It was not long before the feared Cummiskey favored working for Coonan over Spillane. Scan this QR code to download the app now. Coonan joined with the Italiansbecause Spillane had refused the Mafias efforts to control criminal activities in and around the Jacob Javits convention center. . But that simply is not the whole story. Edna put out a family memorial, about their family being chained together in hell in the afterlife. The Genovese crime family wanted to run all mob activity associated with the convention center. Your email address will not be published. The Genovese crime family took over Spillanes construction business, and all of his organized crime businesses, and from that point on the Genovese crime family also ruled all of Hells Kitchen with an iron fist. However, the two soon proceeded with their real plan by brutally murdering and butchering Dugan. Featherstone, who said he had been Coonans right-hand man, admitted that he had lied under oath in other cases, had been in and out of mental institutions, suffered delusions and was a former abuser of alcohol and drugs. This murder between friends rocked the entire neighborhood, violent as it was known for being. Knapp scheduled sentencing for April 18. At least 30 of Spillanes gang were killed by bombings. Coonan forged a strong alliance with the Gambino crime family in the late 70s, and became their hit-squad and enforcement arm for the next 10 years. Murrays family emigrated to the US from the small rural village of Llandinam in Powys, Wales in the late 1800s. The racketeering charges alleged eight murders, four murder conspiracies and three attempted murders. When he was . Coonan used these gang members to lure Stein to the 596 Club bar where he was shot to death. (completely optional)Chad's Book: https://www.amazon.com/Blood-Razor-Wire-Prison-Memoir/dp/B08NJR548L/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1\u0026keywords=blood+on+the+razor+wire\u0026qid=1625283431\u0026sr=8-1Check out our website:www.myfreedomfighters.comPaypal.me/ChadMarks2020Cashapp: $ChadMarks102 Featherstone and Coonan were tried for the murder of a Hells Kitchen barman in 1979 but were acquitted, not for want of evidence; one juror perjured himself at trial and a key witness just so happen to take his own life riiiight. He would usually tell neighborhood youths about his criminal escapades from his violent past interjected with humor that left his audience laughing. James Coonan was born December 21, 1946 in Manhattan, New York. Almost three months after the Curley murder on November 17, 1975, Coonan and Cummiskey called Paddy Dugan in under the pretense of a hit against the Spillane crew, claiming they needed Dugan to be the wheelman in the murder. Allegedly, they brought the head of Dugan with them, set it down on the bar stool, ordered his favorite whiskey, lit one of his cigarettes and put it in his mouth. Humphreys is also rumoured to be the inspiration for Tom Hagen, the Corleone Familys consigliere played by Robert Duvall in the Godfather movies.[4]. If your enemies catch you, your face will get blown off. Coonan decided to remove his gangs debt by murdering Stein. The main differences between most early 20th century American businessmen and Holstein? Even former gang members testifying for the prosecution said the name Westies was created by the police and the news media to describe Irish- American hoodlums on Manhattans West Side. The judge sentenced Featherstone to 6 years and he did time in the Medical Center for Federal Prisoners in Springfield Missouri in the psychiatric ward. Heres a list of hitmen, buttonmen and bagmen who are most certainly not Italian. Mr Anonymous Jul 01, 2010 #2 Kevin Kelly is out now. Although Coonan wounded no one, Spillane understood that the younger hoodlum was not to be taken lightly. When Mickey returned to the notoriously violent, Irish dominated Hells Kitchen area of New York, his violent tendencies continued. In the 1970s Coonan worked as an enforcer and bodyguard for loanshark named Ruby Stein. Coonan reportedly killed a loan shark victim who could not pay his debt, dismembered him and cut off his hands. One could make the argument that entering the