Nicodemo Salvatore "Nicky" Scarfo Jr.[1] (born June 9, 1965), sometimes known by the nicknames "Junior", "Nick Promo", and "Mr. Apple" is an American mobster and a member of the Lucchese crime family.
The attempted hit, by a gunman wearing a Batman mask,[3] occurred at Dante and Luigi's,[4] an Italian restaurant in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
[8] Philadelphia crime family boss Ralph Natale later testified in court that Merlino "hated" Scarfo from this time onward.
Five members of the Philadelphia crime family turned state's evidence against the elder Scarfo, including soldiers Nicholas Caramandi and Eugene Milano, capos Thomas DelGiorno and Lawrence Merlino (Chuckie Merlino's brother), and underboss (and Scarfo relative) Phil Leonetti.
[12] On November 4, 1988, just three days after Mark's suicide attempt, Nicky Scarfo Jr. and a friend assaulted a woman in an elevator at Hahnemann University Hospital in Philadelphia.
In October 1989, Scarfo Jr. bodyguard George Fresolone turned state's evidence and began wearing a wire.
[15] Fresolone taped Scarfo Jr. plotting the death of his cousin, Phil Leonetti, an act which would have allowed him to rise within the Philadelphia criminal organization: My father says, he says, this one is definitely my responsibility.
Initially, law enforcement officials believed that the hit had been ordered by one of the Five Families in New York City in an attempt to take over Philadelphia's organized crime operations.
[10] At least one other mobster testifying on behalf of the government alleged that soldier Peter "Pete the Crumb" Caprio also knew of the hit and attempted to prevent it.
[20] Authorities also suspected Charles "Chaz" Iannece of the attempted murder because he delivered a controversial kiss on the cheek to Scarfo shortly before the gunman attacked.
[28] Law enforcement officials alleged that Scarfo Sr. arranged to have his son inducted into the Lucchese crime family New Jersey faction to protect him from further attempts on his life.
In 1990, Nicky Scarfo and Gaetano "Tommy Horsehead" Scafidi were allegedly ordered to beat mobster Martin Angelina because he refused to stop associating with Chuckie Merlino.
He had been arrested, convicted, and sentenced to 33 months in federal prison for helping to run a multimillion-dollar illegal gambling and loan sharking operation.
[3] The media reported that Scarfo moved to the Jersey Shore after his release and began an effort to take over the Philadelphia crime family.
[23][41][42] An Organized Crime Control Bureau affidavit made in 2007 alleges that Scarfo met Merola after moving to New Jersey in the early 1990s.
[46] Based on the seized documents, federal prosecutors alleged that Scarfo and Pelullo took control of FirstPlus Financial Group in June 2007 and "transferred several million dollars between June 2007 and May 2008 to corporate entities controlled by Pelullo and Scarfo Jr."[47] A later estimate put the amount of stolen money at $4.86 million.
[48] They also accused Scarfo of using the bank to make numerous real estate deals, including the purchase of his Egg Harbor Township home.
[40] Scarfo's close friend and associate, Andrew Merola, was sentenced in late October 2010 to 10 to 12 years in prison for fraud, extortion, labor racketeering, loan-sharking, and sports betting.
[49] Law enforcement authorities revealed that some of the 39,000 wiretapped conversations in the Merola case include discussions of Scarfo's allegedly illegal activities concerning FirstPlus.
[49] Scarfo was indicted on May 14, 2010, on gambling and racketeering charges for his alleged role in what law enforcement authorities claim was a $2 billion international sports-betting operation.
[35][50] He was one of 34 purported New York-based Lucchese crime family members or associates named in the indictment announced by the New Jersey Attorney General's Office.
[2][54] On November 1, 2011, Scarfo was arrested by the FBI for what the agency said was his role in the attempt to take over and embezzle millions of dollars out of FirstPlus Financial Group.
Scarfo's wife, Lisa Murray-Scarfo, was also indicted in the scheme, along with alleged Lucchese mob associate Sal Pelullo and several officials of FirstPlus.
[2] Federal authorities said Scarfo and his associates took $12 million from the loan mortgage company and used the money to buy luxury automobiles, houses, a jet aircraft, jewelry, and a yacht they named "Priceless".
[56] Prosecutors said they had 7,500 recorded telephone conversations[58] in which Scarfo discussed his illegal activities, including one in which he talked about faked documents to hide his involvement and another in which he boasted of a $36,000-a-month consulting contract for which he performed no work.
Scarfo is currently incarcerated at Fairton FCI in Fairfield Township New Jersey with a projected release date of December 2037.