committed armed robbery, burglary, car theft and extortion. He was a fierce street fighter and described as one of the "baddest bad asses" Brooklyn had ever produced along with his close childhood friend James Emma and Ralph Ronga. It is suspected that Gerard suffered from an antisocial personality disorder
Antisocial personality disorder
Antisocial personality disorder is described by the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, fourth edition , as an Axis II personality disorder characterized by "...a pervasive pattern of disregard for, and violation of, the rights of others that begins in childhood...
and multiple personality disorder with severe violent mood swings. He served under the crime family associate, Carmine Persico
Carmine Persico
Carmine John Persico, Jr. also known as "Junior", "The Snake" and "Immortal", has been the de-facto boss of the Colombo crime family since the early 1970s. Persico has overseen gang wars, murders, and major rackets, most of the time from prison. He has been serving life imprisonment without...
and Thomas DiBella before becoming a made man
Made man
A made man, also known as a Mafioso , made guy, man of honor, or uomo d'onore , is someone who has been officially inducted into the Sicilian or American Mafia . They may also be referred to by some as a goodfella or wiseguy...
in the Genovese crime family.
Shootout with the Gallos
He took an oath with the other Rampers, "... be together forever. Fuck the world. Fuck everybody, even the mob" and was said by Gravano to be full of "piss and vinegar." Later on, this would change but that was the attitude they held at that point in their lives. In the early 1960s, during the Profaci-Gallo civil war in the Colombo crime family had an encounter with Gerard, Sammy Gravano, James Emma, Joe Vitale., Tommy Snake and Lenny the Mole including a bunch of other gang members. They were hanging around in a bar at 79th Street and Utrecht Avenue in New Utrecht, BrooklynNew Utrecht, Brooklyn
New Utrecht was the last of six towns to be founded in what is today the borough of Brooklyn in New York City. It was named after the city of Utrecht, Netherlands. In 1652 Cornelius van Werckhoven, a surveyor born in Utrecht and a principal investor in the Dutch West India Company, began purchasing...
. In the bar were several Gallo loyalists. They were a lot older than the Rampers and had an outstanding argument with member James Emma. They were heavily armed so Gerry and the others loaded up with firearms and headed back to the bar. Sammy later recounted the brutal gun battle in his autobiography,
- It was a long bar. They were at one end of the bar and we were at the other end. It seemed like one of them went for a gun. We went for guns. There were a ton of shots thrown back and forth. It was like a cowboy movie. Totally unbelievable. Glass breaking, women screaming, things falling on the floor. One of the Gallo guys got hit, like eleven times. He staggers out of the bar and falls in the street. And lived, believe it or not. Another guy in the bar, an innocent bystander got hit in the foot. He went on his own to a doctor and never said nothing. The Gallo guy at the hospital don't say nothing, either.
He was involved in burglaries of local commercial franchises, fencing stolen goods, armed robbery and car theft.
Rescuing Gravano and "Joe Vitale."
While a member of the Rampers with Gravano and others, he rescued Sammy Gravano and fellow Ramper "Joe V. (otherwise known as Joe Vitale)'s life, who was nearly fatally shot in the abdomen during a bungled car theft in Bensonhurst. He bandaged up Joe V. who was bleeding profusely from a gunshot wound to the side and thought to be in critical condition. Sammy thought that he had been shot in the head. The two gang members had been shot by a distraught citizen who was attempting to pursue Pappa and the others for stealing his car. He drove Joe Vitale. to Coney Island Hospital where he dropped himself out front of the emergency ward. Afterward, he drove Gravano to a doctor who practiced in Upstate New YorkUpstate New York
Upstate New York is the region of the U.S. state of New York that is located north of the core of the New York metropolitan area.-Definition:There is no clear or official boundary between Upstate New York and Downstate New York...
that could be relied upon for discretion. According to Gerard's doctor associate, he discovered that the bullet instead of entering his brain, had grazed Gravano's temple taking off a small shard of skull behind and slightly above his ear. In the hospital, due to Gerard's rescue efforts, Joe Vitale. miraculously survived his nearly fatal gunshot wound.
Notoriety
His friend and long time criminal associate Gambino crime familyGambino crime family
The Gambino crime family is one of the "Five Families" that dominates organized crime activities in New York City, United States, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the Mafia . The group is named after Carlo Gambino, boss of the family at the time of the McClellan hearings in 1963...
underboss Sammy Gravano later fathered a son with his wife Debra in 1977. In honor of his former friend and childhood idol he named his son Gerard, after Pappa. Gerard Gravano followed his father Sammy into organized crime and at the age of twenty-nine was arrested for helping his father run an ecstasy drug trafficking operation in Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
while under protection from the Witness Protection Program in 2000.
