In 1985 Gotti watched from his car as his assassins ruthlessly gunned down Paul Castellano, the boss of the Gambino Family.
Just a few days later, Gotti was himself proclaimed the Gambino boss and it wasn’t just the Mafia who knew about it. He soon became known as ‘The Dapper Don’ for his slick suits, outspoken personality and flamboyant life-style.
Soon the FBI were after him, but it seemed Gotti was uncatchable. Dramatic, highly publicised and seemingly water-tight cases always seemed to end in acquittals. But, then in 1992 a trusted associate ‘Sammy the Bull’ Gravano turned on him.
In an unexpected twist to another media-frenzied trial against Gotti, Gravano was persuaded to give evidence against his boss. Worse still, Gotti had openly spoken about numerous murders – and it all had been recorded by the FBI wiretapping teams. The results for Gotti were devastating.
