Joseph Gambino, one of New York City’s most profilic businessmen and son of the infamous Gambino mafia family, has died at the age of 83.
Gambino, who held a million-dollar stranglehold on the city’s clothing industry, passed away last month, according to reports out of New York Post and New York Daily News.
His death was from natural causes, the outlets have reported.
The Postwrote that a funeral home manager Brooklyn confirmed the news.
According to news outlets, Gambino and his brother Thomas Gambino were the owners of trucking companies which ran a monopoly on the city’s well-storied Garment District.
They made millions.
Gambino’s operation “grossed about $70 million” in the years 1987 to around 1990, mostly in deliveries to and from sewing shops, reports say. And there was no room for competitors. The Post wrote that they received notoriety for slashing the tires of competitors’ trucks.
It all to an end when Gambino and his brother were charged with state racketeering charges following a State Police sting, which involved an undercover agent and a wiretap in the ceiling of Gambino’s office.
The investigation resulted in 52 counts of larceny, extortion, coercion, and restraint of trade.
They had faced up to 25 years in prison.
But in the end, the Gambino brothers settled the case, paying a $12 million fine in a no-jail plea deal.
Joseph Gambino is survived by his brother Thomas.
The Horn editorial team