Anthony (Tony Higgins) Castaldi

Anthony Castaldi was a capo in the Lucchese Family who was a prolific narcotics smuggler. But he was also known to run numbers and operated floating dice games throughout the Harlem and Upper Manhattan areas of New York.

Anthony (Tony Higgins) Castaldi - aka Vincent Castaldi, T.H., Tony Bones, Jimmy Bones, James Higgins, and Anthony Angelo Castaldi (TN) - was born on January 1, 1913, in the East Harlem section of New York to parents Andrew and Filomena (nee Allocca). Tony was one of eight children.

He had an older brother named Samuel - aka “Sammy Bones” ( NYCPD # B-254905) - who also became a mafia soldier. He had another brother named John who was the upfront owner of a notorious mob hangout named Jennie’s Restaurant at 2036 Second Avenue in East Harlem. Although he only listed himself as a worker and bartender, Tony Castaldi was believed by authorities to be the true owner of this establishment.

Anthony Castaldi

A product of East Harlem born and bred, Castaldi was raised next door at 2037 2nd Avenue. By 1954, he resided at 15 Princeton Avenue up in Yonkers, NY. By the 1960s, he had moved his wife and children again to 1304 Hollywood Avenue in the Bronx.

He had married Jennie (nee Penosi,) the sister of an interstate drug trafficker and future Gambino mafia member named Guido (The Bull) Penosi. Likewise, Lucchese soldier Anthony (Tony Moon) Ciccone was married to Castaldi’s sister.

Tony Higgins stood at 5 feet 11 inches tall and weighed a solid 210 pounds, with black hair, an olive complexion, and dark brown eyes. He liked to smoke cigars and was rarely caught without a stogie in his mouth.

Among his favorite hangouts was the Silhouette Lounge located at 49th Street and 3rd Ave. and the Fontainebleau Bar on Lexington Avenue., both of which were well-known mob watering holes. Known as an avid bettor, he also spent time at all the local racetracks He was a fixture at the old Yonkers Racetrack and could be seen there, unfailingly, for years.

NYCPD # B-101443, FBI # 546748

Castaldi’s police record started in 1932 and included such serious charges as the following:

1932 - assault and robbery

1932 - robbery with a gun

1933 - extortion

1933 - armed robbery (3.5-7 years)

1941 - reckless driving ($10 fine)

1945 - bookmaking ($100 fine)

1950 - sale of narcotics

1950 - possessing counterfeit revenue stamps

1950 - conspiracy to sell narcotics (40 years in federal prison)

Local and Federal law enforcement officials named Castaldi as a longtime, trusted member of the Lucchese Family. They claim that by the late 1960s, he was elevated to serve as a capo di decina.

As clearly documented by his criminal record and closest associates, Anthony Castaldi was a prolific narcotics trafficker as well. Authorities alleged that he was one of the largest interstate distributors, using his mafia connections to buy heroin wholesale after it was smuggled into the country by other mafia traffickers.

Over the years, he worked in tandem with such iconic narcotics smugglers and wholesale distributors as the thrice-convicted capo John (Big John) Ormento and his longtime partner Salvatore (Tom Mix) Santoro, Peter and Carmine (Willy the Wop) Locascio, Rosario (Saro) Mogavero, Sammy Kass, and Samuel (Big Sam) Cavalieri in the drug trade. Likewise, he exchanged narcotics with his brothers-in-law Penosi and Ciccone for further interstate distribution.

Tony Higgins was also known to run numbers and operated floating dice games throughout the Harlem and Upper Manhattan areas. His brother Sammy was thought to have served in his capo brother's regime.

Despite his propensity for blowing huge amounts of his racket income on the ponies, with his mounting drug profits, at one point, Castaldi was also thought to have invested in the Harlem real estate market.

On September 11, 1958, Castaldi came under scrutiny by Labor Department investigators probing Teamsters Local #239 of Bayside in Queens, which mostly organized automobile dealerships and the related auto industry services.

The Senate Select Committee of Investigation discovered that on the very day iconic capo Anthony (Tony Ducks) Corallo resigned his post as Vice President of the local, Castaldi and another mob minion named John Spada were installed as “organizers” to the Local’s payroll. Their salary and benefits totaled $400 weekly, a sum that, to the dollar, perfectly matched Corallo’s former salary on the day he resigned.

Tony Higgins remained on the union’s payroll for over a year, later being replaced by another Lucchese hood and known gambler from the Jackson Heights area named Joseph (Joe D) D’Auria .

Anthony (Tony Higgins) Castaldi died in January 1981 at 68 years old. His older brother Sammy outlived him by many years, passing away in 1998 at age 89.

Until next time..."The Other Guy!"

Anthony (Tony Higgins) Castaldi

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