August 11, 2025 • 9 mins
In this episode of Mobstercast Chronicles, we uncover the life of Dominic “Crazy Dom” Truscello, the feared and influential capo of the Lucchese crime family’s Prince Street Crew. From his rise in Little Italy to controlling multi-million-dollar construction rackets, to federal indictments and his final days, we trace the story of a mobster whose power was matched only by his underworld reputation.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to the deep dive. We're plunging into the stories
hidden in the sources you share, and today, well we're
stepping into the world of mafia nicknames, specifically one that
always grabs attention, Crazy Dom. It definitely hints at a
certain kind of story, doesn't it.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
It really does. That kind of name sticks with you.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
Our focus today is Dominic Trichello, born in Little Italy, Manhattan.
We're going to track his path into the Licheese crime family,
but maybe more importantly, how he ended up being well
a key part of a really quite sophisticated operation exactly.
Speaker 2 (00:34):
This isn't just another mobster story. We're looking at how
organized crime got its hooks deep into a legitimate.
Speaker 1 (00:40):
Industry, a vital one too, Construction in New York City.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Absolutely vital. It shows how these criminal outfits didn't just
skim off the top. They became part of the city's
economic machinery in a way.
Speaker 3 (00:51):
Right.
Speaker 1 (00:51):
So our mission here is to unpack the sources you
sent us. We want to see exactly how Crazy Dom
climbed the ranks, why he was so important for the
Lucia control over construction, and what that really meant for
the city. Let's dig In Okay, so Dominic crazy Dom Trischello.
He was born April twenty ninth, nineteen thirty four, right
(01:12):
there in little Italy Manhattan, a place just full of history,
immigrant stories and yeah, it's share.
Speaker 3 (01:18):
Of crime lore.
Speaker 2 (01:19):
Definitely has that atmosphere.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
And that nickname Crazy Dom. I mean, it's it's not subtle,
is it?
Speaker 2 (01:24):
Oh hardly? But in mafia circles those nicknames often mean
something specific. The exact story behind crazy Dom is well,
it's a bit murky, as these things often are, sure,
but nicknames like that aren't usually given lightly. They tend
to reflect reputation, maybe certain boldness or an unpredictable nature.
Given his career later on, Crazy probably pointed to someone,
(01:45):
let's say, capable of decisive maybe ruthless action makes sense.
Speaker 1 (01:50):
For a long time though, Crazy Dom wasn't exactly a
household name. Even for law enforcement. He shows up on
their radar late sixties, early seventies, just a soldier, really part.
Speaker 2 (01:58):
Of the Lacheese Famili's manhatt In faction, lower level guy.
Speaker 3 (02:02):
Operating kind of in the background.
Speaker 1 (02:04):
But often in these organizations you need a big shift
at the top right for guys lower down to get
a chance.
Speaker 2 (02:09):
Oh, absolutely, and the Lucize family had a huge shift
in nineteen eighty five. A lot of the top brass Yeah,
guys like Anthony Tony Ducks Corralo, they got indicted, ended
up behind.
Speaker 3 (02:18):
Bars right the Commission case exactly.
Speaker 2 (02:20):
So the new leadership that took over Vittorio Vica Musso
and Anthony Gaspipe Casso. They're based in Brooklyn, and they
started promoting their own guys Yea and Trousella. He got
a big promotion under him.
Speaker 3 (02:32):
What was that?
Speaker 2 (02:33):
He was made kopoorgine a coppo. He got his own crew,
the Prince Street Crew.
Speaker 1 (02:37):
Okay, let's unpack that copo for listeners. Maybe not steeped
in mob hierarchy. What does that actually mean in terms
of power? What could he do now that he couldn't before.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
It's a major step up, not just a title as
a coppo. He's now leading his own team of soldiers
of associates. He's overseeing a whole range of activities for the.
Speaker 3 (02:56):
Family, like what sort of things we're.
Speaker 2 (02:57):
Talking racketeering, fixing bids on contracts, extortion, fraud, bribery, and
the key thing here is how much of it was
tied directly into New York's construction industry and the unions.
Speaker 3 (03:11):
Oh, she's right in the thick of it.
Speaker 2 (03:12):
Absolutely, He's managing a critical source of income for the family,
real operational control.
Speaker 1 (03:17):
And then moving into the early nineties, it seems like
the Lochiese family got even more well organized about construction.
