Carmine Tramunti

Carmine "Gribbs" Tramunti was the head of the Lucchese crime family for seven years between 1967 and 1974.

Tramunti took over from Tommy Lucchese, who died of natural causes in 1967. At the time, Tramunti was almost 70 years old and himself suffering from ill health, but with boss-in-waiting Anthony Corallo currently in prison, Tramunti was chosen as caretaker boss while Corallo served out his sentence.

Tramunti was believed to be little more than a figurehead during his time in charge of the family, as it is widely held that Carlo Gambino, head of the Gambino crime family and by now the most powerful mob boss in New York, was pulling the strings - Tramunti remained acquiesent due to Gambino's involvement in getting him elected upon Lucchese's death.

Tramunti controlled a large part of the numbers racket in Harlem, and ran one of the major floating craps games in New York, the so-called "Harlem Game". He had been tried and acquitted in a multi-million dollar stock swindle in 1971 and by 1973 was also under investigation by the Brooklyn District Attorney’s office. Ultimately he was convicted for financing a huge heroin smuggling operation and sentenced to 15 years in jail, where he would spend the rest of his life. This also included the arrests and convictions of Vincent Papa and Anthony Loria Sr. in the infamous French Connection. These were the times of Serpico and the DEA's Knapp Comission. Corallo took over as head of the family upon Tramunti's incarceration. Granted he was convicted and was serving time for smuggling heroin, its a lie. He shylocked money to someone who in return was co-erced by the government to buy Heroin and later indict Carmine Tramunti on heresay and lies..." I may be a mobster and may have done bad things but I am not a drug dealer" Carmine Tramunti...