William Cutolo (June 6, 1949 – May 26, 1999), also known as "Billy Fingers" and "Wild Bill", was an Italian-American

mobster A gangster (informally gangsta) is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Most gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from '' mob'' and the suffix '' -ster''. Gangs provide a level ...

in the

Colombo crime family The Colombo crime family (, ) is an Italian American Mafia crime family and the youngest of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City within the criminal organization known as the American Mafia. It was during ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

who rose to the position of

underboss Underboss () is a position within the leadership structure of certain organized crime groups, particularly in Sicilian Mafia, Sicilian and Italian-American Mafia crime families. The underboss is second in command to the Crime boss, boss. The un ...

and was heavily involved in labor racketeering. Cutolo played a key role in the 1991 to 1993 Colombo war.

Criminal career

William Cutolo, christened Guglielmo Cutolo, was born in

Potenza Potenza (, ; ; , Potentino dialect: ''Putenz'') is a ''comune'' in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata (former Lucania). Capital of the Province of Potenza and the Basilicata region, the city is the highest regional capital and one of ...

Basilicata Basilicata (, ; ), also known by its ancient name Lucania (, , ), is an administrative region in Southern Italy, bordering on Campania to the west, Apulia to the north and east, and Calabria to the south. It has two coastlines: a 30-kilometr ...

and raised in the

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

borough of

. William Sr. was the brother of Gertrude, Barbara, and Geraldine Cutolo. He had three daughters and a son named William Jr. to previous wife Margurite Butera. In 1990, Cutolo had his third daughter, Dana, with his wife Bette Anne Fox, from Brooklyn. William Jr. followed his father into

illegal gambling Gambling law is the set of rules and regulations that apply to the gaming or gambling industry. Gaming law is not a branch of law in the traditional sense but rather is a collection of several areas of law that include criminal law, regulatory law ...

and

loansharking A loan shark is a person who offers loans at extremely high or illegal interest rates, has strict terms of collection, and generally operates outside the law, often using the threat of violence or other illegal, aggressive, and extortionate ...

and was eventually convicted of

extortion Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit (e.g., money or goods) through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, although making unfounded ...

and racketeering. Cutolo was also involved with several charities. He was a fundraising chairman and board member for the National

Leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia; pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and produce high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or '' ...

Research Association in

Garden City, New York Garden City is a village located in Nassau County, on Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 23,272 at the time of the 2020 census. The Incorporated Village of Garden City is primarily located within the Town of Hempstead ...

."Union Inquiry Looks at Charity's Tie to Reputed Mobster"
By KEVIN FLYNN New York Times December 12, 1998 Cutolo sat on the Medical Advisory Committee as Chairman of "Team Leukemia", and was associated with the New York chapter of the

Leukemia and Lymphoma Society The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS), a 501(c)(3) charitable organization founded in 1949, is a voluntary health organization dedicated to fighting blood cancer world-wide. LLS funds blood cancer research on cures for leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin ...

Rye Brook, New York Rye Brook is a administrative divisions of New York#Village, village in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County, New York (state), New York, United States, within the administrative divisions of New York#Town, town of Rye (town), New Yo ...

. He helped raise $400,000 for

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) is a trade union, labor union that represents approximately 820,000 workers and retirees in the electricity, electrical industry in the United States, Canada, Guam, Panama, Puerto Rico, an ...

Local 204 as well as many other locals over the years. In 1988, Cutolo was honored as the National Leukemia Association's Man of the Year. Cutolo paid for their holiday parties and dressed up every year as Santa Claus for the National Children's Leukemia Association in

Borough Park, Brooklyn Borough Park (also spelled Boro Park) is a neighborhood in the southwestern part of the borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn, in New York City. The neighborhood is bordered by Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, Bensonhurst to the south, Dyker Heigh ...

as his son, William Jr., handed out gifts and posed for pictures with the stricken children. Cutolo rose up the ranks of the

during the late 1980s under acting boss

Victor Orena Victor J. Orena (born August 4, 1934), also known as "Little Vic", is an American mobster who became the acting boss of the Colombo crime family of New York City. A challenge by Orena to boss Carmine Persico triggered one of the bloodiest Mafi ...

. Originally a

soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a Conscription, conscripted or volunteer Enlisted rank, enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, a warrant officer, or an Officer (armed forces), officer. Etymology The wo ...

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

Pasquale Amato Pasquale Amato (21 March 1878 – 12 August 1942) was an Italians, Italian operatic baritone. Amato enjoyed an international reputation but attained the peak of his fame in New York City, where he sang with the Metropolitan Opera from 1908 unti ...