Marine core during the turbulent Vietnam War at the age of 17 essentially sealed his fate: the impressionable young man, possible harbouring underlying schizophrenia, engaged in violent combat in the green hell and white heat hat was the conflict in Vietnam. He was allegedly involved in the kidnapping of Genovese crime family bookmaker Paul (Eli) Ziccardi as well as later participating in the gang war between Spillane and Coonan during the mid-1960s. With Robert Spillane, Jim McManus, T.J. English, Joseph Coffey. In 1966, Coonan fired a machine gun at Spillane and his associates from atop a Hell's Kitchen tenement building. He allegedly murdered Mike "The Yugo" Yelovich claiming he had to because Yelovich had accidentally shot Cummiskey in the shin bone with a rifle. From the 1930s until his explosive death in 1975, Shondor Birns rose through the ranks in Clevelands underworld, becoming the towns most feared and extroverted mobster, constantly investigated, arrested and released, gaining a reputation as a numbers king and as a mediator between feuding gangsters. Coonan authorized the hit of Michael Holly while Billy Bokun was dressed as Mickey Featherstone. When Coonan was 18 his father was kidnapped by local mobster Mickey Spillane. [5] According to testimony given in 1987 by ex-Westies member turned informant William Beattie, Stein was killed and beheaded in 1977 in a move to erase Coonan's debt and prove the Westies power through viciousness. James Coonan was a baby boomer born December 21, 1946. Members of The Outfit identified Humphries as the gunman and brought him to Al Capone. The Westies murdered Stein, dismembered him, and threw the remains in the Hudson River. Investigators assume the killing had Gambino approval. Westie Eddie "The Butcher" Kaminsky and Jimmy Coonan murdered a druggie who killed one of their fellow members and carried the man's body across the rooftops from one tenement building to the. Read Next: Ke Huy Quan, Stephanie Hsu, Saweetie and More Honored on Gold Houses 2023 A100 List, Adele Lim Directing Ashley Park in Untitled R-Rated Comedy for Lionsgate, Point Grey (EXCLUSIVE), Netflix Delaying The Gray Man Production Amid Surging California COVID-19 Cases, Millie Bobby Brown to Star in the Russo Brothers Sci-Fi Film The Electric State, Only Murders in the Building Season 3 Premiere Date Revealed by Steve Martin and Martin Short at Comedy Show (EXCLUSIVE), Jock Zonfrillo, MasterChef Australia Judge, Dies at 46, Matthew Lawrence: 'My Agency Fired Me' After I Refused to Take My Clothes Off for an Award-Winning Director, Willie Nelsons 90th Birthday Is Smoking, With Snoop Dogg, George Strait and Neil Young Among the Party Favorites at the Hollywood Bowl, Super Mario Bros. Movie Officially Smashes $1 Billion Globally, COVER STORY | How a Sex Scandal, Big Egos and Putin Led to Jeff Shells Sudden, No Payout Exit From NBCU, Ryan Goslings Greta Gerwig Barbie Tee and Margot Robbies Pink Two Piece Embrace Barbiecore, The Brilliance of Harry Belafonte in 12 Songs, Bob Odenkirk Joins The Bear Season 2 (EXCLUSIVE), Is This 'Beau Is Afraid' Character a De-Aged Joaquin Phoenix? From time to time, the Westies worked for the Gambino crime family as a contract killer squad. [8][9] Coonan was first eligible for parole in 1998. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. The Irish-American gang led by Jimmy Coonan and Francis (Mickey) Featherstone aligned itself with the Gambino crime family and enforced its racketeering schemes with a campaign of murder and dismemberment until the NYPDs Intelligence Division brought them down. The verdict came on the eighth day of jury deliberations. In 1979 both Featherstone and Coonan were arrested but acquitted for the murder of a bartender named Harold Whitehead. Growing up in Hell's Kitchen he played hockey with many future Westies-aligned criminals at Hell's Kitchen Park and boxed at Boys & Girls Clubs of America and eventually started burglarizing commercial buildings in Lower East Side, Manhattan and cargo from warehouses in West Side, Manhattan. Follow my Instagram @MOONEYDashCamhttps://www.instagram.com/mooneydashcam/Follow me on tiktok @mooneydashcamhttps://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJ5EQm4A/For business inquiries you can get in touch at mooneydashcam@gmail.comAlso dont forget to leave me some suggestions for future videos in the comments. McCarthys also producing When Corruption Was King, set up at Paramount with Temple Hill Entertainment and based on a screenplay by Baldwin that made the 2009 Blacklist; and Havana Nocturne, for Eric Eisners L + E Pictures. Coonan established ties to the Gambino family when he took control of Hells Kitchen. Cookie Notice Upon his return, Coonan and Cummiskey instructed him to leave the bar and get rid of the contents of the carton. Dash cam tour of Hells Kitchen Manhattan, taking you to the murder site of infamous New York City mob loanshark Ruby Stein and headquarters of the westies Irish mob that rivaled the Italian mafia, While explaining the gruesome details of the murder and dismemberment. He became known as Jimmy C. As we said last week, Jimmy C. took over the Hells Kitchen Irish mob after he made a deal with Gambino member Roy Demeo to kill the previous boss, Mickey Spillane, in 1977. Turn on post notifications so you dont miss a video! His speciality? Coonan and Ryan will never see the light of day (Sean Ryan wasn't a Westies anyways). The way he became part of Al Capones Chicago Outfit is pretty amazing, tantalisingly lacking in enough key info to render the tale legendary as opposed to simply a footnote in mob history. There is a story that he was uncircumcised and he got drunk with a bunch of medics. It would also see a string of gang members turn on their former friends too, Jimmy McElroy, Billy Beatie and Tony Lucich being the main ones Jimmy Coonan was sentenced to 75 years in prison on racketeering charges, including seven murders and other crimes. Variety and the Flying V logos are trademarks of Variety Media, LLC. The house in Hazlet, New Jersey is the last small cottage at the end of a dead end street. Jimmie Grayson Coan. [6][7], In 1979, Coonan was tried and acquitted for the murder of Harold Whitehead, but convicted on weapons charges and sentenced to four years in federal prison. He volunteered for combat in Vietnam and would claim he spent time killing with the Special Forces. this awesome character was inspired by one of the most fascinating men in 20th century African American history: Casper Holstein. He passed out and when he awoke, he found they had given him a circumcision. James Coonan is currently serving his 60 year sentence in Lewisburg Federal Penitentiary in Pennsylvania. He formed an alliance with a man named Mickey Featherstone and a few former members of Hells Kitchen who were afraid of Coonan. He passed away in 2004. Mr. Coonan's wife, Edna, who prosecutors said had helped run the Westies while her husband was in jail on other charges, was sentenced to a total of 15 years on two counts of racketeering and . Defense lawyers had contended that there was no such organization as the Westies. He won a brutal turf war with mobster Ignacio Antinori who, in 1940, was gunned down whilst enjoying his morning coffee at a restaurant. The Westies is a riveting true crime saga and also one of the great untold stories of the 20th century Irish-American experience, McCarthy said. Mickey Spillane, known as "the last of the gentleman gangsters,' and Jimmy Coonan, who led the much-feared Westies. Cummiskey would further himself from the Spillane-led faction of the Hell's Kitchen Irish Mob known as The Spillane Gang and become more and more a member and follower of the young Jimmy Coonan. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. There was also testimony by several witnesses that the Westies had forged an alliance with the Gambino organized crime family, said to be the largest and most powerful Mafia group in the country. He opened up the gang to the lucrative drug dealing rackets as well as continuing extortion, numbers, loansharking and counterfeiting rackets in the area. Roy DeMeo was a close friend of James Coonan and as a favor to Coonan he found Spillane and murdered him. This led to the arrest of Featherstone on a murder charge. The latest Tweets from Jimmy Coonan (@jimmy_coonan): ""The acid test of materialism is not