Danny Greene The Rise and Fall of the Irishman
- 9 months ago
Exclusive interviews with Danny Greene's family, Federal Government Officials, Mafia associates and Cleveland Police Enforcement, with never seen before photos.
Daniel John Patrick Greene (November 14, 1933 – October 6, 1977) was an Irish-American mobster based in Cleveland, Ohio. Greene gained power first in the local chapter of the International Longshoremen's Association, where he was elected president during the early 1960s. He later became a full time crime boss and began competing with Jewish-American organized crime figure Shondor Birns and the Italian-American Cleveland crime family for control of the city's criminal underworld. Greene set up his own crew called the Celtic Club, complete with enforcers and a close alliance with outlaw biker gangs.
During the 1970s, Greene allied himself with mob-affiliated labor union leader John Nardi during the latter's war against Jack Licavoli for leadership of the Cleveland crime family. Competing factions set off more than 36 bombs, most attached to cars, in murder attempts, many successful. After the humiliating failure of multiple attempts of his life and Greene's decision to repeatedly taunt the Licavoli faction as "maggots" in the Cleveland news media, Greene was successfully assassinated in 1977 by Los Angeles crime family enforcers Ray Ferritto and Ronald Carabbia.
A subsequent police investigation revealed that Greene's murder had been a criminal conspiracy by the Italian-American crime families in Cleveland, New York City, and Southern California. The investigation also resulted in the defections of both Ray Ferritto and Los Angeles crime family boss Jimmy Fratianno, followed by the exposure and arrest of a mole inside the Cleveland FBI. The investigation also laid the groundwork for many successful Federal prosecutions of the Italian-American Mafia in multiple cities nationwide.
Daniel John Patrick Greene (November 14, 1933 – October 6, 1977) was an Irish-American mobster based in Cleveland, Ohio. Greene gained power first in the local chapter of the International Longshoremen's Association, where he was elected president during the early 1960s. He later became a full time crime boss and began competing with Jewish-American organized crime figure Shondor Birns and the Italian-American Cleveland crime family for control of the city's criminal underworld. Greene set up his own crew called the Celtic Club, complete with enforcers and a close alliance with outlaw biker gangs.
During the 1970s, Greene allied himself with mob-affiliated labor union leader John Nardi during the latter's war against Jack Licavoli for leadership of the Cleveland crime family. Competing factions set off more than 36 bombs, most attached to cars, in murder attempts, many successful. After the humiliating failure of multiple attempts of his life and Greene's decision to repeatedly taunt the Licavoli faction as "maggots" in the Cleveland news media, Greene was successfully assassinated in 1977 by Los Angeles crime family enforcers Ray Ferritto and Ronald Carabbia.
A subsequent police investigation revealed that Greene's murder had been a criminal conspiracy by the Italian-American crime families in Cleveland, New York City, and Southern California. The investigation also resulted in the defections of both Ray Ferritto and Los Angeles crime family boss Jimmy Fratianno, followed by the exposure and arrest of a mole inside the Cleveland FBI. The investigation also laid the groundwork for many successful Federal prosecutions of the Italian-American Mafia in multiple cities nationwide.