Who REALLY Killed Albert Anastasia? The Barbershop Murder That Shook NYC 

New York City, October 25th, 1957. 10:20 a.m. Albert Anastasia enters the lobby of the Park Shareran Hotel at 7th Avenue and 55th Street. He is attired entirely in brown, including his shoes, suit, and tie. His hair is thick at the back, but thinning at the front, indicating he is due for a haircut. The hotel barber shop sits on the ground floor.

 It measures 35 ft x 28 ft and is staffed by five barbers, two shoe shine men, one valet and one manicurist. Recessed fluorescent lights overhead ensure no glare. The morning hum of routine fills the room. Arthur Grasso owns the shop and this morning he stands near the cashier stand by the corridor door. Earlier that day, Anastasia had left his home at 75 Bluff Road, Fort Lee, New Jersey at 7 in the morning.

Doberman Pinchers patrol his lawn behind a 7-ft barbed wire fence that surrounds a property. He drove a blue 1957 Oldsmobile hardtop. Sedan registered Anthony Copela, his bodyguard and driver. Upon arriving in New York City, Copela parked the car at the Corin garage, 124 West 54th Street at 9:28 a.m.

 in a departure from their established routine. Copela then drove the car back to his residence at 450 Park Avenue in Fair View, New Jersey. This left Anastasia unaccompanied for the first time in years. Joseph Bokino holds down chair 4. The chair faces 55th Street. Anastasia hangs up his top coat. He unbuttons his white shirt at the collar. He sits down. Haircut, he says.

Bokino drapes a cloth around Anastasia’s neck. He swirls the sheet into place. He pulls out the electric clippers for the back of the neck. Anastasia is 55 years old. Broad chest, broad shoulders, fleshy nose, round chin, heavy-litted eyes. He sits upright in the chair. As the haircut begins, the door opens.

 Two men step inside. Middlesized, dark hair, broad shoulders, scarves cover the lower half of their faces, dark green aviator style glasses. One wears a gray suit with a dark gray fedora. The other wears a dark brown suit with a lighter brown fedora. They pull out their guns as they cross the threshold.

 One man speaks through a scarf. He tells Arthur Graasso, “Keep your mouth shut if you don’t want your head blown off.” Grasso’s jaw falls open, his lips pressed together. He says nothing. The two men move swiftly behind chair 4. Anastasia’s eyes remain closed as the barber uses the clippers on his left side.

 He sits in a relaxed posture, unaware that imminent danger is only three feet behind him. Both men raise their weapons. They fire at once. The gunshots are fired in short bursts. One weapon discharges, then stops, followed by the other. An unusual cadence permeates the room. The first bullet catches Anastasia’s left hand. The second hits left wrist.

 Anastasia leaps forward. His heavy feet kick the footrest away and he lands on his feet, weaving. He does not turn around. He lunges toward the mirror in front of him. A third bullet tears into his right hip. He stumbles forward. His hands grab for the glass shelving in front of the mirror. A glass of bay room crashes to the tile floor, shattering.

 The fourth bullet hits him in the back. He staggers against the mirror. His hands claw at the shelving. The fifth bullet strikes the back of his head. Anastasia’s body twists following the fatal shot. He collapses to the floor two chairs away from chair 4, landing on his left side. One hand extends outward as the fluorescent lights reflect off the diamonds in his ring.

 He does not move again. The gunman remains silent as they stride quickly toward the door. Guns still drawn. Without pausing, they step into the corridor and make their escape. Panic ensues as individuals flee in multiple directions. Some drop to the floor while others rush toward the exits. The gummen vanish into the crowd.

Constantine Alexis runs a flower shop next to the barber shop. He watches through his window as people rush past. Four or five men in one group head for the 55th Street exit. Someone yells, “Somebody’s gone crazy in there.” Alexis dials the police. Radio cars arrive within minutes. Traffic officers rush through the doors. Dr.

 Robert Castari comes from St. Claire’s Hospital nearby. He kneels between the chairs. He places a stethoscope on Anastasia’s chest. He looks up. He’s dead. The gunshot wound to back of the head resulted in instantaneous death. One gunman dropped a 38 caliber coat revolver in a glass in vestibule leading to 55th Street.

 Five of six bullets were fired. The other gunman dropped a 32 caliber revolver into a trash basket at the 55th Street entrance to the 57th Street BMT subway station. Five of six bullets were fired. Both guns were originally sold by out of town dealers. The 32 was sold 37 years earlier in 1920.

