Mob Wives: Louis Facciolo - A Friend Betrayed

Truly I want to share with y'all. After all the Mob stories and characters I've read the Facciolo brothers' story pulls @ my heart strings.  We share our honest opinions around here.  However, as heartless, cruel and vile some of these men's crimes or lifestyles seem; I sometimes see beyond their mob activities or associations.  I see sons, fathers, husbands, brothers, uncles and cousins.  But I truly doubt the majority of you visit to read my bleeding heart diatribes.  Whoever these men were to their families @ the end of the day they were other families' nightmares.  Many a times over they stole from someone's son, father, husband, brother, uncleor cousin.  Many a times over they had a hand in the murder of someone's son, father, husband, brother or cousin.

Awhile back Chiara touched on Bruno Facciolo's story, also known as Uncle Bruno to Carla Facciolo of Mob Wives.  Now I'll touch on his brother Louis Facciolo who is Carla Facciolo's father.  Information is scarce on Louis Facciolo.  Unlike his brother, Louis was not 'in' the mob.  However, Mr. Facciolo was a known associate.  By all accounts he had a tight relationship with his brother Bruno a hit man and chef.  Louis Facciolo also seemed to be a devoted & generous friend.  Would you believe his generosity to a trusted friend would lead to his getting caught up in a major undercover sting operation?  I would after starting this blog.

Mr. Facciolo had a close friend Salvatore "Sonny" Visconti.  Sonny was allegedly a hijacker.  What he hijacked I don't know.  Actually I do know I just don't care to go into it.  Both friends had lost their beloved brothers. Louis' brother Bruno Facciolo was murdered.  In 1990 he was found dead in his trunk with a canary stuffed in his mouth.  To read the full story of Bruno Facciolo's death just <==== just click his name.  Sonny's brother Alfred Visconti was shot & killed in 1991.  Louis knowing his friend was short on cash, stepped in & paid for Alfred's funeral.  Now I don't know what dirt Mr. Facciolo did or didn't do.  What I do know is that was a stand up guy move.  How many of us would pay for a friend's brother's funeral around $10,000?  I'll write it here and now.  My father died and his was cremated.  So, I know I wouldn't do it.

It appears that Louis Facciolo's kindness & huge favor was forgotten.  The FBI was conducting a sting operation to catch stolen goods traffickers. Alledgely Salvatore Visconti was a canary for some time unbeknownst to Louis.  Once Salvatore became sick, he agreed to be a witness.  Salvatore would use Facciolo's trust to enable him to introduce an undercover agent to the Carnarsie Crew.

The set  up began when Sonny started thanking Louis excessively for stepping in and paying for Alfred's funeral.  Sonny claimed to be on better financial footing.  He wanted to pay his friend back.  Louis told him that he didn't have to.  However, Sonny insisted by giving Louis $500 and several VCRs. Not long after the first repayment Sonny would introduce Steve the fence, who was actually an undercover agent to Louis.  The agent made good for well over a year before the bees came to his honey.  Louis Facciolo was his in to the Gambino family.  The dominos fell and a reported 50+ soldiers and associates were taken down.

There are many sites stating that Louis Facciolo died in 1990.  I believe they are confusing his reported death with that of his brother's Bruno Facciolo who was murdered in 1990.  We know Louis was alive in 1991 when he paid for Alfred's funeral.  We also know he got unwittingly caught up in sting around 1992-1994.  Carla Facciolo has mentioned that her father did time in the joint when she was in her 20s in the 90s.  We have search public records and have yet to come up with a death certificate for Mr. Facciolo.  Louis Facciolo is very much alive.  We hope he is happy, healthy and loving his grandchildren.

At the end of the day, I may not care for the lifestyle.  However, I get the duality of some of these men.  I get that many of us see just criminals.  Their families see loving and caring men who kept roofs over their heads and furs on their backs.

Mob Wives: My Least Favorite Mob Wife, Carla

Carla wins hands down as my least favorite mob wife. It boils down to her continual state of denial and her secrecy regarding all her connections to the mob. Why agree to be on a show that promotes mob associations, only to say you are only remotely associated to the mob through an uncle, Bruno Facciolo (who was murdered in August of 1990).

