On March 7, 2019, Carmine Persico died at the Duke Medical Center in Durham, North Carolina. At the time of his death, Persico had spent over 30 years in prison for crimes committed as the head of the Colombo Crime Family. However, despite the fact that he’d been behind bars for decades, Persico had remained a force to be reckoned with. The imprisoned mob boss continued to pull the strings in the Colombo family even while in a jail cell. Unlike other gangsters who quit the life or even turned and testified against their fellow confederates, Carmine Persico remained a ruthless, crafty Mafioso all the way until the end.
Middle Class Beginnings, and a Turn Towards Crime
Persico was born into a middle class Italian-American family in Brooklyn in 1933. His father was a stenographer for local law firms, and his mother worked hard to provide Carmine, his two brothers, and a sister the kind of upbringing that would make them successful. However, the Mafia was at the height of its power and glamor in 1940s Brooklyn; wise guys walked around with fancy suits and rolls of cash, and the excitement of organized crime proved too much for Carmine and his brothers to resist.
As a teenager, Carmine Persico was drawn to the violence and easy money of the streets. He became part of the Garfield Boys, a street gang that engaged in theft, robbery and extortion. At age 17, he was arrested for the first time and charged with the murder of another youth. He beat the rap, and Persico’s reputation for both ruthlessness and street smarts only grew. He soon joined the Profaci Family – predecessors to the Colombos – and was a made man by age 21.
A Ruthless and Cunning Mobster
Persico proved to be an effective mobster, and soon became a key soldier in the Profaci outfit. He has long been implicated in carrying out one of the most infamous hits of the 20th Century: the brutal assassination of Albert Anastasia, Mafia kingpin and the head of Murder Incorporated, in a barber’s chair. While Anastasia’s murder has never been solved, Carmine Persico allegedly discussed committing the murder with associates later on.
In the late 1950s Persico earned the “snake” nickname when the Profaci Family became embroiled in a violent internal feud for power. Some Family members had grown dissatisfied with Family boss Joe Profaci’s leadership. Persico initially sided with the dissident faction, led by the Gallo Brothers. However, in the midst of the dispute, Profaci convinced Persico to switch sides. Persico then attempted to murder former ally Larry Gallo by strangling him to death, but a police officer’s sudden appearance on the scene caused Persico to flee. Due to his perceived treachery, Persico was often referred to as Carmine “the Snake” Persico after that event, although not to his face; he detested the nickname and preferred to be called Junior or Carmine by his associates.
The war between the Profaci and Gallo faction continued for several months and the Gallo’s retaliated against Persico. He was ambushed while driving and shot in the arm and face, surviving the attempt on his life. Shortly afterward Carmine Persico was imprisoned for extortion, and Joey Gallo had also been imprisoned on separate charges. Joe Profaci had since died of natural causes, and after a quick succession of leaders, Joseph Colombo became the head of the family. One of Colombo’s first acts was to reward the incarcerated Persico for his loyalty by making him a Capo.
From Capo to Boss
After being released from prison, the ambitious Persico hit the streets hard. As a Colombo family Capo, Persico drove his crews to dominate the rackets. They were involved in everything from truck hijackings to loansharking and murder for hire, and became the most powerful, profitable arm of the Colombo family. However, the Gallo brothers still dogged Persico and the Colombo Family. In 1971, Joseph Colombo was shot and severely wounded in New York, allegedly by a hitman the Gallos had hired. With Colombo no longer capable of leading the family, Persico soon became the de facto boss of the Colombo family.
Persico ended the Gallo threat once and for all in 1972, directing a hit on Joey Gallo while he was celebrating his birthday at a restaurant in Manhattan. However, while the Gallo threat was gone, the law finally began to close in on Persico and the Colombos. Persico and several other family members were indicted and tried on racketeering charges in New York. Persico opted to serve as his own counsel, and, though even the trial judge noted how effective he was as his own lawyer, he was nonetheless convicted at the end of the trial in 1986. Following a second conviction immediately afterwards, Persico had a combined total 139-year sentence and would spend the rest of his life in prison.
Unlike other Mafia bosses, Persico chose to continue leading the Colombo Family while behind bars. However, the man that Persico placed in charge of the Family’s operations, Victor “Little Vic” Orena, soon attempted to usurp power and become boss of the Colombo family in his own right. In the ensuing fight between Orena and Colombo factions loyal to Persico, violence peaked in New York., leading to more law enforcement pressure on the Colombo family. Eventually, prosecutors indicted and convicted dozens of Colombo-affiliated gangsters, effectively hobbling the family.
Persico ultimately prevailed in maintaining control of the Colombos, but at a considerable cost. Later in life, while incarcerated, his influence and interest in mob business appeared to wane a bit. He was a popular inmate, who regaled fellow prisoners with stories of the Mafia’s glory days on the streets of New York. He even became friends with fellow inmate Bernie Madoff, who’d been convicted of massive investment fraud against his clients. Persico spent his final days at a prison in North Carolina and died of undetermined causes at the nearby Duke Medical Center.
Parting Thoughts – a Boss Until the End
Carmine Persico truly paid for his crimes. He spent decades of his life behind bars, and ultimately died there. However, in doing so, he never stopped being a boss. While his steadfast toughness will no doubt make him a sort of folk hero for Mafia aficionados, hopefully people will also remember the violence and lawlessness that Persico inflicted on the streets of New York as well.