Hitmen

The Mafia, Drugs, and the East Harlem Purple Gang

By: Scott M. Deitche

Narrated by: Perry Daniels

Scott M. Deitche presents an in-depth expose on East Harlem's notorious Purple Gang whose murderous exploits became a media obsession and Mafia lynchpin.

In the late 1970s, a string of seemingly unconnected murders had Harlem police and federal authorities at their wits' end until they realized several commonalities. The victims were all either Mafia members or potential witnesses of Mafia activity and they'd all been shot from .22 pistols traced back to a single private sale in Florida. From these details, the FBI and police were able to build a profile of a rogue sect of Mafia hitmen known as the East Harlem Purple Gang.

Starting on the fringes of Mafia families, the Purple Gang members became indispensable and installed members in the highest ranks of the Genovese, Bonanno, and Lucchese families. Often serving as freelance hitmen, kidnappers, and drug traffickers, the Purple Gang's exploits quickly crossed into mythology as media outlets scrambled to keep up with new murders and the law's crusade to bring the gang members to justice. Sifting through the mystery and mythos, author Scott M. Deitche brings readers into Harlem's gritty streets to experience the Purple Gang's reign of terror, the investigators who tried to bring them down, and the gang members who either suffered violent ends or are still at large today.

©2022 Scott M. Deitche (P)2022 Tantor

Pronounce the surnames correctly

It serves no purpose to try and pronounce these surnames as they are pronounced in Italy. Please pronounce them as the person with the name did.

In Italy Capone is pronounced “ka PONE ey.” I’d cringe at someone trying to display their knowledge by pronouncing it this way.

Likewise I cringe every time I hear “gen o VEEZ eh.” Vito pronounced his name “gen o VEEZ.”

Why the narrator can’t do the same is beyond me, unless he’s trying to show off some Italian he learned in high school.

Excellent for any mob enthusiast and historian

Absolutely loved it. Delves into the history of Italian Harlem and the stronghold they geld in the drug trade