 The 38 was sold in 1934. Chief of detectives James B. Leot throws 100 detectives into the case immediately. A 13 state alarm goes out for the two gunmen. Description one, approximately 40 years old, 5’8 in tall, 180 lb, salow complexion, gray suit, dark gray fedor with 3-in brim, darkgreen aviator glasses. Description two, approximately 30 years old, 5′ 5 in tall, 150 lb, light complexion, thin black pencil mustache, dark brown suit, lighter brown fedora with 3-in brim, dark green glasses.

 11 witnesses were in the shop when the shooting started. Five barbers, two customers, two shoe shine men, one valet, one manicurist. All fled into the street with the killers among them or right behind them. No one saw where the killers went. Within an hour, the police placed guards around every witness.

 Guards go to the homes of Anastasia’s family members. Anthony Anastasia, his brother, is vice president of the International Long Shoreman’s Association. He lives at 8220 11th Avenue, Brooklyn. A newspaper reporter calls him at the Union office at 341 Court Street. The reporter tells him that Albert was just killed at the Park Sheran Hotel. Anony’s voice breaks.

No, no, no. He hangs up. Long shoreman in the office sit white-faced. They race downstairs. One gets behind the wheel of Anony’s Chevrolet. They drive to Manhattan in record time. Anthony hurries into the barber shop. A detective holds a sheet aside. Anthony stares at his brother’s face. He does not speak. His body shakes with sobbing.

One of his men touches his shoulder. They lead him back to the car. Detectives question Anthony at the West 54th Street Police Station. Assistant District Attorney Alexander Herman of the Homicide Division says he was completely cooperative. That’s all we can tell you now. Ombberto Anastasia Jr.

, the dead man’s son, comes to identify his father. He looks at the body for one moment. He turns away. He leaves with Robert Anastasio, a nephew. Albert Anastasia was born in Berto Anastasio in Tropia, Calabria, Italy on September 26th, 1902. He arrived in the United States in 1919. He jumped ship in New York Harbor. He was 17 years old.

 By 1921, he was arrested for murder. He killed a long shoreman during a Brooklyn doc dispute. Several witnesses testified against him. He was convicted. He was sentenced to death. He spent time in the Sing Singh prison death house. 2 years later in 1923, the conviction was overturned on appeal. He walked free.

The key witnesses disappeared. Some were murdered. Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, Anastasia became the chief enforcer for the organized crime syndicate that controlled New York. He worked for Lucky Luchiano. He worked for Joe Msuria. When Luchiano ordered the murder of Msuria in 1931, Anastasia was one of the gunmen.

 In the late 1930s, Anastasia became the operating head of Murder Incorporated. The organization was a group of professional killers who carried out contract murders across the country. The hits were executed by men unknown to the victims. This made the crimes nearly impossible to solve. Murder Incorporated operated out of Midnight Ros’s candy store at the corner of Saratoga and Leavonia Avenues in Brooklyn.

 Between 1931 and 1940, Murder Incorporated was responsible for an estimated 400 to 1,000 killings. Prosecutors credited Anastasia personally with 31 of the 63 murders linked to the organization. Lewis Lepka Buckle initially headed Murder Incorporated and Albert Anastasia ran its operations. Abrellis known as Kid Twist was one of the top killers.

 In 1940, Relis was arrested. He turned informant. He provided detailed testimony about dozens of murders. His testimony sent several murder incorporated members to the electric chair including Lewis Lepa Buckle. Relis was scheduled to testify against Anastasia in 1941. On November 12th, 1941, Relis fell from the sixth floor window of the Half Moon Hotel in Coney Island where he was under police guard.

He died instantly. The official ruling was accidental death, though this conclusion was widely doubted. Relis was known as a canary who could sing but couldn’t fly. With Relis dead, the case against Anastasia collapsed. He avoided prison. He avoided the electric chair. By 1951, Anastasia had become boss of what would later be known as the Gambino Crime Family.

 He controlled the Brooklyn Waterfront, the International Long Shoreman’s Association through his brother Anthony, gambling operations, and labor rackets. Despite his power, Anastasia had enemies. Frank Costello was the boss of the Luchiano crime family, which later became known as the Genovese family. Costello was a gambler. He controlled casinos.

