Joseph Massino

Lore & Background

Joseph Massino was born in New York City, one of three sons of Anthony and Adeline Massino, both of Italian descent from Naples. Raised in Maspeth, Queens, he admitted to being a juvenile delinquent by age 12 and claimed to have run away to Florida at 14. He dropped out of Grover Cleveland High School in tenth grade. He married Josephine Vitale in 1960 and had three daughters. His brother-in-law Salvatore Vitale became a trusted ally. Massino earned the nickname 'Big Joey' due to his weight; by 2004 he suffered from diabetes and high blood pressure.

Massino rose through the Bonanno family as a protégé of Philip Rastelli. He claimed his first murder was of associate Tommy Zummo in 1969. He led a truck hijacking crew and opened J&J Catering as a front. In 1977 he was inducted into the Bonanno family. After the 1979 assassination of Carmine Galante, Rastelli took full control and promoted Massino to caporegime. In 1981, Massino arranged the murder of three rebel captains and later his rival Dominick Napolitano.

In 1991, while Massino was in prison for a 1986 labor racketeering conviction, Rastelli died and Massino succeeded him as boss. Upon release in 1992, he rebuilt the family. By the early 2000s, he was considered the most powerful Mafia leader in the nation and known as 'The Last Don.' In July 2004, he was convicted in a RICO case based on testimony from cooperating made men, including Salvatore Vitale. Facing the death penalty in a separate murder trial, he agreed to testify and was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2005. He testified twice for the government, helping convict acting boss Vincent Basciano in 2011, and was resentenced to time served in 2013.

Reader's Guide

Joseph Massino's significance lies in his dual role as a powerful Mafia boss and as the first leader of a New York Five Families to become a government witness. His cooperation marked a historic breach of omertà, the Mafia code of silence, and led to the conviction of his acting boss Vincent Basciano. Massino's rise from truck hijacker to boss of the Bonanno family, his orchestration of multiple murders, and his eventual turn against his associates illustrate both the peak and the decline of traditional organized crime in New York. His testimony provided rare insider insight into Mafia operations, but also underscored the fragility of loyalty within criminal organizations. His legacy is that of a don who, when faced with the death penalty, chose to break the Mafia's most sacred rule.

Did You Know?

• Massino was the first boss of one of the Five Families in New York City to turn state's evidence.
• He claimed his first murder victim was Bonanno associate Tommy Zummo in 1969.
• Massino earned the nickname 'Big Joey' due to his weight; an FBI agent joked they could not find an actor fat enough to play him.
• He was resentenced to time served in 2013 after testifying against his acting boss Vincent Basciano.