A Mafia Legend's Downfall: Tommy 'Karate' Pitera's Killing Spree Uncovered

June 1989. Staten Island construction workers uncovered human remains dismembered with surgical precision. It was the first of dozens of bodies buried across New York by the Bonanno Crime Family's most feared enforcer: Tommy "Karate" Pitera. A hitman who studied anatomy books, used martial arts training to kill, and turned murder into a science. This is the complete case file of Thomas Pitera—the Brooklyn-born mobster who earned his black belt in violence and his reputation through methodical brutality. From his humble Gravesend origins to becoming a made member of the Bonanno Family, Pitera operated a drug empire that stretched from New York to Florida while leaving a trail of 30–60 bodies that investigators are still searching for today. We examine the FBI investigation that finally caught him using wiretaps and a cooperating witness willing to wear a wire, the 1990 trial that exposed his burial techniques, and the life sentence that has kept him silent for over 30 years. This is forensic crime documentary storytelling—no glorification, only the cold facts of how one man weaponized discipline and turned organized crime into organized murder. Keywords: Tommy Pitera, Karate Pitera, Bonanno Crime Family, mafia hitman, true crime documentary, FBI investigation, organized crime, New York mafia, unsolved murders, forensic case files, mob enforcer, criminal psychology 📂 Subscribe to Mafia Crime Files for weekly deep-dives into the cases that law enforcement wants buried. 💬 What shocked you most about this case? Drop a comment below. 👍 Like this video if you want more forensic mafia investigations. 🔔 Turn on notifications so you never miss a case file opening. For the full cinematic history of the Five Families and New York's organized crime empire, visit our main channel: Global Mafia Universe #TommyPitera #MafiaDocumentary #TrueCrime #BonannoFamily #FBI #ColdCase #OrganizedCrime #CrimeFiles #Hitman #NewYorkMafia -~-~~-~~~-~~-~--~-~~-~~~-~~-~--~-~~-~~~-~~-~-