how much I have or don't have, but my preoccupation and concern over it." Chip Ingram" He was with the Colombo's in NY and went out to work in NYC I think. Wall was from a wealthy family, his father was a respected physician and his mother was the daughter of the former mayor of Tampa. What prison is he in? Two, he made his money via illegal gambling. Humphries had fallen in with a small-time hood named Fred Evans who wanted to grow his bootlegging operation but was confounded by the size and ease with violence displayed by members of Capones gang. McCarthy, Adler and Baldwin are also collaborating on an adaptation of Ken Bruen and Reed Farrel Colemans Tower that Baldwin is penning. Gmail. Click on the join beside the channel to receive special benefits!If you want to keep up with what BOTRWT does, why not follow our social media's?Twitter: @bldontherzrwire Instagram: @bldontherzrwire If you want to donate to our cause to promote a healthy lifestyle, and change the lives of everyone one day at a time, click one of the links below! During this incarceration Featherstone was injected with Thorazine. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Spillane went to Coonan's father, slapped him around and told him to get his son under control. 2023 Variety Media, LLC. During the 70s and 80s, he became the leader of The Corporationa sprawling crime/business empire that consisted of bolita games across the US eastern seaboard as well as holdings in Peruvian casinos and a host of investments in legitimate businesses. Jimmy Coonan (1977-1986)- Jimmy Coonan led the most violent Irish gang Hell's Kitchen and New York has ever seen. An off-duty policeman in the bar saw John Bokun shoot Michael Holly, then he shot and killed John Bokun. In Japanese, the word is nezumi but that also means mouse in English. Born July 31, 1965, Hell's Kitchen. On August 25, 1975, Curley jokingly pulled a gun on Dugan while the two were drinking in a local pub. On Feb. 11, 1984, two Westies drove Leone to New Jersey, pulled over to offer him a hit of cocaine, and shot him in the head. ", Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, "Ex-Westies Member Says Gang Boss Cut Off Murder Victim's Head", "Westies Trial: Gruesome Testimony Not For The Squeamish", "United States of America, Appellee, v. James Coonan, Kevin Kelly, James Mcelroy, Kenneth Shannon,william Bokun, John Halo, Edna Coonan, Richardritter, Thomas Collins, Florencecollins, Defendants,kevin Kelly, Defendant-appellant, 938 F.2d 1553 (2d Cir. Cummiskey was murdered by hitman Joseph Sullivan on August 20, 1976, in a bar. Famous for his part in the 1971 robbery at the Villa Vizacaya in Florida that saw an estimated $1.5 million worth of art and silver objects, including a priceless silver bowl once owned by Napoleon Bonaparte, Stanimirovic paid his dues to society and went on to write for a living. Coonan and a number of the Westies gang owed money to a popular Jewish loan shark named Ruby Stein. John Gotti began running the Gambino Crime Family after Roy DeMeo had died and he used Coonans Westies as a killer squad for the family. He became known as "Jimmy C." As we said last week, Jimmy C. took over the Hell's Kitchen Irish mob after he made a deal with Gambino member Roy Demeo to kill the previous boss, Mickey Spillane, in 1977 . He testified against Jimmy Coonan and other gang members. Explore. I know John Thomas Coonan personally. Its just a matter of the government, piling it all together. Coonan, looking for a more feared and respected gangster like Cummiskey on his side, decided to use Dugan to lure in Cummiskey. and our He got involved with the Milano family out there, and Jimmy Caci, and was huge into the cocaine and porn business in the late 80's and early 90's. Wore a wire during the Colombo wars against Teddy Persico Jr and Luchese capo John Baudanza. With the bad blood between Coonan and Featherstone, Coonan decided to set Featherstone up for murder. There is a documentary somewhere on YouTube from the early 90s where Mickey is in disguise but talks about his days in the Westies. Bad blood between Coonan and Featherstone, in part due to Featherstones distaste for Coonans Italian Mafia