 He controlled political connections. He was known as the prime minister of the underworld. Veto Genovese wanted Costello’s position. Genovese had spent years in exile in Italy during World War II. He returned to United States in 1945. He wanted power. He wanted control. On May 2nd, 1957, Vincent Gigani walked up to Frank Costello in a lobby of his apartment building at 115 Central Park West.

Gigani pulled out a gun. He said, “This is for you, Frank.” He fired. The bullet grazed Costello’s head. Costello survived. He saw the shooter, but when police questioned him, he said he did not know who tried to kill him. TheMafia Code, no cooperation with law enforcement. Vincent G. Gandhi was arrested in August 1957.

 He was charged with attempted murder. In 1958, he was acquitted. Costello refused to identify him. After the shooting, Costello stepped down as boss. Veto Genov took over. Genovese wanted more. He wanted to eliminate rivals. He wanted consolidate power. Albert Anastasia was a problem. Anastasia was unpredictable. He was violent. He had his own power base.

 He answered to no one. Genovese approached Carlo Gambino. Gambino was Anastasia’s under boss. He was second in command of the Anastasia crime family. Genovese offered Gambino a deal. Help eliminate Anastasia. Become the boss of the family. Gambino agreed. Meer Lansky, the Jewish organized crime figure who controlled casinos in Havana, also supported the plan.

 Anastasia had been trying to muscle into Lansky’s Cuban gambling operations. Lansky wanted him gone. The planning began. According to later testimony and investigations, Joseph Bondo, a capo in the Anastasia family, was part of the planning. So was Joseph Rico Bono. So was Charles Dongera. All were senior members of the Anastasia organization who had grown tired of his violent paranoia.

 There were rumors that Steven Armon and Arnold Wittenberg were selected as a shooters. Other reports suggested Joe Gallow and his brother Larry Gallow, members of the Prophesy crime family, carried out the hit. Joe Prophesy allegedly asked the Gallow crew to do the job. Peter Diaulos, an informant who later testified before government investigators, said Joey and Larry Gallow were the gunman, but no one was ever charged. No arrests were ever made.

The witnesses gave descriptions. The police issued alarms. Detectives questioned 50 people on the day of the murder. 10 more waited for their turns. No suspects were identified. At 6:30 p.m. on October 25th, Anthony Copala, Anastasia’s driver and bodyguard, walked into police headquarters. He said he was ready for questioning.

 Detectives took him to West 54th Street where all the witnesses had been taken. Copela admitted being in the area of the park Sheridan about 40 minutes after his boss was murdered. He provided no explanation for leaving Anastasia alone that morning. He had been Anastasia’s bodyguard for years. He had never left him unprotected before.

 On October 27th, police arrested Copala for vagrancy. He was jailed. He refused to cooperate. He was quickly acquitted. Detectives questioned him again. He said nothing useful. Mike Morante, another longtime Anastasia associate, also came in for questioning. He told detectives nothing. Harry Stasser, Anastasia’s partner in the Madison Dress Company, was questioned.

 The company did approximately $150,000 in annual business. Stasser could not provide information about who wanted Anastasia dead. Neither could anyone else. When detectives searched Anastasia’s pockets, they found roughly $1,900 in cash. Notes ranging from $1 to $100. He carried no weapon. 3 weeks later on November 14th, 1957, approximately 100 mafia bosses, advisers, and bodyguards met at the state of Joseph Barber in Appalachin, New York.

 The meeting was intended to discuss the Anastasia murder. It was meant to settle the question of who would control his territories. It was designed to divide his operations. Veto Genovese called a meeting. He had just taken control of the Luchiano family. He renamed it the Genovese family. He wanted to consolidate his power.

 He wanted approval from the commission, the ruling body of the American mafia. Law enforcement received a tip. New York State Police Sergeant Edgar Cwell set up a roadblock. Officers surrounded the Barber estate. The mobsters scattered. Some ran into the woods. Others jumped into cars. Police stopped dozens of them. They took names.

 They took photographs. The Appalachin raid exposed a national scope of organized crime. It proved the existence of a coordinated crime network across the United States. It led to Senate investigations. It led to new federal laws targeting organized crime, but it did not solve the Anastasia murder.

 The police theory was clear. Veto Genovese ordered the hit. Carlo Gambino provided the support from inside the Anastasia organization. Gambino’s copos, including Joseph Bondo, organized logistics. The shooters were likely hired guns from outside the Anastasia family, possibly the Gallo brothers or members selected by Steven Armon. The motive was power.

