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Brooklyn, 1960. A man in a perfectly tailored suit walks into the Copacabana nightclub. Frank Sinatra nods from the stage. But this isn't just any VIP—this is Sonny Franzese, and by the end of the night, someone will owe him their life.
Discover the incredible untold story of John "Sonny" Franzese, the Colombo crime family captain who lived to 103, outlasting every enemy and prosecutor who tried to bring him down. While other mob bosses died in prison or became government witnesses, Franzese spent 50 years behind bars across multiple sentences and never broke omertà—the sacred code of silence. From controlling New York's hottest nightclubs to allegedly ordering dozens of hits, from partying with Sinatra to being betrayed by his own son, this is the story of the last real gangster who took secrets worth millions to his grave.
How did Franzese survive over a century in a business where most don't make it past 50? What secrets kept him alive when others died for knowing less?
Share your theories below and subscribe for more untold stories from organized crime history.
The 103-Year-Old Mobster Who Never Snitched: Sonny Franzese
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0:00
Brooklyn, 1960.
0:02
A man in a perfectly tailored suit walks
0:05
into the Copa Cabana nightclub. Frank
0:08
Sinatra nods from the stage. Sammy Davis
0:12
Jr. raises his glass. But this isn't
0:15
just any VIP. This is Sunonny Franesi.
0:19
And by the end of the night, someone
0:21
will owe him their life. How does
0:24
someone become so powerful that even the
0:27
FBI calls him one of the most feared men
0:30
in New York, yet live to be 103 years
0:34
old, outlasting every enemy, every
0:37
informant, and every prosecutor who
0:40
tried to bring him down? How does a man
0:42
allegedly connected to over 50 murders
0:45
spend less than half his adult life in
0:48
prison while his contemporaries died
0:50
behind bars or in the streets? John
0:54
Sunonny Francesi wasn't just another
0:57
mobster. He was the Columbbo family's
1:00
ultimate survivor. A man who ran rackets
1:03
worth millions, controlled New York's
1:06
hottest night spots, and allegedly
1:08
ordered hits with a nod. yet never once
1:11
broke Omear, the sacred code of silence.
1:16
While other mob bosses became government
1:18
witnesses or ended up in witness
1:21
protection, Francesi did 50 years in
1:24
federal prison across multiple sentences
1:27
and never said a word. So, get ready to
1:30
dive into the incredible untold story of
1:33
the last of the old school gangsters. A
1:36
man who partied with Sinatra, terrified
1:39
his enemies, and took secrets to his
1:41
grave that could have rewritten mafia
1:44
history. Act one, from Naples to New
1:48
York. The truth is, we don't know much
1:51
about Sunonny Francis's early life
1:53
because he made sure of it. Born John
1:56
Francisi on February 6th, 1917 in
2:00
Naples, Italy. He arrived in New York as
2:03
a child when his family immigrated in
2:06
1928.
2:08
They settled in Brooklyn, where Italian
2:10
meant community, but it also meant
2:13
opportunity, the kind that didn't always
2:16
follow the law. Young Sunny grew up
2:19
during Prohibition, watching
2:21
neighborhood tough guys in sharp suits
2:23
driving fancy cars while his father
2:26
broke his back in construction. The
2:29
message was clear. In America, there
2:32
were two ways to make it. The hard way
2:36
and the smart way. But there was a
2:38
problem.
2:40
The smart way required connections,
2:42
protection, and most importantly, the
2:45
ability to keep your mouth shut. By 14,
2:49
Francei was running numbers for local
2:51
bookies. By 16, he was collecting debts
2:55
with his fists. He had a natural gift
2:58
for violence. Not the messy, emotional
3:01
kind, but the calculated type that made
3:04
people pay without making scenes. Yet
3:08
something set him apart from other
3:10
neighborhood thugs. Francesy understood
3:13
that real power came not from fear
3:15
alone, but from being indispensable.
3:18
Came through the Proface crime family,
3:21
later known as the Columbbo family.