connections, eventually led to Featherstone being framed for the murder of Michael Holly, a construction worker and neighborhood bar owner who refused to give the Westies protection money. Like. This story of Jimmy Hoffa's death first entered the public consciousness in 1989 when Donald Frankos gave an interview to Playboy Magazine where he claimed that Hoffa was killed by a New York Irish mafia boss by the name of Jimmy Coonan and buried at the home field of the New York Giants and New York Jets football teams. Is this the same man I know? he was slain during the wild 1970s, blown up along with his fancy Lincoln Continental by a bomb planted (purportedly) by the Hells Angels, contacted by his former enforcer Danny Greene. He was blond haired and baby-faced. [5], Chelsais Bouras piloted the Greek mob of Philadelphia through the turbulent 70s, forging a close tie with Raymond Martorano (pictured), a soldier for the citys longstanding crime family the Scarfos, and overseeing loan sharking, gambling and methamphetamine operations. By his teenage years, Coonan stood five feet, seven inches tall and had a stocky build, with broad shoulders and a thick neck. During his time as boss of the Westies, they gained a reputation as a vicious crew of murderers. Jamie founded Listverse due to an insatiable desire to share fascinating, obscure, and bizarre facts. To rent Gangland Wire, the documentary,click here. Jimmy Coonan brought the Westies into the 20th Century and presided over the most bloody and violent gang in New York City history. Shondor Birns managed to survive the 'golden age' of gangster historythe 20s and 30sand succeeded in the equally violent 50s and 60s. He has been a guest speaker on numerous national radio and television stations and is a five time published author. Only one defendant, John Halo, was acquitted on all charges. The police and FBI suspected him of a series of mob contract killings. However, Cummiskey was part of the Spillane crew and Dugan was part of the Coonan crew, and Spillane forbade violence against the Coonan gang unless they struck against his men first. Coonan was incarcerated and began serving a 75-year prison term in 1988. In 1920, the still blew up as Birns mother was near it and killed her, leaving young Shondor to first have to live in a Jewish orphanage before eventually being taken in by his grandmother. Dont forget to listen to Aaron on the Big Dumb Fun Show, live on Monday nights. Cummiskey is reputed to have shown Coonan how to dismember and dispose of murder victims by scattering their remains into the waters around the sewage treatment plant operated by the New York City Department of Environmental Protection at Randalls and Wards Islands, notably in the Hudson River. At the time of his death he was married to Shirley Forstmann and father of three- Tammy Ann, Clifford and Terrence." Cummiskey, the so-called "Butcher of Hell's Kitchen" taught young Coonan the "art" of body dismemberment, using Paddy Dugan as the textbook. Featherstones violence caught the eye of Coonan. Coonan now was getting national attention. Phillips is a storyteller, actor and writer living in rural West Wales. Later that evening, Paddy Dugan came across Dennis Curley walking around the streets of Hell's Kitchen and shot Curley twice in the head, killing him instantly. In May 1977, Jimmy Coonan owed a substantial amount of money to loan shark Ruby Stein and decided to forgive his own debt by murdering Stein. The association between Italian Americans and the Mafia is as strong as the association between Italian Americans and pizza. Today. I hope you enjoyed, please subscribe if you did! Jimmy Coonan, John Moe, Robert Herman, Kevin Kelly, Sean Ryan, and who else? Because the construction site was in Hell's Kitchen that made it Mickey Spillane's territory, but, the Genovese family front boss Anthony "Fat Tony" Salerno did not like that, so, he sent a freelance Irish hit man from Queens by name of Joseph "Mad Dog" Sullivan to get rid of some of Spillane's main men. Maybe Amato. Mickey Spillane or someone in his gang kidnapped Mr. Coonan for ransom and someone pistol whipped Coonans father. An eighth defendant was acquitted of all charges as