How did Vinny Asaro die? New York mobster linked to 'Goodfellas' JFK heist dies at 86
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Notorious Bonanno crime family capo Vincent Asaro died on October 21, three years after he was released from prison for health reasons at the age of 86. The exact cause of Asaro’s death has not been specified, according to the New York Post.
Asaro was linked to the infamous Lufthansa heist at JFK airport in 1978, where a group of mobsters pulled off a robbery amounting to nearly $6 million. The incident was depicted in the 1990 film 'Goodfellas'.
The cadre of mobsters who were charged included Asaro, who escaped conviction in 2015. He was jailed, however, on an unrelated road rage arson conviction.
After suffering a stroke behind bars, the ailing capo was granted compassionate release in 2020 amid fears that he was vulnerable to the COVID-19 virus, reported the New York Post.
Vinny Asaro was born in Ozone Park in 1937.
Following his father and uncle, Asaro joined the organized crime business and rose in the ranks of the Bonanno family. He became a captain in the mid-1970s.
The infamous Lufthansa heist of 1978
Along with Asaro, the crew that pulled off the theft included James 'Jimmy the Gent' Burke, a Lucchese family associate portrayed by Robert DeNiro, and Tommy 'Two Guns' DeSimone, portrayed by Joe Pesci in 'Goodfellas'.
Burke orchestrated the plan, and the crew plotted at Robert’s Lounge, Burke’s dive bar in Queens, expecting a $2 million take.
The gang busted into a Lufthansa hangar at the Queens airport on December 11, 1978, and made off with dozens of boxes stuffed with cash and jewelry. The loot was valued at over $6 million at the time.
Gaspare Valenti, who became a turncoat and testified at the 2015 trial, stated, "We loaded 50 boxes. There were burlap sacks of gold chains, crates of watches, metal boxes with three drawers in them - and each drawer had diamonds and emeralds in it. And we loaded everything into the van. It was euphoria. We thought there was $2 million in cash and there was $6 million. Without the gold. Without the German money.”
Asaro was acquitted by a Brooklyn jury for his alleged role in the robbery and the unrelated 1969 gangland murder of mob associate Paul Katz, despite his cousin’s testimony against him.
Valenti got off with probation for cooperating with the FBI.
Why was Vinny Asaro in prison?
On April 1, 2012, Asaro sent a crew of henchmen, including the grandson of former Gambino crime boss John “Dapper Don” Gotti, to torch the car of a driver who cut him off at a traffic light.
He was sentenced to eight years behind bars for the crime in 2017 when he pleaded guilty.
At the trial, Asaro told the judge, "I made arrangements for someone to take care of it and it was done.”
His family has stated that Asaro's funeral will take place on October 27 at St Helen’s Catholic church in Queens.