3:24
Joseph Proface, the olive oil king, who
3:27
ran Brooklyn's rackets with an iron
3:29
fist, noticed young Frances combination
3:32
of intelligence and ruthlessness. Here
3:36
was a kid who could break your legs in
3:38
the morning and charm your wife at
3:40
dinner that evening. Profacei made him a
3:43
soldier in the 1950s. But Franeszi had
3:47
bigger ambitions.
3:49
The turning point came in 1963 when
3:52
Joseph Banano planned to eliminate rival
3:55
family bosses including Profi's
3:57
successor Joseph Magalyoko.
4:00
The plot failed spectacularly. Maglo
4:03
died of a heart attack and Joseph
4:05
Columbo took over the family. But
4:08
Columbo needed strong captains to
4:10
solidify his power. He turned to Sunny
4:13
Franesi. At 46, Frances became a couple
4:17
regime, a captain running his own crew.
4:21
Most mobsters peaked in their 30s.
4:24
Franizi was just getting started. ACT2,
4:29
the king of the night. By 1965,
4:32
Sunonny Franesi controlled a criminal
4:34
empire that generated millions worth
4:38
tens of millions in today's money. His
4:40
crew ran numbers, lone sharking, and
4:43
extortion rackets across Brooklyn and
4:46
Queens. But Franesi understood something
4:50
other mobsters missed. Legitimate
4:52
businesses made the best fronts and the
4:56
biggest profits. He muscled into the
4:59
music industry, taking hidden interests
5:01
in nightclubs and recording companies.
5:05
The crown jewel was the Copa Cabana, New
5:08
York's hottest night spot where Sonatra
5:10
performed, where made men mixed with
5:12
celebrities, where a nod from Frances
5:15
could make or break careers. Court
5:18
documents later revealed he was skimming
5:21
hundreds of thousands from the coper
5:23
alone. But here's what made Francei
5:26
different. He lived like a movie star
5:29
while operating like a ghost. He drove a
5:32
Cadillac El Dorado, wore $500 suits when
5:36
that was 3 months of salary for most
5:38
Americans, and kept a blonde mistress
5:41
who looked like Marilyn Monroe. Yet, he
5:44
never flashed money stupidly. No gold
5:47
chains, no gaudy jewelry, class, not
5:51
crass. His management style was equally
5:54
sophisticated.
5:56
Former associates described Franisi as
5:59
running his crew like a CEO. Weekly
6:02
meetings, careful accounting, strategic
6:04
planning. He recruited college kids for
6:08
white collar schemes, muscle for blue
6:10
collar enforcement. Everyone had a role.
6:13
Everyone kicked up. Everyone stayed in
6:16
line because everyone knew what happened
6:19
if they didn't. The FBI files paint a
6:23
chilling picture. Agents noted that
6:25
informants would literally shake when
6:28
discussing Francesi.
6:30
One wire tap caught him casually
6:32
mentioning that he liked to use lime
6:34
pits to dispose of bodies. The calcium
6:38
oxide would dissolve everything, even
6:41
bones. No body, no crime, he allegedly
6:44
said. Investigators linked him to dozens
6:47
of murders, but could never prove a
6:49
single one.
6:51
Yet Franiz's power extended beyond
6:54
violence. He corrupted cops, judges, and
6:58
politicians. He had union officials in
7:00
his pocket and legitimate businessmen on
7:03
his payroll. When a young promoter named
7:06
Norby Walters wanted to break into the
7:08
music business, Franesi allegedly became
7:11
his silent partner using threats to sign
7:14
major acts. The scheme eventually
7:18
involved some of the biggest names in
7:20
entertainment, but success bred enemies.
7:25
Other families resented Franesy's
7:27
wealth. Young Turks in his own family
7:30
wanted his spot and the FBI under
7:33
director J. Edgar Hoover had declared
7:36
war on organized crime. They planted
7:40
bugs in his car, tapped his phones, and
7:43
followed him everywhere. Still, Franzi
7:46
stayed one step ahead. The lifestyle was
7:49
intoxicating.