The breaking point for Pappa
He was washing his car on a street in Bensonhurst when his close friend and fellow Ramper James Emma was gunned down by contract killers from the Colombo crime family sent on orders by Colombo crime family capo Dominick Scialo. The gunmen then turned their guns on Gerard. At that exact moment, a car was passing and Pappa dove in through an open window. The driver of the car was so overcome with fear that he did not notice Gerard in the backseat and sped off. The murder of James Emma was considered the breaking point for Gerard. He was taken down to the precinct as a witness to the shooting of Emma. Gravano was later shown papers revealing that his friend had filed paperwork for a protection order with the New York City Police DepartmentNew York City Police Department
The New York City Police Department , established in 1845, is currently the largest municipal police force in the United States, with primary responsibilities in law enforcement and investigation within the five boroughs of New York City...
. Sammy was outraged at his friend's act of perceived betrayal. Gravano stated, "Our relationship and friendship and everything died from that point on." He became the subject of many sitdowns between the Gambino crime family and Colombo crime family for his wanton acts of senseless violence that he displayed but was always given a "pass" and allowed to live because of his efficiency as a contract killer.
Aligning himself with the Genovese crime family
He was inducted into the Genovese crime family in 1974 and worked as a contract killer who murdered many criminals. He was cunning, treacherous and extreme, said to have personally murdered thirty-seven people. He was known to dress as a woman to disguise himself to fulfill murder contracts. Anthony Casso sold him marijuana, heroin and cocaine and always paid.As a legitimate businessman
As an adult he was a ruthless businessman, he would murder someone for being late in paying back borrowed money just to teach a lesson to enhance his reputation. He became involved with the Local 580 of the Architectural and Ornamental Ironworkers Union and began working on construction and renovation jobs. It was later discovered by federal investigators that Arista Windows was one of the companies that dominated the public sector of the industry from 1978 to 1990, after Pappa was murdered and the ring was dismantled, that the New York Housing Authority (NYCHA) alone granted $191 million in window replacement contracts. Along with the other mobsters involved, he imposed a $1 to $2 per window charge on most public and some private window replacement contracts in the city. He forced competitors to employ 580 local members at the highest rate, while members involved in the cartel were allowed to use non-union members to whom he paid low wages to. He was treacherous and paranoid, Pappa was a particularly dangerous man. Gerard owned many businesses including a window repair and installing firm, Arista Windows with mob associate and Lucchese crime familyLucchese crime family
The Lucchese crime family is one of the "Five Families" that dominates organized crime activities in New York City, United States, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the Mafia . The family originated in the early 1920s with Gaetano "Tommy" Reina serving as boss up until his murder...
stool pigeon Peter Savino located at 99 Scott Avenue at the corner of Randolph Street and Scott Avenue in English Kills, Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
. He later became involved in the extortion of public housing construction firms. While his company's building was being renovated in the Spring of 1980, Pappa murdered two men there and buried their corpses in the cement foundation. The two men were Ralph Spero, the uncle of Angelo Sepe who was a capo in the Colombo crime family and mob associate Richard Scarcella, a hoodlum who had insulted and bullied everyone he came in contact with, including Gerard. Pappa had such disdain for Scarcella that he made sure he was buried in concrete just below where the toilet bowl was installed, so that every time someone urinated or emptied their bowels it would be directly on his face.
The Gambino, Colombo, Genovese and Lucchese families had together created a cartel in 1978, which eventually controlled over $150 million in contracts from the New York City Housing Authority
New York City Housing Authority
The New York City Housing Authority provides public housing for low- and moderate-income residents throughout the five boroughs of New York City. NYCHA also administers a citywide Section 8 Leased Housing Program in rental apartments...
(NYCHA). The cartel monopolized the industry through Local 580, a Lucchese crime family controlled local of the Iron Workers Union. Through the union, Gerard could solicit bribes, extort payoffs and enforce their monopoly. The cartel worked their controlled industry by charging a tax of approximately $1.00 to $2.00 for almost every window replacement, public and private, sold in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
The extortion and bid rigging of window replacement and renovation contracts in New York City would continue until his Genovese crime family mob associate Peter Savino turned state's evidence and testified against Victor Amuso
Victor Amuso
Vittorio "Little Vic" Amuso is a New York mobster and, as of 2011, the reputed Boss of the Lucchese crime family. Amuso is currently serving life at the Federal Correctional Complex in Beaumont, Texas on murder and racketeering charges....