the five-month trial ended. During the early 1970s, Cummiskey took on a young protg by the name of James "Jimmy C" Coonan, a violent younger generation Irish hoodlum who wanted to take out the old-timer Mickey Spillane. Coonan and Cummiskey soon became known associates, as Cummiskey taught Coonan the "tricks of the trade". This Serbian mobster turned journo was an arch opportunist, driven in part by the love he held for his native Serbia, (along with his love of stealing shiny objects). He was released from the mental hospital 4 years later. Pinterest. Mickey Spillane: The Gentleman Gangster/Jimmy Coonan and the Westies Gang: Directed by Datha Keane. 10 Fruits, Nuts, And Vegetables You Did Not Know, 10 People Who Were Completely Right But Were Ignored, 10 Worst Massacres Of African-Americans [DISTURBING IMAGES], 10 Things You May Not Have Known About The Land Of Pangaea, 10 Things You May Not Have Known About The Center Of, 10 Things You Might Not Know About The Incas, 10 Things You May Not Have Known About Guns, Top 10 Churches Where God Is Not Worshiped, 10 Historical Shoe Rituals and Superstitions You Might Not Know About, 10 Unusual and Incredible Reinterpretations of Classic Artworks, 10 Ancient Fertility Treatments You Wouldnt Want to Use Today, 10 Inventive Ways People Survived Winter Before Electricity, 10 Bleak Facts about Victorian Workhouses, 10 Amazing Archeological Discoveries Made by Dogs, Top 10 Terrible Facts About Ghislaine Maxwell. he is the son of the notorious gangster Jimmy Coonan of the Westies, the Irish Mob in New York. A trial on any single act in this indictment would have resulted in an acquittal, said Coonans lawyer, Gerald Shargel. Edward "Eddie The Butcher" Cummiskey Jr. (1934 Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan to August 20, 1976 Chelsea, Manhattan) was a New York mobster who served as a mentor to Jimmy Coonan, leader of the Westies. A member of the Westies forgot to deflate the lungs before throwing the torso in and Steins torso washed up on shore and was found a few days later. According to lore, the carton contained Dugan's penis, which was later rumored to have been placed in a pickle jar and kept in a refrigerator. Jimmie Grayson Coan (Bobba to her family) was born on January 2, 1935 in Charleston, Arkansas to Joseph and Rena Pritchett. James Coonan was a baby boomer born December 21, 1946. The following day, Coonan and Cummiskey went out for a drink with Billie Beattie at the Sunbrite Bar. Eto entered the witness protection programme, relocated to Georgia where he lived a long, event free life. His younger brother is Richard Coonan. Dash cam tour of Hells Kitchen Manhattan, taking you to the murder site of infamous New York City mob loanshark Ruby Stein and headquarters of the westies Irish mob that rivaled the Italian mafia,. Coonan is serving his time at the Lewisburg Federal Penitentiary. In retaliation and to set Mickey Featherstone up to take the fall, Billy Bokun, Johns brother got a car identical to Mickey Featherstones and put on a long haired wig and fake mustache to look like Featherstone. Jimmy Coonan's nephew, John "Jackie" Coonan jr. runs things in the Kitchen. The Irish Mob: Mickey Spillane And Jimmy Coonan Younger The Elder 3.57K subscribers Subscribe 27K views 3 years ago This episode explores the lives of Mickey Spillane, known as "the last of the. he learned that he had been set up and framed by his own gang. In 1977 when Mickey Spillane was killed outside his apartment, Featherstone was arrested but acquitted for his killing. He received a medical discharge in 1967 after just a year, claiming to have hallucinations. When Benicio Del Toro has been cast to play a real-life figure, you know that person is bound to be a badass. T.J. English described Cummiskey as, "curly black hair, piercing blue eyes, and the cockiness of a bantam rooster, Cummiskey looked and sounded like a gangster from the 1920s". Out of all the things he did, cutting hands off and saving body parts etc. Very few mobsters live a long, stress-free life and die of old age. After his death, Cleveland went on to suffer many more bombings in the wake of Birns assassination, getting dubbed Bomb City, USA in the press, with 36 bombings in 1976 alone.