7:51
Franzi parted with Sinatra and Sammy
7:54
Davis Jr., though he always maintained
7:56
they were just acquaintances who
7:58
performed at his clubs. Women threw
8:01
themselves at him. He later claimed to
8:04
have been with more women than any man
8:06
could count. But he had rules. Never
8:10
trust anyone completely. Never discuss
8:12
business at home. Never let pleasure
8:15
interfere with profit. However, the
8:19
1960s were changing. The old
8:22
neighborhood codes were breaking down.
8:25
Drugs were flooding the streets.
8:27
Something old school bosses like Franesi
8:30
allegedly opposed but couldn't stop. The
8:34
children of immigrants were becoming
8:36
lawyers and doctors, not soldiers and
8:39
kpos. And the FBI was getting smarter.
8:43
Using new laws like the RICO Act to
8:46
target entire families, not just
8:49
individuals,
8:50
Francis adapted. He invested in
8:53
legitimate businesses, pizza parlors,
8:56
auto dealerships, real estate. He put
9:00
relatives in management positions,
9:02
creating layers between himself and any
9:05
crimes. When associates got arrested, he
9:08
paid for the best lawyers.
9:11
When they went to prison, he supported
9:14
their families. Loyalty went both ways,
9:17
or else. But by 1966,
9:20
the heat was unbearable.
9:23
The FBI had surveillance photos of him
9:25
meeting with known criminals. Informants
9:28
were providing details about his
9:30
operations.
9:32
Prosecutors were building cases. Franzi
9:36
knew they were coming for him. The
9:38
question was when and for what. The
9:41
answer came in 1967.
9:44
Federal agents arrested Franeszi for
9:47
conspiring to rob banks. The evidence
9:50
seemed thin. Testimony from accompllices
9:53
who'd flipped to save themselves.
9:56
But the jury convicted him and the judge
9:59
citing Francesy's danger to society
10:02
handed down 50 years. At age 50, it
10:06
seemed like a life sentence.
10:08
Nevertheless, Franeszi didn't break. He
10:12
didn't cooperate. He didn't complain. He
10:15
simply adapted to his new environment.
10:17
Running card games in federal prison,
10:20
maintaining his connections, waiting for
10:23
appeals.
10:24
Because Sunonny Frances understood
10:26
something his enemies didn't. In the
10:29
life, patience was just another weapon.
10:32
Act three, the eternal soldier. Prison
10:35
should have ended Sunonny Franzy's
10:37
story. Instead, it became another
10:39
chapter. Through legal appeals and good
10:42
behavior, he was a model prisoner who
10:45
avoided trouble. Franizi got parrolled
10:48
in 1978 after serving just 11 years of
10:52
his 50-year sentence. He was 61, an age
10:56
when most mobsters were dead or retired.
10:59
But Franesi returned to Brooklyn like
11:01
he'd never left. The mafia, however, had
11:05
changed. The Columbbo family was in
11:08
chaos after internal wars. The old
11:10
neighborhoods were gentrifying.
11:13
Drug dealing, which Franzi allegedly
11:15
despised, was now the main money maker.
11:19
Young mobsters didn't respect the old
11:21
rules. They wore wires, cut deals,
11:25
testified against their own fathers. Yet
11:28
Franizi adapted again. He couldn't
11:31
return to his old rackets. Parole
11:34
conditions and FBI surveillance made
11:37
that impossible. So he worked through
11:40
intermediaries, advised younger
11:42
mobsters, collected debts on reputation
11:45
alone. When people heard Sunny Franesi
11:48
wanted to see them, they paid. No
11:52
threats necessary. But the government
11:54
wasn't finished. In 1982, they charged
11:58
him with parole violations associating
12:01
with known criminals. Back to prison,
12:05
released in 1984.
12:07
Arrested again in 1986 for extortion.
12:11
The pattern continued for decades.
12:14
Arrest, conviction, prison, release,
12:18
repeat. Transazi became the mob's
12:21
cisphus, forever pushing the boulder
12:23
uphill. The most painful betrayal came
12:26
from within. His son, John Jr., once
12:29
groomed to follow in his footsteps,
12:32
became a born-again Christian and
12:33
government witness in 1995.
