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Tommy Bilotti displayed the type of characteristics that are a dime a dozen among Cosa Nostra soldiers. He was a squat, strong, muscle bound street tough that was comfortable collecting a debt from a delinquent borrower and carrying out hits on orders from superiors. There was never the slightest hint of political tact or shrewdness from him, no reason that he ever should have been elevated as highly as he was, but somehow Bilotti managed work his way up to second-in-command of the most powerful crime family in the nation. The reason for the continual promotions were his loyalty to eventual boss Paul Castellano, serving as a bodyguard and chauffer for Big Paulie at various times. The business interests of Bilotti’s early years were ones that put to use his strengths – intimidation and muscle – meaning he operated primarily in loansharking and extortion. But as Castellano was promoted to boss of the Gambino Family in 1976, so too was Bilotti promoted. Castellano made Tommy a captain, although he still continued to serve as Castellano’s driver and bodyguard whenever necessary. Along with maintaining the large loansharking book he had put together throughout his career, Bilotti was always rewarded new, very lucrative business ventures. Very involved in the construction business, Castellano set up his son Philip in the Scara-Mix Concrete Company, a corporation that somehow continually won profitable contracts in the city. Along with the influence of the elder Castellano, part of the reason the company continually won the lucrative deals was because Bilotti was put in place as an official of the company. Bilotti became quite a recognizable figure in and around construction sites that Castellano or the Gambino Family had an interest in. To keep his “legitimate businessman reputation” intact, Castellano shied away from on-site day-to-day responsibilities of his construction interests. Instead he favored allowing Bilotti to oversee daily construction activities, particularly in Staten Island. Bilotti became so trusted by Castellano that while he was under indictment in the early 1980s, the boss formulated plans to insert Bilotti as the acting boss should he have to spend time in jail. This plan did not sit well with the Aniello Dellacroce-John Gotti faction of the Gambinos who viewed Bilotti as little more than a glorified errand boy. When Dellacroce died on December 2, 1985 and Bilotti succeeded him as underboss, the rising tensions between the family factions came to the boiling point. Out of concern of being taken out, John Gotti decided to strike first, which he did on December 16 of the same year. As Bilotti pulled the Lincoln of Castellano to the curb of Sparks Steakhouse in Manhattan for a sitdown with family capos, gunmen converged on the car. |