Tough Tomatoes!
Posted on 12/15/2005 2:58:01 PM PST by nickcarraway
The Gambino organized-crime family, furious at the shooting of one of its bosses, is calling for a sit-down with the rival Bonannos to decide the fate of the ex-cop who allegedly pulled the trigger, law-enforcement sources said yesterday.
The Gambinos are absolutely livid because the victim, Carmine Sciandra, who runs the Top Tomato produce market, is a top captain in the Mafia family and was once considered a successor to "teflon don" John Gotti, the sources said.
Both residents and law-enforcement officials fear that unless the dispute is resolved, it could lead to war between the two families.
Sciandra was shot in the belly outside the market on Dec. 7 by former cop Patrick Balsamo, who brought along two Bonanno thugs to use as muscle, police said.
Balsamo was angry because he believed Carmine's brother, Salvatore, groped the cop's 18-year-old daughter, Maria, a College of Staten Island student. The teen had worked as a cashier at the market before being fired.
Swinging a baseball bat, Balsamo smashed several windows before a melee erupted. During the fracas, the ex-cop drew a gun and blasted Sciandra, police said.
Balsamo, now a security guard at a Brighton Beach nightclub, hasn't been seen since he was released on $25,000 bail last Friday. Law-enforcement officials believe he has gone into hiding.
"I imagine Balsamo is terrified. We're all concerned," said a woman who has lived in the neighborhood for years.
Sciandra is recovering from his wound at Staten Island University Hospital.
His wife hung up on a reporter who called his room yesterday.
The U.S. Attorney's Office in Brooklyn and the FBI's organized crime task force are watching to see if any mobsters retaliate.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
ping
thats priceless.
IF? Shouldn't that be WHEN?
Tough Tomatoes!
Let's just order an antipasto, some spaghetti and clam, sausage and peppers, a little vino, and fagetaboutit...
The ex-cop is going to go from supporting his family to supporting a highway overpass.
If this is true, you have to have some admiration for a guy who would stand up to a mob boss to defend his daughter.
So what's the deal...are these Bonanno guys just friends with Balsamo, or is he connected?
Apparently he had the "OK," seeing as though 2 Bonnanno's were with him.
Oh, Balsamo... won't see him no more.
I imagine the bottom of the Hudson River is a pretty good place to go into hiding...it'll be years before anyone finds him there.
What else are they going to do? Get involved?
You've made me HUNGRY!
I'm heading to the store for popcorn. This could get interesting. About time too. How are we ever going to have any good, new, mob movies without some real life scripts?
Take the cannolis.
All da while we figured it was Tatallia. And until this very day I never realized it was Bradzinni all the time!"
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.