James Napoli

James "Jimmy Nap" Napoli (November 4, 1911 – December 29, 1992) was a New York mobster who was a Caporegime in the Genovese crime family. From the 1950s to the 1980s, he controlled one of the largest illegal gambling operations in the United States.[1][2]

Napoli was known as a "Gentleman's Gentleman". Intelligent and well-respected, Napoli maintained ties to most of the major crime families.[citation needed]

Jimmy Nap used Crisci’s Restaurant as a base for his job activities.[3]

In 1969, Napoli was indicted for fixing several boxing matches. In the 1970s, Napoli reportedly operated the largest numbers operation in the United States. By 1976, the operation allegedly employed 2,000 people and grossed over $150 million a year. Napoli apparently ran this huge operation from a lounge in the Greenpoint section of Brooklyn. In 1978, Napoli was convicted for gambling and sentenced to five years in federal prison.[4]

In July 1988, Napoli was indicted on murder conspiracy charges. He had been taped by Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents as he discussed the attempted murders of Gambino crime family boss John Gotti, Gene Gotti and mob associate Irwin Schiff.[5]

On December 29, 1992, Napoli died of natural causes in the Kips Bay section of Manhattan.[6] He was buried in St. John Cemetery, Queens, New York.

Napoli was married Grace Perrota from November 29, 1933 until her death in 1962, they had 5 kids,(4 sons, 1 daughter)later got remarried to Jeanne Napoli, a former night club singer and theatrical producer. They had 2 daughters. In 1984, Napoli invested $250,000 in an unsuccessful musical biography of actress Marilyn Monroe that starred Jeanne.[6]

References

  1. ^ A Son's Journey from Organized Crime to Sobriety-My Father My Don Archived 2011-07-10 at the Wayback Machine May 27, 2009
  2. ^ Raab, Selwyn (September 2005). Five Families: The Rise, Decline, and Resurgence of America's Most Powerful Mafia Empires. Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-312-30094-4.
  3. ^ "James Napoli". The Original Tombstone Tourist. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
  4. ^ Newton, Michael (2021-04-16). Iceman of Brooklyn: The Mafia Life of Frankie Yale. McFarland. p. 213. ISBN 978-1-4766-8196-2.
  5. ^ Hanley, Robert (July 2, 1988). "Taped Meetings Detail Mob Plot to Kill 2 Gottis". The New York Times. p. 27. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  6. ^ a b *"Epic saga of the Genovese Family: Eight Million Stories" Archived 2007-10-01 at the Wayback Machine By Anthony Bruno TruTV Crime Library:
Stub icon

This crime-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Stub icon

This United States biographical article related to crime is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Stub icon

This article about a criminal organization is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.