12:37
The son testified against the father
12:39
multiple times, providing details about
12:42
family operations.
12:44
Other mobsters would have had their son
12:46
killed. Frances simply disowned him,
12:49
maintaining Omar even against family.
12:52
Still, Francesi survived what killed
12:55
younger men. John Goti died in prison in
12:59
2002. Carmine Persico died in 2019.
13:04
But Franesi kept getting released, kept
13:07
returning to Brooklyn, kept his mouth
13:09
shut. In 2010, at age 93, he was
13:14
arrested again, this time for shaking
13:17
down strip clubs and pizzeras. The FBI
13:20
called him the oldest federal prisoner
13:22
in America. The trial was surreal.
13:26
Franazi, using a walker, faced testimony
13:29
from his own son. Prosecutors painted
13:31
him as an unrepentant mobster who'd
13:34
never stopped being a danger. The
13:37
defense portrayed him as an old man
13:39
being persecuted for his past. The jury
13:43
convicted him. The judge gave him 8
13:46
years, but even then, Francesi wouldn't
13:50
break. In prison interviews, he spoke
13:53
about his love for family despite his
13:55
son's betrayal, his respect for the old
13:58
ways, his belief that a man's word was
14:02
everything. He never admitted to crimes,
14:05
never named names, never violated the
14:07
code he'd lived by for 70 years.
14:11
Released in 2017 at age 100, Franeszi
14:16
returned to Brooklyn one last time. The
14:19
FBI agents who chased him were long
14:22
retired. The prosecutors who'd convicted
14:25
him were judges or in private practice.
14:28
The neighborhoods he'd controlled were
14:30
full of hipsters and boutique coffee
14:32
shops. But Sunonny Francisi was still
14:36
there, the last of his kind. He lived
14:39
his final years in a nursing home,
14:42
receiving visitors who spoke in whispers
14:44
about the old days. Former associates,
14:48
journalists, even FBI agents came to pay
14:51
respects to the last real gangster. They
14:55
asked about the murders, the money, the
14:58
secrets. Frances would smile and change
15:01
the subject. On February 24th, 2020,
15:06
Sunonny Francesi died at 103. He'd
15:10
outlived his enemies, his prosecutors,
15:13
most of his family, and the mafia itself
15:16
as he'd known it. The man who'd
15:18
allegedly killed dozens died peacefully
15:21
in his sleep. The secrets he'd protected
15:24
for a century died with him. But
15:27
questions remain. How many people did
15:30
Sunonny Franisi really kill?
15:32
Where did all the money go? Millions
15:35
skimmed over decades that were never
15:38
recovered. Who were the politicians and
15:41
judges he corrupted whose names he never
15:43
revealed? What really happened in those
15:46
meetings with Sinatra and other
15:48
celebrities?
15:50
The FBI files remain partially sealed.
15:53
Witnesses who might talk are dead or
15:56
terrified even now. The truth about
15:59
Sunonny Frances's full criminal empire
16:02
may never be known. He took it all to
16:05
his grave. The ultimate act of Omear.
16:09
His funeral was small, private, nothing
16:12
like the elaborate mob funerals of the
16:14
past. But in death, as in life, Sunonny
16:19
Franesi remained a mystery. The young
16:22
man from Naples who became one of New
16:24
York's most feared mobsters.
16:27
The captain who controlled millions but
16:29
died in a nursing home. The father
16:32
betrayed by his son who never sought
16:34
revenge. The last of the old school
16:37
gangsters who proved that sometimes
16:40
silence is the deadliest weapon of all.
16:43
So what do you think? How did Sunonny
16:45
Franesi survive for 103 years in a
16:49
business where most don't make it past
16:51
50? What secrets did he take to his
16:54
grave that kept him alive when others
16:57
died for knowing less? Drop your theory
16:59
in the comments. I read every single
17:02
one. And if you want more stories about
17:05
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17:07
hit subscribe and ring that notification
17:10
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17:13
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