, Venero Mangano
Venero Mangano
Venero Frank "Benny Eggs" Mangano is the Underboss of the Genovese crime family. Since boss Daniel "Danny the Lion" Leo was imprisoned in 2007, Mangano has been the family's senior leader outside prison. The nickname "Benny Eggs" came from his mother running an egg farm...
and many other powerful mobsters.
Fatherhood
He was the father of Colombo crime familyColombo crime family
The Colombo crime family is the youngest of the "Five Families" that dominates organized crime activities in New York City, United States, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the Mafia ....
mob associate John Pappa who was born on July 19, 1974 in Bensonhurst. Crime writer David Amoroso compared Gerard's son John to the character Christopher Moltisanti
Christopher Moltisanti
Christopher "Chris" Moltisanti, played by Michael Imperioli, is a fictional character on the HBO TV series The Sopranos. He was Tony Soprano's protégé and a Capo in the Soprano crime family.-Biography:...
portrayed by Michael Imperioli
Michael Imperioli
James Michael Imperioli , commonly known as Michael Imperioli, is an American actor and television writer. He is perhaps best known for his role as Christopher Moltisanti on The Sopranos for which he won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series in 2004. He also...
in The Sopranos
The Sopranos
The Sopranos is an American television drama series created by David Chase that revolves around the New Jersey-based Italian-American mobster Tony Soprano and the difficulties he faces as he tries to balance the often conflicting requirements of his home life and the criminal organization he heads...
. His son John was only five years old when his father was brutally murdered. As an adolescent and young adult, his son John kept a framed picture of his father on his bedroom dresser and on his arm he had tattooed "Pappa Bear" as a tribute to his late father. John also had a striking resemblance to his father. After Gerard was murdered, his wife took their only son and moved to Holmdel, New Jersey where his son showed skill at playing varsity soccer in high school. His mother later said that he could not stay out of the mob-populated neighborhoods of Bensonhurst, Brooklyn
Bensonhurst, Brooklyn
Bensonhurst is a neighborhood located in the southwestern part of the New York City borough of Brooklyn.-Geography:Sometimes erroneously thought to include all or parts of such neighborhoods as Bath Beach, Dyker Heights, and Borough Park, or to be defined by the streets where the concentration of...
and Staten Island
Staten Island
Staten Island is a borough of New York City, New York, United States, located in the southwest part of the city. Staten Island is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull, and from the rest of New York by New York Bay...
. John Pappa idolized his late father Gerard and wanted to pursue a life of organized crime like his. He aligned himself with the Lucchese crime family, joining the crew of James Galione, a Lucchese crime family
Lucchese crime family
The Lucchese crime family is one of the "Five Families" that dominates organized crime activities in New York City, United States, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the Mafia . The family originated in the early 1920s with Gaetano "Tommy" Reina serving as boss up until his murder...
soldier who was the son of Gambino crime family made man Ralph Galione. John Pappa showed the ruthlessness inherited from his father when he murdered Colombo crime family capo Joseph Scopo on October 20, 1993.
Gangland slaying
On July 1980 Gerard was shot to death in the Villa Sixty-Six Restaurant on Fourteenth Avenue and 66th Street in Brooklyn by a Colombo hit squad. It was for revenge of carrying out the murder of suspected Colombo crime family stool pigeon Ralph Spero, the uncle of Angelo Sepe. He was murdered by Dominick CataldoDominick Cataldo
Dominick Cataldo, , known as "Little Dom", was a Sicilian-American soldier in the New York Colombo crime family.-Biography:...
and his nephews Nicholas and Joseph Cataldo Jr., the sons of Colombo crime family mafioso Joseph Cataldo. Knowing how hard Gerard would be to kill, that he was always armed, very fast and very game, they were hiding in the luncheonette's rear kitchen when he arrived. They approached him from behind and shot him in the head with a sawed-off shotgun
Sawed-off shotgun
A sawed-off shotgun also called a sawn-off shotgun and a short-barreled shotgun , is a type of shotgun with a shorter gun barrel and often a shorter or absent stock....
, literally blowing his head to pieces. He was killed instantly. Sammy Gravano would later speak of feeling great sadness and remorse for the lost of his childhood friend. Genovese crime family mob boss Vincent Gigante
Vincent Gigante
Vincent Gigante was a short lived professional light heavyweight boxer who was known as "The Chin" Gigante. He fought 25 matches and lost four, boxing 121 rounds. On February 19, 1945, he fought Pete Petrello in Madison Square Garden and won by a knock out in the second round. During his successful...
was suspected of handing down the murder contract, but was acquitted of his alleged involvement in the murder in 1997.