Nicholas Bianco
Nicholas Bianco | |
|---|---|
 Mugshot of Nicholas Bianco | |
| Born | March 21, 1932 |
| Died | Error: Need valid death date (first date): year, month, day |
| Cause of death | Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis |
| Other names | Nicky |
| Criminal charge | 2 counts of racketeering |
| Penalty | 11 and a half years imprisonment |
Nicholas "Nicky" Bianco (March 21, 1932 – November 14, 1994) was a Rhode Island mobster who became an influential member of the Patriarca crime family of New England.
Biography
Bianco was born and raised in Providence, Rhode Island. In later years, he lived with his wife and children in Barrington, Rhode Island He sent his children to private schools and one of his sons later become a lawyer.[1]
As a young man, Bianco moved to Brooklyn, New York to work for the Colombo crime family. In the early 1960s, the Colombo family was being torn apart by an internal war between boss Joseph Magliocco and Soldier Joe Gallo. In 1963, Bianco asked Patriarca boss Raymond L.S. Patriarca if Patriarca could serve as mediator between the two factions. Patriarca agreed and also inducted Bianco, then just a Colombo associate, as a made man in the Patriarca family.[2] Bianco continued to serve as a liaison to the Colombos.
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In July 1984, the Patriarca family entered a period of instability with the death of boss Raymond L.S. Patriarca. After a period of jockeying, his son Raymond J. Patriarca became the new official boss. However, the younger Patriarca was not a strong boss; the family would be controlled over the next few years by a succession of powerful underbosses.[3] It also signaled a growing rivalry between the Patriarca mobsters in Boston, Massachusetts, and the family leadership in Providence.
In 1985, Bianco was indicted on charges of conspiracy and aiding and abetting in the 1982 Mirabella murder. However, soon after the trial began, the judge dismissed all charges against Bianco due to lack of evidence.[1][3]
Underboss
In June 1989, Bianco became the new unofficial boss of the Patriarca family. On June 16, the body of current underboss William Grasso was discovered on a river bank with a bullet wound to the head. Grasso was murdered by members of the Boston faction who wanted more control over the family. Bianco essentially had control now of the Providence-based family operations.
In 1989, Bianco attended a Patriarca ceremony in a Massachusetts house in which four mob associates were admitted to the family. Unknown to the participants, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) had placed electronic surveillance devices in the room. Bianco's presence at this ceremony served as evidence that he was a member of the family in an upcoming indictment.[4]
In March 1990, Bianco and other top Patriarca family members were indicted on charges of conspiracy to murder, loan sharking, illegal gambling, wire fraud and interstate travel in aid of racketeering.[5] With the aid of government witness John Castagna, Bianco was convicted on August 8, 1991, of two counts of racketeering in Hartford, Connecticut. On November 25, 1991, Bianco was sentenced to 11 and half years in federal prison.[1]
On November 16, 1994, Nicholas Bianco died of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), otherwise known as Lou Gehrig's disease at the Federal Medical Center (FMC) in Springfield, Missouri.[6]
References
- ^ a b c "The Providence Mob: Nicholas Bianco". TruTV Crime Library. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
- ^ Capeci, Jerry (2004). The complete idiot's guide to the Mafia (2nd ed. ed.). Indianapolis, IN: Alpha Books. p. 40. ISBN 1-59257-305-3.
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The Eightieswas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ The FBI : a comprehensive reference guide. Phoenix, Ariz.: Oryx Press. 1999. p. 87. ISBN 0-89774-991-X.
{{cite book}}:|first=has generic name (help);|first=missing|last=(help) - ^ 'FBI drives stake into heart of Patriarca crime family' The Laborers UPI 1990
- ^ "Nicholas Bianco; Crime Family Figure, 62". New York Times. November 16, 1994. Retrieved 8 October 2011.
Further reading
- Succession of Power "The Providence Mob: Succession" TruTV Crime Library
- Raab, Selwyn. Five Families: The Rise, Decline, and Resurgence of America's Most Powerful Mafia Empires. New York: St. Martin's Press 2005. ISBN 0-312-30094-8
- 1932 births
- 1994 deaths
- American mobsters of Italian descent
- Colombo crime family
- Mobsters who died in prison custody
- American people who died in prison custody
- People from Providence, Rhode Island
- People from Barrington, Rhode Island
- Prisoners who died in United States federal government detention
- Deaths from motor neurone disease
- Patriarca crime family
- Mafia hitmen
- People convicted of racketeering