She acknowledges that her father, the brother of Bruno, was imprisoned at least twice; once when she was a child and the other time when she was in her 20’s. She never tells us why her father was imprisoned even though she claims her mother never hid his imprisonment from their children. Surely she must have overheard a conversation or asked why he was in jail. That would be my first reaction if my father went away for years. For me it just raises a red flag that she is hiding things. I feel she is purposely not disclosing his name, the reason for his incarceration and possibly his affiliation with the mob. In fact, on the Joy Behar show, she said her father wasn’t a “member” of the mob, but no one asked if he was an “associate.”

When she talks about her husband, the stock broker, she downplays his crimes. It’s as though she is saying: what’s stock fraud compared to murder, drug trafficking, larceny, loan sharking and crimes like that? When I looked into exactly what Joseph Ferragamo had done (see blog for May 11), I was more than a little angry with Carla’s attitude. He was involved in stock fraud, of one kind or another, for years. He worked at many companies, changing firms often, and participating in the latest money making scheme of the day. The money he benefited from came from victims he scammed, many of whom were vulnerable senior citizens. I wonder if Carla ever gives a thought to any of these people when she looks into her mother’s 67 year old eyes. Even Carla’s mother seems sympathetic to her son-in-law’s plight. “He isn’t a bad person,“ she is heard saying while sitting at Carla’s kitchen table. And, while discussing Joey’s crimes, her mother responds “big deal.“ To her it wasn’t a “big deal,“ but then again, it wasn’t her money he was stealing, was it? There is also some reason to believe that Joey Ferragamo allegedly had ties to organized crime according to Federal authorities, as one of the firms may have been run by organized crime members. But, Carla hasn’t revealed a thing.

Yet her VH1 bio seems to indicate that she was raised in the mob lifestyle. Here’s a quote: “While her father went to prison when she was young, it didn't stop her from living the lifestyle she grew to love. When Carla was 17 she started dating street guys and really got a taste of the life. She hung out with girls like Renee, and others -- whose parents were either in the life or extremely wealthy.” That suggests to me that her mob lifestyle was provided by more than just an “uncle.” She even dated mobsters, so the bio says. I wonder when and how she met Joey, don’t you? Maybe that’s a little secret too?

Yes, Carla is secretive about her family’s involvement in the mob and she is in a state of denial about where the money, that pays for her lavish lifestyle came from. Hard working, elderly people, who saved money for their retirement are paying for her gym membership, her limos, her wardrobe, her new clothing line, her house, her manicures and pedicures, her liquor, her hair, her condo in Florida…you name it. She may seem like the “wallflower” on the show, but under her “polished” (and I use the word as loosely as possible) exterior, is a woman with no conscience.

Who is your least favorite mob wife and why? I’d really like to know. Leave a comment and check out the POLL on your right to cast your vote.

Mob Wives: All In The Families

It’s very hard to keep up with the two sets of families represented on VH1’s Mob Wives show. The first set of families are the housewives themselves: the Gravanos, the Grazianos, the Facciolos, and the D’avanzos, The second set of families are the Mafia families that their husbands and fathers allegedly belong(ed) to. There are five Mafia families that have been “working” in New York City since the 1930’s. They are the Lucchese, Gambino, Bonanno, Colombo and Genevese crime families. I can never remember which mobster is allegedly associated with which crime family. So, to help keep it all straight in my mind, and maybe yours, I am creating a “cheat sheet” I can refer to from time to time to refresh my memory.

Lee D’avanzo is a bank burglar or robber, depending on the source of your information. He is alleged to be the head of the “New Springville Boys,” a burglary crew that is allegedly a “farm team” for both the Bonanno and Colombo crime families. He is currently in prison and his release date is up in the air. Just ask Drita, she’ll drop a few F-Bombs about it.