Speaker 3 (03:23):
This is when this.
Speaker 1 (03:24):
Lichize construction group really takes shape.
Speaker 2 (03:27):
Yeah, and what's fascinating here is how deliberate it seems,
how centralized. It wasn't just various crews doing their own
thing anymore.
Speaker 3 (03:34):
It was a specific group.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
A specific group, a kind of panel or triumvirate. Really.
You had Stephen WonderBoy, Krea, Joseph Joey Flowers, Tangora, and
Dominic Trichello. This group was basically tasked with overseeing all
the construction and union rackets for the Lichieses across the
whole city.
Speaker 3 (03:51):
Wow, like a board of directors for crime.
Speaker 2 (03:53):
You could almost see it that way. Yeah, a sort
of corporate restructuring to maximize control and profit. I'm sure
everyone was playing.
Speaker 1 (04:00):
From the same playbook and crazy Don Crischello was a
key player in this group.
Speaker 3 (04:05):
What was his specific role?
Speaker 2 (04:07):
He was deeply involved in managing the day to day stuff,
collecting the mob tax that percentage they demanded off contracts,
brokering bribes with officials or union guys, sorting out disputes
between crews over who got which.
Speaker 3 (04:21):
Job, and embedding mobsters on payrolls. That detail always.
Speaker 2 (04:25):
Yeah, that was crucial. Putting mob guys associates on the
books of legitimate construction companies. Why do that, Well, it
served a couple of purposes. It helped launder money, making
criminal profits look like legitimate wages. It also gave them
eyes and ears, even influence right inside these companies and unions.
It blurred the lines brilliantly from.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
Their perspective, turning illegal cash into taxable income.
Speaker 2 (04:48):
Essentially precisely, it wasn't just smash and grab. It was
this insidious corruption of the system itself, and the scale
was huge. Just think between ninety seven and ninety nine,
three big projects alone, Queen's Manhattan, the Bronx were worth
around thirty.
Speaker 1 (05:02):
Two million dollars thirty two million, and they were getting
a piece.
Speaker 2 (05:04):
Of that a significant piece. Shows you how much money
was flowing through this operation.
Speaker 1 (05:10):
So connecting this to the bigger picture, this wasn't just
crime affecting business. It was like crime becoming part of
the business structure.
Speaker 2 (05:17):
That's a good way to put it. They operated like
this parallel illegal economy right inside the legitimate one. Made
it incredibly hard to untangle. They weren't just outsiders, they
were insiders.
Speaker 1 (05:28):
But you know, these things rarely last forever do they?
The law eventually catches up inevitably.
Speaker 2 (05:34):
The collision was bound to happen, and the.
Speaker 1 (05:36):
First really big hit came September six, two thousand, federal
prosecutors brought a major indictment. Tricello was named, along with
Korea and Tangora, his partners in that construction group, and
others too, and.
Speaker 2 (05:48):
The charges were well comprehensive, covered everything they were doing.
Speaker 1 (05:52):
Racketeering, bit rigging, extortion, bribery, union corruption.
Speaker 2 (05:57):
The works, the whole playbook.
Speaker 1 (05:59):
Tricellad fight it all the way, though he eventually pled
guilty to extortion. There was a specific company mentioned, Commercial
Brick Construction, right.
Speaker 2 (06:07):
He took a plea on that specific.
Speaker 1 (06:09):
Charge and the sins about six years in federal prison.
Speaker 3 (06:13):
He got out January ninth, two thousand and six.
Speaker 2 (06:15):
Oh it's interesting here, or maybe telling, is that even
after doing time Trichiello was still officially considered part of
the Luciese family structure. He was still on their roster.
Speaker 1 (06:27):
Which raises a big question, doesn't it.
Speaker 2 (06:29):
It really does. How effective are prison sentences like this
If the underlying organization, the loyalties, the structures, they all
remain intact, does it really dismantle the operation.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
It's a critical point because fast forward about a decade
and boom, twenty seventeen, another massive.
Speaker 2 (06:46):
Indictment comes down, a sweeping one.
Speaker 1 (06:48):
And Trichilla's name is right there again, this time alongside
some really heavy hitters. We're talking Matthew Madonna, the street
boss basically running.
Speaker 3 (06:56):
Things day to day.
Speaker 2 (06:57):
Yeah, the acting boss.
Speaker 1 (06:58):
Stephen Cree Senior again, and Joseph Denopoli, the consiglier, the
advisor figure, top level guys.