 Anastasia stood in the way of Genovis’s efforts to consolidate control. Anastasia was unpredictable. He was violent. He had killed too many people. Even his own men feared him. Frank Costello, Joe Adonis, and Willie Moretti, all major figures in organized crime, had been uneasy in Anastasia’s company.

 Moretti had been shot to death in October 1951 in a Cliffside Park, New Jersey restaurant for gunman box him. Anastasia was suspected, but Anastasia’s reputation as the executioner instilled fear, but also rendered him a target. associatesrecognized the potential for unpredictability and violence which had been escalating.

 Consequently, his allies resolved to act preemptively ed against them. The removal of Anastasia’s bodyguard that morning was not an accident. Anthony Copela’s absence was too convenient. Either he wasn’t on the plot or he was ordered away by someone Anastasia trusted. The fact that both guns were dropped at the scene suggested the killers were professionals who wanted no evidence traced back to them.

The guns were old. The serial numbers were from decades earlier. They had likely changed hands many times. The scars over their faces, the aviator glasses, the quick entry and exit, the shooting from behind, the immediate disappearance into the crowd, all signs of experienced killers. But the key to the murder was not the shooters.

 It was the men who ordered it. Veto Genovese, Carlo Gambino, Meer Lansky, Joseph Bondo. These were the men who wanted Anastasia dead. These were the men who benefited from his death. Genovese took control of his family. Gambino took control of the largest and most powerful crime family in New York. Lansky kept his Cuban casinos.

 The copos who feared Anastasia no longer had to worry about his unpredictable rages. The police never closed a case. The shooters were never identified. No one was ever charged. No one was ever convicted. Chief of detectives James B. Leot, when asked by a reporter why Anastasia was killed, answered, “Maybe somebody didn’t like him.

” By midnight on October 25th, detectives had questioned 50 witnesses. 10 more were waiting. None provided useful information. All claimed they saw nothing or they saw only what they had already described. Two men with scarves and glasses. Two men who disappeared. The investigation went cold within weeks. Other cases took priority. The underworld moved on. Power shifted.

 New bosses took control. New rackets opened. New murders demanded attention. Albert Anastasia was buried at Greenwood Cemetery in Brooklyn. Hundreds attended the funeral. His family grieved. His associates paid respects, but few mourned him. The man who had sent so many others to their deaths had met the same fate in a barber’s chair in a Midtown hotel on a Friday morning with a towel around his neck and his eyes closed.

 The location of the murder became infamous. The Park Sheridan Hotel Barberhop was a pilgrimage site for crime historians and journalists. The hotel later became the Park Central Hotel. The building still stands. The Barberhop is now a Starbucks. The murder of Albert Anastasia marked the end of an era.

 The violent, chaotic days of murder incorporated were over. The old school killers who rose through bootlegging and labor rackets were being replaced by more sophisticated operators. men like Carlo Gambino who prefer diplomacy and business over public violence. However, the murder also underscored persistent reality within organized crime.

 No individual is immune from violence. Security is fleeting. Loyalty is transient and power remains unstable. Those trusted today may become adversaries tomorrow. Vincent Gigani, who shot Frank Costello, would later become boss of the Genov’s family. He feigned mental illness for years, walking around Greenwich Village in a bathrobe and slippers, mumbling to himself.

 The FBI called him the odd father. He avoided prosecution for decades. He died in prison in 2005. Carlo Gambino remained boss of his family until his death from natural causes in 1976. He was never convicted of a serious crime. He was considered one of the most powerful and successful mob bosses in American history. Veto Genovese was convicted of narcotics trafficking in 1959.

 He was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison. He continued to run his crime family from behind bars until his death in 1969. Joe Gallow, if he was indeed one of the shooters, was murdered in 1972 at Ombberto’s Clam House in Little Italy. He was shot multiple times during his birthday celebration. His killer was never identified.

 The true identity of the two men who walked into the Park Sheron Hotel barberh shop on October 25th, 1957, remains unknown. 10 shots were fired. Five hit their target. Albert Anastasia, the Lord High executioner, was dead before he hit the floor. Blood pulled on the white tile. Barbers and customers ran screaming into the street.

 The fluorescent lights hummed overhead. By the end of the day, the blood was cleaned up. The barberh shop reopened. The hotel continued operations. The city moved on. But the underworld would never be the same again.