Anthony Graziano is alleged to be the current consigliere of the Bonanno crime family. He allegedly operated a pension fund scam that netted over 11.7 million dollars from its elderly victims. He also allegedly ran the largest drug trafficking operation in Florida. In 2002 he was imprisoned on federal racketeering charges and murder charges. He is in prison with a release date said to be in January, 2012. I wonder what he is going to say about the show then, if it’s still on the air.

Hector Pagan is the ex-husband of Renee. In the past he was an alleged associate of the Bonanno crime family. Currently, he is allegedly an associate of the Colombo crime family. This is according to the documents of the arrests and indictments made on January 20, 2011, when approximately 120 members of the Mafia from crime families in NY and NJ (including Hector), were taken down by the FBI. I think we might see Renee getting very dramatic over this on episode three, if the previews are correct.

Bruno Facciolo, Carla’s uncle, was allegedly a soldier in the Lucchese crime family, while Louis Facciolo, Bruno’s brother, was allegedly an associate of the Gambino crime family. Both brothers are dead now and Carla doesn’t seem anxious to talk about them.

Joesph Ferragamo, Carla’s soon to be ex-husband, was recently released from prison for his involvement in a mulitmillion dollar stock fraud scam, and is alleged to have ties with the Colombo and Lucchese crime families. Carla seems to deny her husband has mob connections by the sly, evasive way she answers her questions, but the truth always comes out.

Sammy “The Bull” Gravano was the former underboss of the Gambino crime family. This is the one mobster who owns his connection.

Now, I want to say that it’s all clearer to me, but it looks even more confusing on paper. Four of the five New York mafia families are represented in this small group of women; the Lucchese, Gambino, Bonanno and Colombo crime families. That’s pretty impressive if you ask me, and isn’t it nice that they all seem to get along?

Mob Wives: Bruno Facciolo, Carla’s Uncle

Carla has been very tight-lipped about her ties to the mob, even though that’s what is supposed to have gotten her on the show. I have been searching for her father, the one who went to prison when she was very young, and have come up empty. However, in a recent interview with Joy Behar, Carla mentions that her uncle Bruno was her connection to the mob, not her father. That brings us one step closer to finding Carla’s daddy.

Bruno Facciolo has a very interesting story. Bruno was allegedly a made man or “soldier” of the Lucchese crime family. He is said to have been a member of Vario’s crew, whose story was told in the “Goodfellas” movie. Bruno is said to have willingly performed hits, collect loans, rig horseracing, and whack rats and witnesses. He also was said to have owned a nice little Italian restaurant in Brooklyn, called “Bruno’s,” where he was a chef.

Unfortunately for Bruno, two NYPD detectives, Louis Eppolito and Stephen Caracappa, who were on the “family” payroll as associates, allegedly accused Bruno of being an informant. Bruno’s murder was ordered based on their word. In August, 1990, Bruno was executed by the detectives and by mobster Louis Diadone, who was eventually found guilty of the murder in 2004. Bruno was led to a garage where Diadone and the two associates stabbed and shot him to death and then stuffed a dead canary in his mouth. The dead canary is a classic mob message, sent as a warning to all mobsters, who think of becoming informants, to let them know anyone who “sings“ to law enforcement will suffer the same fatal ending. Bruno was found in Brooklyn, a few days later, stuffed in the trunk of his car. According to investigators, suspicion that Bruno was guilty of “ratting” was untrue, however in the mob, even the slightest impression of wrong doing can and will get you killed.

Louis "Louie Bagels" Diadone 

Which leads us to the “Daddy” connection. Bruno Facciolo is allegedly the brother of Louis "Louie" Facciolo, who is reported to have been an “associate” of the Gambino crime family. The fact that Louie Facciolo is the brother of Bruno, makes him a viable candidate to be Carla’s father. The allegation that he was an “associate” means, by definition, that he was not a made man or official member of the mob. So, when Carla tells Joy Behar that her father was not a member of the mob, she is technically correct. Therefore, Louis being the brother of Bruno and a mob “associate,” gives us two good reasons to suspect that he may be Carla‘s dear old dad. Hopefully, one day soon, we will be able to put this question to rest.