Speaker 2 (07:03):
And the charges this time were even more serious in
some ways. Racketeering again, but also murder, drug trafficking, firearms offences,
really heavy stuff.
Speaker 1 (07:12):
But this final chapter, it didn't end with a dramatic
trial verdict for Tricello.
Speaker 3 (07:17):
It took a different turn.
Speaker 2 (07:18):
Yeah, it kind of faded out in a way.
Speaker 3 (07:20):
Dominic crazy.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
Don Tricello died in July twenty eighteen, while that second
case was still moving forward.
Speaker 3 (07:27):
So was a quiet exit really.
Speaker 1 (07:29):
Amidst all this legal chaos rather than a big courtroom finale.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
A contrast to the sort of dramatic ends we sometimes
associate with these figures.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
So looking back at his whole story, crazy Don Tricello.
Maybe not as famous as say a Gatti or a Capone.
Speaker 4 (07:44):
No, not that household name recognition, but his career, his
whole arc, it feels like it perfectly captures something essential
about organized crime, doesn't it, That deep entanglement with legitimate business,
especially construction, the unions.
Speaker 2 (07:58):
I think that's exactly right. He really represents that era
and that style of mob operation. Or they weren't just
you know, sugs on the street corner. They were embedded
deep inside the city's infrastructure.
Speaker 1 (08:08):
Operating with this kind of almost corporate savbiness.
Speaker 3 (08:11):
But for crime.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
Yeah, appearing like just another contractor or a union power
broker while behind the scenes they're running these huge criminal enterprises.
It really shows their reach, their ability to blend in
to corrupt from within.
Speaker 3 (08:25):
It really does.
Speaker 1 (08:25):
And his journey soldier Coppo running that construction group, indicted, prison, release,
re indicted, and then death before the final verdict, it's
a grim picture of that clash between organized crime and.
Speaker 2 (08:38):
The lull A cycle.
Speaker 3 (08:39):
Almost yeah, But it leaves us with.
Speaker 1 (08:41):
A question, maybe for you listening to think about, what
does a story like Trichello's really tell us about how
hard it is, how challenging it remains to truly pull
apart these criminal networks from the legitimate systems they latch onto,
even years after their supposed peak, to complex web, very
complex web, and for a significant time, crazy Don Trichelle
(09:02):
was sitting right there near the center of it.
Welcome to the deep dive. We're plunging into the stories
hidden in the sources you share, and today, well we're
stepping into the world of mafia nicknames, specifically one that
always grabs attention, Crazy Dom. It definitely hints at a
certain kind of story, doesn't it.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
It really does. That kind of name sticks with you.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
Our focus today is Dominic Trichello, born in Little Italy, Manhattan.
We're going to track his path into the Licheese crime family,
but maybe more importantly, how he ended up being well
a key part of a really quite sophisticated operation exactly.
Speaker 2 (00:34):
This isn't just another mobster story. We're looking at how
organized crime got its hooks deep into a legitimate.
Speaker 1 (00:40):
Industry, a vital one too, Construction in New York City.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Absolutely vital. It shows how these criminal outfits didn't just
skim off the top. They became part of the city's
economic machinery in a way.
Speaker 3 (00:51):
Right.
Speaker 1 (00:51):
So our mission here is to unpack the sources you
sent us. We want to see exactly how Crazy Dom
climbed the ranks, why he was so important for the
Lucia control over construction, and what that really meant for
the city. Let's dig In Okay, so Dominic crazy Dom Trischello.
He was born April twenty ninth, nineteen thirty four, right
(01:12):
there in little Italy Manhattan, a place just full of history,
immigrant stories and yeah, it's share.
Speaker 3 (01:18):
Of crime lore.
Speaker 2 (01:19):
Definitely has that atmosphere.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
And that nickname Crazy Dom. I mean, it's it's not subtle,
is it?
Speaker 2 (01:24):
Oh hardly? But in mafia circles those nicknames often mean
something specific. The exact story behind crazy Dom is well,
it's a bit murky, as these things often are, sure,
but nicknames like that aren't usually given lightly. They tend
to reflect reputation, maybe certain boldness or an unpredictable nature.
Given his career later on, Crazy probably pointed to someone,
(01:45):
let's say, capable of decisive maybe ruthless action makes sense.