's crew, Cutolo soon became one of the family's more powerful leaders. Cutolo was successful because he made much money and commanded a crew of hitmen. His crew included Joseph Petillo, Dominick Dionisio, Michael Spataro, Ralph Guccione, Vincent "Chickie" DeMartino, Michael Donato and his son William Cutolo Jr. Cutolo earned the nickname "Billy Fingers" because he was missing one finger and another one was mutilated due to an occupational accident at a hamburger store. In 1989, Cutolo earned his nickname "Wild Bill" after beating a man with a baseball bat. Cutolo was fond of

cowboy boots Cowboy boots are a specific style of riding boot, historically worn by cowboys. They have a high heel that is traditionally made of stacked leather, rounded to pointed toe, high shaft, and, traditionally, no lacing. Cowboy boots are normally m ...

and frequently wore a large brown

ten-gallon hat The cowboy hat is a high-crowned, wide- brimmed hat best known as the defining piece of attire for the North American cowboy. Today it is worn by many people, and is particularly associated with ranch workers in the United States, Canada, Mexico, ...

."Five Families: The Rise, Decline, and Resurgence of America's Most Powerful ... "
By Selwyn Raab page 347 He operated Bill's Friendly

Bocce (, or , ), sometimes anglicized as bocce ball, bocci, or boccie, is a ball sport belonging to the boules family. Developed into its present form in Italy, it is closely related to English bowls and French , with a common ancestry from anc ...

social club in the Bath Beach section of Brooklyn as his headquarters. Cutolo was the

best man A groomsman or usher is one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony. Usually, the groom selects close friends and relatives to serve as groomsmen, and it is considered an honor to be selected. From his groomsmen, the groom usuall ...

at mobster John "Jackie" DeRoss's wedding, the man who would eventually participate in his murder. Unyielding in negotiations and harsh with his crew members, Cutolo made no secret of his ambition to become boss of the Colombo family.

Labor racketeer

During the 1980s, Cutolo became the president and business agent for

Teamsters Union The International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) is a labor union in the United States and Canada. Formed in 1903 by the merger of the Team Drivers International Union and the Teamsters National Union, the union now represents a diverse members ...

local 861 in New York. However, in 1990, Cutolo resigned his positions the day before the Teamsters Union was planning to expel him for organized crime ties. Cutolo also gained control of District Council (DC) 37, a local of the

American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

(AFSCME). Cutolo and his close friend mobster Thomas DiNardo used Council 37 to steer jobs to Colombo associates and spending towards Colombo-controlled vendors and resorts."Solidarity for sale: how corruption destroyed the labor movement and ..."
By Robert Fitch page 180 Cutolo was not afraid to use intimidation to maintain power. In 1990, Cutolo sent thugs to beat up 72-year-old Vincent Parisi, the head of a Laborers Union local with

colon cancer Colorectal cancer (CRC), also known as bowel cancer, colon cancer, or rectal cancer, is the development of cancer from the colon or rectum (parts of the large intestine). Signs and symptoms may include blood in the stool, a change in bowel ...

. During a meeting several days earlier, Parisi had cursed at Cutolo and thrown a paper ball at his face. In 1998, New York City newspapers reported on links between Council 37 and the National Leukemia Research Foundation, Cutolo's favorite charity. Investigators questioned whether cash donations from union officials were actually being received by the Foundation."Union Inquiry Looks at Charity's Tie to Reputed Mobster"
By KEVIN FLYNN December 12, 1998 During the 1990s, Cutolo also became vice president of the new Local 400 of the Industrial & Production Workers Union, a city workers union. He was later accused of using the union's name to receive money from companies seeking to avoid union organizers.

Businessman

Cutolo also extorted money from companies such as Embassy Terrace, a Brooklyn caterer. The company was in severe financial trouble when it approached Cutolo for help. In return his investment, Cutolo gained control over the enterprise. Cutolo also controlled several restaurants and nightclubs In New York and

Miami, Florida Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

. In 1998, Cutolo and mobster Vincent "Vinny Ocean" Palermo allegedly formed a partnership with German corporation

Siemens Siemens AG ( ) is a German multinational technology conglomerate. It is focused on industrial automation, building automation, rail transport and health technology. Siemens is the largest engineering company in Europe, and holds the positi ...

AG behind dummy investors on a cell phone deal in Russia."Made men: the true rise-and-fall story of a New Jersey mob family"
By Greg B. Smith

Persico-Orena Colombo war

In 1991, Cutolo became enmeshed in a bloody war for control of the Colombo family. Acting boss Victor Orena had challenged

Carmine Persico Carmine John Persico Jr. (; August 8, 1933 – March 7, 2019), also known as "Junior", "The Snake" and "Immortal", was an American mobster and the longtime boss of the Colombo crime family in New York City from 1973 until his death in 2019. He ...

