The Colombo Family

Joe Profaci was the first boss of this family that originally beared his name. He ruled from 1930 to 1962. He was a very prominent boss. Profaci was frequently in the papers, and he liked the attention. The only problem he ever encountered was when a lieutenant, Crazy Joey Gallo, launched an all out war against his boss in an attempt to gain control of the family. However, Gallo did not have much support, and he was soon defeated by Profaci's faction of the Colombo Family.

Joseph Magliocco took over after Profaci's death, but he died in 1963. Joe Colombo took over, and quickly became known in the city. He ruled until 1971, when he was shot at an Italian-American Day rally which he had helped to plan. Colombo was killed by a single gunman, a black man named Jerome Johnson. Many people thought he was a lone nut who had killed Colombo for no apparent reason, but the real man behind the murder was Carlo Gambino. Gambino was angry at Colombo for all of the press that he was attracting. Colombo was in a coma for seven years, but died in 1978.

Joseph Yacovelli took over after this and ruled for two years. Joseph Brancato was in charge for five months in 1973, but he was jailed on murder charges, so he gave up control of the Colombo Family to Thomas DiBella. He negotiated peace with the remaining members of the faction of the family that was headed by Crazy Joey Gallo. He was deposed of in 1978 by Carmine Persico. Persico, also known as "Junior", was given the nickname "the Snake" by the media because of his ability to get out of certain situations. Persico was convicted on racketeering charges and given a 100 year sentence.

The Colombo family split into two factions in the mid-80's. One faction supported the imprisoned Persico. The other faction was loyal to the acting boss of the family, Vic Orena. In 1992, Orena was convicted of racketeering. This event was the start of the Colombo war. Members of each faction were killing each other. The war even included the controversial capo Greg Scarpa, a Persico soldier. Scarpa had acquired AIDS during a blood transfusion a few years before. It was suspected, and later learned to be true, that Scarpa was an FBI informant during the war. This didn't hamper his efforts, though, as he participated in the murders of at least eight other people. It was obvious that Persico wanted his nephew, Alfonse to take over the family. Persico won the war when he was allowed to appoint his nephew, Andrew Russo, as the acting boss of the Colombo Family. Russo held this for a few months and was named the permanent boss just before a racketeering indictment was leveled against him.

It is not known if Alfonse "Allie Boy" Persico will move to be the power in the Colombo Family that his father has controlled for so long.