Speaker 1 (01:50):
For a long time though, Crazy Dom wasn't exactly a
household name. Even for law enforcement. He shows up on
their radar late sixties, early seventies, just a soldier, really part.
Speaker 2 (01:58):
Of the Lacheese Famili's manhatt In faction, lower level guy.
Speaker 3 (02:02):
Operating kind of in the background.
Speaker 1 (02:04):
But often in these organizations you need a big shift
at the top right for guys lower down to get
a chance.
Speaker 2 (02:09):
Oh, absolutely, and the Lucize family had a huge shift
in nineteen eighty five. A lot of the top brass Yeah,
guys like Anthony Tony Ducks Corralo, they got indicted, ended
up behind.
Speaker 3 (02:18):
Bars right the Commission case exactly.
Speaker 2 (02:20):
So the new leadership that took over Vittorio Vica Musso
and Anthony Gaspipe Casso. They're based in Brooklyn, and they
started promoting their own guys Yea and Trousella. He got
a big promotion under him.
Speaker 3 (02:32):
What was that?
Speaker 2 (02:33):
He was made kopoorgine a coppo. He got his own crew,
the Prince Street Crew.
Speaker 1 (02:37):
Okay, let's unpack that copo for listeners. Maybe not steeped
in mob hierarchy. What does that actually mean in terms
of power? What could he do now that he couldn't before.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
It's a major step up, not just a title as
a coppo. He's now leading his own team of soldiers
of associates. He's overseeing a whole range of activities for the.
Speaker 3 (02:56):
Family, like what sort of things we're.
Speaker 2 (02:57):
Talking racketeering, fixing bids on contracts, extortion, fraud, bribery, and
the key thing here is how much of it was
tied directly into New York's construction industry and the unions.
Speaker 3 (03:11):
Oh, she's right in the thick of it.
Speaker 2 (03:12):
Absolutely, He's managing a critical source of income for the family,
real operational control.
Speaker 1 (03:17):
And then moving into the early nineties, it seems like
the Lochiese family got even more well organized about construction.
Speaker 3 (03:23):
This is when this.
Speaker 1 (03:24):
Lichize construction group really takes shape.
Speaker 2 (03:27):
Yeah, and what's fascinating here is how deliberate it seems,
how centralized. It wasn't just various crews doing their own
thing anymore.
Speaker 3 (03:34):
It was a specific group.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
A specific group, a kind of panel or triumvirate. Really.
You had Stephen WonderBoy, Krea, Joseph Joey Flowers, Tangora, and
Dominic Trichello. This group was basically tasked with overseeing all
the construction and union rackets for the Lichieses across the
whole city.
Speaker 3 (03:51):
Wow, like a board of directors for crime.
Speaker 2 (03:53):
You could almost see it that way. Yeah, a sort
of corporate restructuring to maximize control and profit. I'm sure
everyone was playing.
Speaker 1 (04:00):
From the same playbook and crazy Don Crischello was a
key player in this group.
Speaker 3 (04:05):
What was his specific role?
Speaker 2 (04:07):
He was deeply involved in managing the day to day stuff,
collecting the mob tax that percentage they demanded off contracts,
brokering bribes with officials or union guys, sorting out disputes
between crews over who got which.
Speaker 3 (04:21):
Job, and embedding mobsters on payrolls. That detail always.
Speaker 2 (04:25):
Yeah, that was crucial. Putting mob guys associates on the
books of legitimate construction companies. Why do that, Well, it
served a couple of purposes. It helped launder money, making
criminal profits look like legitimate wages. It also gave them
eyes and ears, even influence right inside these companies and unions.
It blurred the lines brilliantly from.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
Their perspective, turning illegal cash into taxable income.
Speaker 2 (04:48):
Essentially precisely, it wasn't just smash and grab. It was
this insidious corruption of the system itself, and the scale
was huge. Just think between ninety seven and ninety nine,
three big projects alone, Queen's Manhattan, the Bronx were worth
around thirty.
Speaker 1 (05:02):
Two million dollars thirty two million, and they were getting
a piece.
Speaker 2 (05:04):
Of that a significant piece. Shows you how much money
was flowing through this operation.
Speaker 1 (05:10):
So connecting this to the bigger picture, this wasn't just
crime affecting business. It was like crime becoming part of
the business structure.
Speaker 2 (05:17):
That's a good way to put it. They operated like
this parallel illegal economy right inside the legitimate one. Made
it incredibly hard to untangle. They weren't just outsiders, they
were insiders.