, still in prison, on the naming of his son

Alphonse Persico Alphonse T. Persico, known as Little Allie Boy or just Allie Boy (born February 8, 1954), is an American mobster who served as the official acting boss of the Colombo crime family from 1996 to 2019; he is the son of crime boss Carmine Persico. B ...

as acting boss. Cutolo was one of Orena's strongest allies. On June 21, 1991, the bloodshed started with an unsuccessful assassination attempt by the Persico faction on Orena. On November 18, 1991, in response to the Orena attack, Cutolo sent a team to ambush Persico loyalist

Gregory Scarpa Gregory Scarpa Sr. (May 8, 1928 – June 4, 1994), nicknamed the Grim Reaper and the Mad Hatter, was an American ''caporegime'' and hitman for the Colombo crime family, as well as an informant for the FBI. During the 1970s and '80s, Scarpa was t ...

as he was driving with his daughter and granddaughter. Scarpa and his family managed to escape harm."Mob: stories of death and betrayal from organized crime"
By Clint Willis pp. 88-89 Five days after the Scarpa hit, Cutolo led a hit team that killed Persico loyalist Henry Smurra outside a Brooklyn doughnut shop."The Colombo Family: Junior's War"
By Anthony Bruno TruTV Crime Library In another incident, Cutolo was driving away from a

Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn Sheepshead Bay is a neighborhood in southern Brooklyn, New York City. It is bounded by Ocean Parkway to the west; Avenue T and Kings Highway to the north; Nostrand Avenue and Gerritsen Avenue to the east; and the Atlantic Ocean to the south. ...

social club when he spotted Persico loyalist

Joel Cacace Joel Cacace Sr. (born April 9, 1941), also known as Joe Waverly, is an American mobster and former consigliere of the Colombo crime family in New York City. He was convicted of murder in 2004 and was released from prison in 2020. Since his release ...

. The two men traded shots on the street, wounding Cacace. After Orena's imprisonment in 1992, the Colombo war ended in October 1993 with a Persico victory after the murder of Orena captain

Joseph Scopo Joseph is a common male name, derived from the Hebrew (). "Joseph" is used, along with " Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the modern-day Nordic count ...

. Investigators concluded that Cutolo was personally responsible for three of the 12 murders committed during this conflict. To punish Cutolo for his support of Orena, Carmine Persico temporarily demoted him from ''capo'' to soldier. Carmine Persico was also angry that Cutolo had called him "a rat" for admitting the existence of the ''

Cosa Nostra The Sicilian Mafia or Cosa Nostra (, ; "our thing"), also referred to as simply Mafia, is a criminal society and criminal organization originating on the island of Sicily and dates back to the mid-19th century. Emerging as a form of local protect ...

'' at the 1985

Mafia Commission Trial The Mafia Commission Trial (in full, ''United States v. Anthony Salerno, et al'') was a criminal trial before the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York in New York City, New York, that lasted from February 25, 1985, ...

. Despite his demotion, Cutolo eventually reconciled with Persico after the war, or so he thought. The family had been decimated, but the Mafia Commission would not allow the induction of new members until the two warring factions made peace. In early 1993, Cutolo and six of his crew members were arrested and held without bail on racketeering and murder charges from the Colombo war. In September 1994, they went on trial, but were all acquitted. The main reason for the verdict was just-revealed information about Scarpa's role as an informant for the

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

(FBI)."Convictions: A Prosecutor's Battles Against Mafia Killers, Drug Kingpins ..."
By John Kroger pp 149-150

Murder

In early 1999, after Alphonse Persico was released from prison, Carmine Persico promoted Cutolo to

as a peace gesture. However, the situation changed when Alphonse Persico was sentenced to prison in Florida on a gun possession charge. The Persicos and DeRoss were afraid that Cutolo would seize control of the family in Alphonse Persico's absence and decided to murder Cutolo. On May 26, 1999, Alphonse Persico summoned Cutolo to a meeting. Cutolo's mechanic dropped him off at a park in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn where the meeting was set to take place. After Cutolo arrived at the park, Thomas Gioeli, Dino Saracino, and Dino Calabro allegedly transported Cutolo to the basement of Saracino's house, where they murdered him. Gioeli then allegedly buried Cutolo at an industrial park in

Farmingdale, New York Farmingdale is an incorporated village on Long Island within the Town of Oyster Bay in Nassau County, New York, United States. The population was 8,466 at the time of the 2020 Census. The Lenox Hills neighborhood is adjacent to Bethpage State ...

