Salvatore (Sally Boy) Mangiamelli

Salvatore (Sally Boy) Mangiamelli had the reputation of having been a bit of a fence jumper, between the Colombo and Gallo camps. Originally with the Gallo faction, he was known to have flip-flopped several times. That naturally made him a target at one point.

Note: For related information on Salvatore Mangiamelli, please see Anthony (Fat Tony) Regina and The Profaci-Gallo War of 1961-1963 .

Salvatore (Lefty) Mangiamelli - aka “Sally Boy”-was born in 1929 in South Brooklyn and raised at 322 Carroll Street in the Red Hook area. He later bought a house on Ocean Parkway until relocating out to Long Island in 1960-61.

He and his wife purchased a home at 1 Fawn Lane West in the Heatherwood development at South Setauket out in Suffolk County. In between Brooklyn and Long Island, he also resided for a time at 314 Jefferson Avenue, Dongan Hills, Staten Island.

By the early-1980s, he had relocated down to South Florida where he resided full-time in semi-retirement.

Salvatore (Sally Boy) Mangiamelli

He was married to Louise, the sister-in-law of Louis (Cadillac Louie) Mariani, another Gallo hood shot to death during the Gallo war in the early morning hours of August 9th, along Route 347 - Nesconset Highway, out in Port Jefferson, Long Island. Police theorized that Sally Boy May have been the real intended target that day of the Profaci gunmen.

During the original Gallo-Profaci gang war of 1961-1963, Mangiamelli was considered one of the top Gallo gunmen. He was suspected of having committed several homicides for the Gallo mob.

He was viewed by law enforcement and the Profaci faction alike as one of the most important of Joey Gallo’s lieutenants.

Sally Boy was primarily active in gambling, fencing of stolen goods, shylocking, and truck hijacking. By the late 1960s, he was also suspected of handling/fencing stolen securities.

He had an arrest record for assault, consorting with known criminals, conspiracy to commit murder, grand larceny and conspiracy, possession of stolen goods, theft, and disposal of stolen securities.

He served several prison terms for the above cases.

Mangiamelli had a long roster of criminal associates. Paramount on the list were important members of the Gallo Gang faction of the Profaci/Colombo Family including:

Joseph (Crazy Joe) Gallo - A former soldier under Joe Profaci. He became faction co-leader with his brother Larry in the insurrection.

Lawrence (Larry) Gallo -Oldest Gallo brother, inducted soldier who led the insurrection against Joe Profaci.

Albert (Kid Blast) Gallo - Kid brother to Joey and Larry. Not “made” at the time of the warfare. Later switched allegiance to the Genovese mob and was formally inducted.

John (Mooney) Cutrone - One of the few Profaci “soldiers” who remained with the Gallo Gang during the wars. In 1976 he was shot to death.

Nicholas Bianco - On “loan” from the NE Patriarca Family. He became a top Gallo hood. Later relocated back Providence RI eventually becoming boss of that Family.

Gennaro (Fat Jerry) Ciprio - He had eight arrests for burglary, felonious assault and malicious mischief, interstate theft, grand larceny. At the time of his murder, he had $1300. on him and a loaded .38 caliber revolver. At the time of his death, he had two federal indictments pending against him.

Salvatore (Sonny) Pepitone -Another top Gallo Gang member, labor racketeer, and bookmaker.

Frank (Punchy) Illiano -A former prizefighter. Punchy was a key, loyal adherent to the Gallo brothers. Eventually switched to the Genovese mob and was formally inducted.

Lorenzo (Larry Lamps) Lampasi - NYPD #B-493699. The son of an old-line soldier named Lorenzo Sr., Larry Jr. was himself a soldier and Gallo follower. Shot to death during the third Colombo war.

Joseph (Smokey) D’Antuano - Another Red Hook kid who tied up with the Gallo’s. Bookmaker, policy operator active during the Gallo war.

Francis Anthony (Tony) Getch - Gallo Gang member and ex-convict who was shot four times but survived in 1961 by Profaci gunmen.

Nicholas Getch - Brother of Tony, he was another Gallo follower and active combatant. Suspected in several shootings.

Lawrence (Big Lollipop) Carna - Key Gallo hood who along with his brother Joseph (Little Lollipop) Carna, were pivotal followers and combatants in the Gallo gang war.

Vincent (Chico) and Anthony (Fat Tony) Regina - brothers who originally sided with the Gallo’s. They later switched back to the Profaci faction and became key combatants against the Gallo Gang.

Leonard (Big Lenny Dell) Dello - A “made” member under Jiggs Forlano, he originally sided with the Gallo’s, later switched back to the Colombo mob. Bookmaker and “swag” receiver. A loyal soldier for decades.