Speaker 1 (05:28):
But you know, these things rarely last forever do they?
The law eventually catches up inevitably.
Speaker 2 (05:34):
The collision was bound to happen, and the.
Speaker 1 (05:36):
First really big hit came September six, two thousand, federal
prosecutors brought a major indictment. Tricello was named, along with
Korea and Tangora, his partners in that construction group, and
others too, and.
Speaker 2 (05:48):
The charges were well comprehensive, covered everything they were doing.
Speaker 1 (05:52):
Racketeering, bit rigging, extortion, bribery, union corruption.
Speaker 2 (05:57):
The works, the whole playbook.
Speaker 1 (05:59):
Tricellad fight it all the way, though he eventually pled
guilty to extortion. There was a specific company mentioned, Commercial
Brick Construction, right.
Speaker 2 (06:07):
He took a plea on that specific.
Speaker 1 (06:09):
Charge and the sins about six years in federal prison.
Speaker 3 (06:13):
He got out January ninth, two thousand and six.
Speaker 2 (06:15):
Oh it's interesting here, or maybe telling, is that even
after doing time Trichiello was still officially considered part of
the Luciese family structure. He was still on their roster.
Speaker 1 (06:27):
Which raises a big question, doesn't it.
Speaker 2 (06:29):
It really does. How effective are prison sentences like this
If the underlying organization, the loyalties, the structures, they all
remain intact, does it really dismantle the operation.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
It's a critical point because fast forward about a decade
and boom, twenty seventeen, another massive.
Speaker 2 (06:46):
Indictment comes down, a sweeping one.
Speaker 1 (06:48):
And Trichilla's name is right there again, this time alongside
some really heavy hitters. We're talking Matthew Madonna, the street
boss basically running.
Speaker 3 (06:56):
Things day to day.
Speaker 2 (06:57):
Yeah, the acting boss.
Speaker 1 (06:58):
Stephen Cree Senior again, and Joseph Denopoli, the consiglier, the
advisor figure, top level guys.
Speaker 2 (07:03):
And the charges this time were even more serious in
some ways. Racketeering again, but also murder, drug trafficking, firearms offences,
really heavy stuff.
Speaker 1 (07:12):
But this final chapter, it didn't end with a dramatic
trial verdict for Tricello.
Speaker 3 (07:17):
It took a different turn.
Speaker 2 (07:18):
Yeah, it kind of faded out in a way.
Speaker 3 (07:20):
Dominic crazy.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
Don Tricello died in July twenty eighteen, while that second
case was still moving forward.
Speaker 3 (07:27):
So was a quiet exit really.
Speaker 1 (07:29):
Amidst all this legal chaos rather than a big courtroom finale.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
A contrast to the sort of dramatic ends we sometimes
associate with these figures.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
So looking back at his whole story, crazy Don Tricello.
Maybe not as famous as say a Gatti or a Capone.
Speaker 4 (07:44):
No, not that household name recognition, but his career, his
whole arc, it feels like it perfectly captures something essential
about organized crime, doesn't it, That deep entanglement with legitimate business,
especially construction, the unions.
Speaker 2 (07:58):
I think that's exactly right. He really represents that era
and that style of mob operation. Or they weren't just
you know, sugs on the street corner. They were embedded
deep inside the city's infrastructure.
Speaker 1 (08:08):
Operating with this kind of almost corporate savbiness.
Speaker 3 (08:11):
But for crime.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
Yeah, appearing like just another contractor or a union power
broker while behind the scenes they're running these huge criminal enterprises.
It really shows their reach, their ability to blend in
to corrupt from within.
Speaker 3 (08:25):
It really does.
Speaker 1 (08:25):
And his journey soldier Coppo running that construction group, indicted, prison, release,
re indicted, and then death before the final verdict, it's
a grim picture of that clash between organized crime and.
Speaker 2 (08:38):
The lull A cycle.
Speaker 3 (08:39):
Almost yeah, But it leaves us with.
Speaker 1 (08:41):
A question, maybe for you listening to think about, what
does a story like Trichello's really tell us about how
hard it is, how challenging it remains to truly pull
apart these criminal networks from the legitimate systems they latch onto,
even years after their supposed peak, to complex web, very
complex web, and for a significant time, crazy Don Trichelle
(09:02):
was sitting right there near the center of it.
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