."COLOMBO ORGANIZED CRIME FAMILY ACTING BOSS ALPHONSE T. PERSICO AND ADMINISTRATION MEMBER JOHN J. DEROSS CONVICTED OF MURDER IN AID OF RACKETEERING AND WITNESS TAMPERING"
Press Release The United States Attorney's Office Eastern District of New York December 28, 2007 A few years later,

Gambino crime family The Gambino crime family (pronounced ) is an Italian American Mafia crime family and one of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the American Mafia. ...

captain Michael "Mikey Scars" DiLeonardo testified that when he arrived at this meeting, Alphonse Persico and DeRoss told him that Cutolo was gone. The day after the Cutolo murder, DeRoss unsuccessfully ransacked Cutolo's home office in

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is the southernmost of the boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County and situated at the southernmost point of New York (state), New York. The borough is separated from the ad ...

for Cutolo's loansharking records and a $1.5 million cash stash (hidden in a stove vent). During that visit and succeeding ones, DeRoss warned Cutolo's family not to make any statements to police that linked Persico or the Colombo family to the shooting."Wiseguy told me not to blab, Wild Bill Cutolo's girl testifies"
by John Marzulli, ''New York Daily News'', November 8, 2007. DeRoss became the new underboss. In 2001, Cutolo's family formally joined the

Witness Protection Program Witness protection is security provided to a threatened person providing testimonial evidence to the justice system, including defendants and other clients, before, during, and after trials, usually by police. While witnesses may only require p ...

. William Jr. would be removed from the program in 2006 due to an extortion conviction. In a 2002 hearing in

Surrogate Court A probate court (sometimes called a surrogate court) is a court that has competence in a jurisdiction to deal with matters of probate and the administration of estates. In some jurisdictions, such courts may be referred to as orphans' courts o ...

, a judge pronounced Cutolo dead in absentia.

Trials

In 2004, Alphonse Persico and DeRoss were indicted for conspiring to murder Cutolo. However, on November 4, 2004, the first trial ended as a

mistrial In law, a trial is a coming together of parties to a dispute, to present information (in the form of evidence) in a tribunal, a formal setting with the authority to adjudicate claims or disputes. One form of tribunal is a court. The tribunal, ...

because the jury deadlocked over a case with just

circumstantial evidence Circumstantial evidence is evidence that relies on an inference to connect it to a conclusion of fact, such as a fingerprint at the scene of a crime. By contrast, direct evidence supports the truth of an assertion directly, i.e., without need ...

and no body."Mistrial in Murder Case Declared for Colombo Crime Boss"
by Carl Horowitz National Legal and Policy Center November 20, 2006 On November 7, 2007, the second trial began. On December 28, 2007, Persico and DeRoss were convicted of Cutolo's murder. The evidence in the second trial now included undercover recordings of Persico and DeRoss made by William Jr. for the FBI as well as crucial testimony by William Sr.'s wife Peggy."How Colombo crime family boss Bill Cutolo's son paid back his killers"
by John Marzulli, ''New York Daily News'', October 19, 2008. In December 2008, Gioeli, Saracino, and Calabro were also indicted in the Cutolo murder. On February 27, 2009, Persico and DeRoss were sentenced to

life imprisonment Life imprisonment is any sentence (law), sentence of imprisonment under which the convicted individual is to remain incarcerated for the rest of their natural life (or until pardoned or commuted to a fixed term). Crimes that result in life impr ...

for the Cutolo murder."Colombo boss found guilty of murder"
by John Marzulli, ''New York Daily News'', December 29, 2007. In February 2010, Dino Calabro became a government witness. It was likely that he would testify against Gioeli and Saracino in the Cutolo murder trial.

Recovery of body

In October 2008, acting on an informant's information, federal agents started searching a field in

East Farmingdale, New York East Farmingdale is a hamlet and a census-designated place (CDP) located in the Town of Babylon in Suffolk County, on the South Shore of Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 6,617 at the time of the 2020 census. In the ...

. They soon unearthed the body of a man wrapped in a blue

tarpaulin A tarpaulin ( , ) or tarp is a large sheet of strong, flexible, water-resistant or waterproof material, often cloth such as canvas or polyester coated with polyurethane, or made of plastics such as polyethylene. Tarpaulins often have reinf ...

; the man was wearing Italian loafers. A forensic dentist later confirmed that the body was that of William Cutolo Sr."Body Identified as Missing Mobster’s"
THE NEW YORK TIMES October 7, 2008 In 2008, nine years after his murder, Cutolo was interred at the Cemetery of the Resurrection, Staten Island."Awaiting a Burial, This Time an Actual One"
By ALAN FEUER New York Times October 8, 2008

References

External links

*http://lukeford.net/blog/?p=9125 {{DEFAULTSORT:Cutolo, William 1949 births 1999 deaths 1999 murders in the United States 1990s missing person cases 20th-century American criminals American male criminals Murdered American gangsters of Italian descent Gangsters from New York City Criminals from Brooklyn People from Potenza Mafia extortionists Mafia hitmen Italian emigrants to the United States People murdered in New York City People murdered by the Colombo crime family Colombo crime family American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees people