10 Mistakes That Destroyed the American Mafia

In November 1957, a state trooper in a small New York town noticed a few too many expensive cars in one driveway. By the end of the day, some of the most powerful mob bosses in America were running through the muddy woods in silk suits, and the Mafia's biggest secret was out. Tonight we count down the ten biggest mistakes the American mob ever made: Frank Costello's nervous hands on live television, the St. Valentine's Day Massacre that turned the country against Al Capone, Joe Colombo's rally, the ledger that sent Capone to prison, Jimmy Burke's war on his own Lufthansa crew, Vito Genovese's kiss of death, the FBI agent known as Donnie Brasco, the microphone hidden in a Jaguar, John Gotti's talks in the apartment upstairs, and the meeting at Apalachin. ⏱ CHAPTERS 0:00 Intro 1:35 No.10 Frank Costello 3:35 No.9 St. Valentine's Massacre 5:35 No.8 Joe Colombo 7:34 No.7 Al Capone 9:22 No.6 The Lufthansa Heist 11:30 No.5 Joe Valachi 13:32 No.4 Donnie Brasco 15:29 No.3 Tony Ducks Corallo 17:24 No.2 John Gotti 19:17 No.1 Apalachin 🔔 Subscribe for more forgotten stories from the American underworld. Which mistake was the worst? Tell us in the comments, and tell us where you're watching from. SOURCES U.S. Senate Historical Office: The Kefauver Committee Smithsonian Magazine: A 1957 Meeting Forced the FBI to Recognize the Mafia The Mob Museum: St. Valentine's Day Massacre; The life and death of Joe Colombo; Joseph Valachi testifies; Joe Pistone History.com / Wikipedia: Lufthansa heist; Henry Hill; Joseph Valachi; Mafia Commission Trial; Salvatore Avellino; Frank J. Wilson CrimeReads: Bugging John Gotti CREDITS Archival photographs: Wikimedia Commons, public domain, except: Jimmy Burke, 1995 prison photo: Юанистин, CC BY-SA 4.0 Map data: Natural Earth (public domain). Illustrations are AI-generated. Narration uses a synthetic voice. #TrueCrime #MafiaHistory #Gangsters #AlCapone #JohnGotti #DonnieBrasco #History