[1]. Jimmy Coonan is currently being held at Lewisburg Federal Penetentiary, he is 59 years old and is Inmate Number 13874-054 his projected release date is November 6th, 2036, he'll be like 89 or some shit if he lives that long. Among other members of the Westies arrested were Jimmy McElroy, a top enforcer, who was sentenced to 60 years and Richard Ritter, a loan shark and drug dealer, who was sentenced to 40 years. About The Author: C.J. Coonan learned how to dismember murder victims from Edward Cummiskey, a fellow Westies member, prison-trained as a butcher.. During the late 1970s, Coonan and his Westies allied themselves with the Gambino family and his main contact was Roy DeMeo. Jimmy was ashamed that his father was treated like this and he swore revenge against Mickey Spillane. In addition to the racketeering convictions, some of the defendants, including reputed Westies boss James Jimmy Coonan, were found guilty of crimes ranging from attempted murder and loansharking to drug dealing and tax evasion. The gang then tipped the cops thatFeatherstone killed Holly. After being released from jail in 1970, he started building up his own Irish gang so he could take over the rackets from Mickey Spillane. Copyright 2022 Crime Museum, LLC - All Rights Reserved | Privacy Policy |. Duing this time, Jimmy Coonan was in jail on gun possession charges. In order to clear his name Featherstone recorded conversations between the Westies and Coonan so that he would be cleared of the murder charge and he could use the evidence he had to put Coonan behind bars. The tome, published two decades ago, centers on the rise to power of the Westies gang during the 1970s and 80s in the Hells Kitchen section of Manhattan. [1] An amateur boxer and street fighter, he dropped out of school aged seventeen and embarked on a career in organized crime. He was born on the upper West Side and his mother worked with the VFW and his father was a U. S. Customs officer. Although reportedly on good relations with both Spillane and Coonan (despite rumors of Cummiskey defecting to the Westies), he was shot at point blank range and killed by Joseph "Mad Dog" Sullivan while drinking at the Sunbrite bar on August 20, 1976. Featherstone became upset with the direction the Westies were headed and confronted Coonan about his problems. When autocomplete results are available use up and down arrows to review and enter to select. He was a high school drop out, like many of the Westies. The story is that the Genovese crime family sent a team of heavily-armed hitmen to kill off Spillanes gang. This WASP (white, anglo-saxon, protestant) who became the Dean of the underworld in Tampa, Forida didnt have the usual rough upbringing associated with American mobsters. Learn how your comment data is processed. Feb 9, 2019 - Rare pic of Club 596 / Jimmy Coonan (The Westies) headquarters. Featherstone, if still alive is in the Wit Sec. He went on trial with Coonan for the killing of Harold Whitehead, and they were acquitted in December 1979 after one witness killed himself and another refused to testify. Coonan wanted to restore his fathers pride so he went to a tenement ran by Hells Kitchen and purchased a fully automatic machine gun before firing an entire clip at Spillane and his crew. Top 10 Movies About Italians That Dont Involve The Mafia. They have captains and each of the captains have their own crew. John Moe is dying and will never get out, he was a bouncer/sometimes collections guy. Coonan and Featherstone dragged a guy out of a bar and forced him into a van and masturbated on him as a form of intimidation. At thirty-nine years old, he had already been convicted of assault and robbery and had been sent to Attica Correctional Facility in Attica, New York and at 37 was witness to the Attica Prison riot September 9, 1971 during his incarceration. In 1988, he and his wife went into a witness protection program. This was a broken man. But the key verdict was the jurys decision that the Westies did exist, that it constituted a racketeering enterprise and that the convicted defendants had participated in its activities to further the gangs criminal goals.