by maxiestern11 » Fri Jun 28, 2019 6:56 am
CARMINE (CHARLIE WAGON WHEELS) FATICO - born 1920 was a longtime Gambino member who became a top “Capo di decina”, running one of the more gritty crews of the family from a headquarters in the East New York section of Brooklyn. Fatico operated from a social club named the “Bergen Hunt & Fish Club” of John Gotti fame. Except the original “Bergen” was Fatico’s club before Gotti. In fact, Gotti was originally brought around and became a protege’ of Carmine Fatico. This was a large crew of real street guys; burglars, truck hijackers, armed robbers, as well as, the more mundane white collar bookmakers, numbers guys, and varied gamblers and hangers on. Carmine and his brother/partner Donato (Danny Wagons) Fatico, a soldier in Carmine’s regime and his “acting captain”, operated a large very active truck hijacking ring responsible for many of the trucks snatched from JFK and its outer environs, and the related fencing of these loads. Fatico had moved from Brooklyn to Higbie Lane, in West Islip and started to conduct activities on Long Island by the early 1960’s. His primary action was gambling and a large shylock operation. He also pushed into businesses and attempted the “strong arm” takeover of a LI painters union, having a union official beaten in an effort to coerce him into submission. By the mid-60’s he was under intense surveillance by LE and was indicted for the attempted murder of an East Rockaway business owner for complaining about Fatico’a theft of over $185,000. In air-conditioning equipment from his firms warehouse. By the early 1970’s he had another indictment related to his loansharking ring and several extortion counts. A Colombo/Gambino associate named Salvatore (Sonny Black) Montella, a hijacker turned informer, named Fatico as an accomplice. With the extensive “heat” that accompanied these indictments, Fatico tried backing up a bit, utilizing his brother Danny as a proxy, but Danny before long had his own legal headaches. He was indicted in relation to several “deviant” sex bars-clubs he was backing in Island Park, and a gambling “pinch” he took...... as a side note, the legal precedent, the so called “Fatico Hearing” (which alleges to prove a persons Mafia affiliations and criminal record), which is a common statue used by prosecutors was created from a criminal case of Carmine Fatico. He went down in legal history for this. Fatico had a long criminal arrest record;
assault (5 times) grand larceny, burglary, possession of burglars tools, making a false statement, dice games, robbery (twice), policy, bookmaking (twice), disorderly conduct (twice), conspiracy to commit murder, conspiracy, usury and extortion, but had only served one jail term (3-5 years) on a grand larceny conviction.
By the late 1970’s Fatico semi-tired. He still hung around the Bergen on occasion but allowed an up-and-comer, John Gotti, assume more and more responsibility for the day to day operations of the Fatico crew.
CARMINE (CHARLIE WAGON WHEELS) FATICO - born 1920 was a longtime Gambino member who became a top “Capo di decina”, running one of the more gritty crews of the family from a headquarters in the East New York section of Brooklyn. Fatico operated from a social club named the “Bergen Hunt & Fish Club” of John Gotti fame. Except the original “Bergen” was Fatico’s club before Gotti. In fact, Gotti was originally brought around and became a protege’ of Carmine Fatico. This was a large crew of real street guys; burglars, truck hijackers, armed robbers, as well as, the more mundane white collar bookmakers, numbers guys, and varied gamblers and hangers on. Carmine and his brother/partner Donato (Danny Wagons) Fatico, a soldier in Carmine’s regime and his “acting captain”, operated a large very active truck hijacking ring responsible for many of the trucks snatched from JFK and its outer environs, and the related fencing of these loads. Fatico had moved from Brooklyn to Higbie Lane, in West Islip and started to conduct activities on Long Island by the early 1960’s. His primary action was gambling and a large shylock operation. He also pushed into businesses and attempted the “strong arm” takeover of a LI painters union, having a union official beaten in an effort to coerce him into submission. By the mid-60’s he was under intense surveillance by LE and was indicted for the attempted murder of an East Rockaway business owner for complaining about Fatico’a theft of over $185,000. In air-conditioning equipment from his firms warehouse. By the early 1970’s he had another indictment related to his loansharking ring and several extortion counts. A Colombo/Gambino associate named Salvatore (Sonny Black) Montella, a hijacker turned informer, named Fatico as an accomplice. With the extensive “heat” that accompanied these indictments, Fatico tried backing up a bit, utilizing his brother Danny as a proxy, but Danny before long had his own legal headaches. He was indicted in relation to several “deviant” sex bars-clubs he was backing in Island Park, and a gambling “pinch” he took...... as a side note, the legal precedent, the so called “Fatico Hearing” (which alleges to prove a persons Mafia affiliations and criminal record), which is a common statue used by prosecutors was created from a criminal case of Carmine Fatico. He went down in legal history for this. Fatico had a long criminal arrest record;
assault (5 times) grand larceny, burglary, possession of burglars tools, making a false statement, dice games, robbery (twice), policy, bookmaking (twice), disorderly conduct (twice), conspiracy to commit murder, conspiracy, usury and extortion, but had only served one jail term (3-5 years) on a grand larceny conviction.
By the late 1970’s Fatico semi-tired. He still hung around the Bergen on occasion but allowed an up-and-comer, John Gotti, assume more and more responsibility for the day to day operations of the Fatico crew.