On December 11, 1961, he was one of three Gallo hoods who was shot at as they exited a paint and hardware store on Court Street after buying some cans of paint to redo the gang’s clubhouse at 51 President Street. A speeding car with Profaci gunmen unleashed 6-8 bullets at Larry Carna - who was shot in the ankle, Angelo Parfumi, and Mangiamelli. Carna was the only Gallo wounded.

Mangiamelli was also the victim of another attempted assassination while he was driving on the Belt Parkway in Queens. Several shots were pegged at him from a car that sped past him, shattering his windshield, but he was not hit.

In 1963, in Port Jefferson on Long Island, Profaci hitmen Anthony (Fat Tony) Regina and John (Moose) Battista shot into a moving car on Rt. 347, killing the driver, Louis (Cadillac Louie) Mariani, and wounding Francis A. Getch (both Gallo loyalists).

Also in the car was Louise Mangiamelli, Lefty’s wife.

Police theorized that the intended target had been Lefty Mangiamelli and that Mariani was killed by mistake. He was one of the top Gallo hoods who “holed up” at 51 President St., the Gallo compound designed like a fortress...protective chicken wire on all windows to guard against hand grenades being thrown, armed gunmen on the roof 24/7, etc. ...during the height of the mob war.

In 1965, he was one of 17 hoods charged with conspiracy to murder Joseph Profaci and various members of the Gallo opposition.

All were jailed for three to six months upon conviction to get them “off the streets”, as the police commissioner said.

Included were Larry Gallo, Albert Gallo, Gennaro Basciana, and Frank Illiano.

In 1971, he was one of five Colombo hoodlums indicted by Nassau District Attorney William Cahn in the theft of over $750,000 in jewelry and precious stones from the L.I. Diamond Exchange in Garden City.

Colombo associate Ralph Esposito had conspired with Robert Aaron, the manager of the diamond exchange, to pull a fake robbery and steal the jewelry.

When Esposito hesitated, Aaron went to another hood named Robert Viggiano of Brooklyn to pull the heist (Viggiano was Mangiamelli’s in-law and Family associate).

The thieves used Mangiamelli to dispose of the jewels for $160,000 in a “foreign market”.

Upon learning of Aaron’s duplicity, Esposito threatened his life if he didn’t receive a full share of the proceeds of the score.

With Esposito’s threatening to kill Aaron, and causing problems, Viggiano went to Joe Colombo himself for advice.

Colombo advised him to give $2,000 cash to Esposito (who wasn’t happy), but took the money and left. Then, Esposito and Aaron approached Louis Savel, the exchange owner, and told him that Esposito could get the jewels back for $150,000 cash.

Savel went to Lloyd’s of London, who had insured the jewels, to see if they would pay the funds....They refused!

The FBI was called in, and everybody got arrested. It became a major indictment and case for Nassau D.A. Cahn, and the federal authorities.

Arrested along with Mangiamelli was boss Joseph Colombo Sr., and three other Family figures including his brother-in-law Robert Viggiano, Franzese faction member Ralph (Ronnie) Esposito, Robert Kary and Robert Aaron. They were each charged with grand larceny by extortion and conspiracy.

Had Colombo not been shot and incapacitated at the Italian-American Unity Day rally later that summer, Esposito, Aaron, Viggiano, and possibly Mangiamelli probably would have been killed for getting a Family boss involved in the mess.

Sally Boy Mangiamelli had the reputation of having been a bit of a fence jumper, between the Colombo and Gallo camps. Originally with the Gallo faction, he was known to have flip-flopped several times. That naturally made him a target at one point.

In 1972, he was one of twelve men indicted for the theft of $720,000 in Bankers Trust Co., securities out of Chicago back in July 1970. They included fellow Colombo mob figures Gregory Scarpa and Gennaro Ciprio.

The stocks were partially recovered after an police undercover sting. They was charged with interstate transportation of stolen securities.

Side Note: Shortly after their arrests, Jerry Ciprio was shot to death on the sidewalk in front of his store at 1744 86th Street - Gennaro’s Italian Feast Specialties in Brooklyn. At the time police felt his killing was part of the Colombo/Gallo conflict...and it may well have been.

Another viable theory was that Ciprio was murdered by Scarpa and Mangiamelli to keep him from turning informant because of his exposure in the stolen stocks case.

By the early 1980s, Sally Boy had moved down to Florida. The two Joeys, Gallo and Colombo, were both dead. Many of his original mob associates had been killed as well or had been sent to prison. Others had simply backed up, or retired and moved away.

Salvatore (Sally Boy) Mangiamelli is believed to have died in South Florida a few years ago, but no exact dod was available.

Until next time..."The Other Guy"

Salvatore (Sally Boy) Mangiamelli

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