How Old Is Sammy Gravano? Sammy Gravano Birthday
Sammy Gravano was born on March 12, 1945 and is 79 years old now.
Birthday: March 12, 1945
How Old - Age: 79
Sammy Gravano Death Fact Check
Sammy is alive and kicking and is currently 79 years old.
Please ignore rumors and hoaxes.
If you have any unfortunate news that this page should be update with, please let us know using this form.
Sammy Gravano - Biography
Salvatore "Sammy the Bull" Gravano (born March 12, 1945) is a former underboss of the Gambino crime family. He is known as the man who helped bring down John Gotti, the family's boss, by agreeing to become a FBI informant.
In the early 1970s, Colombo soldier Ralph Spero, brother of Shorty, became envious of Gravano's success, fearing that he would become a made man before his son, Tommy. This rivalry culminated with the death of Ralph Ronga, another Colombo family associate in Ralph Spero's crew. After Ronga's death, a rumor had spread that Gravano had attempted to pick up Ronga's widow Sybil Davies at a bar, though Gravano maintained that Davies was the one hitting on him. Ralph Spero used this rumor in an attempt to gain support to have Gravano killed, or as an excuse to kill Gravano himself. Shorty Spero believed Gravano's side of the story over his brother Ralph. However, to avoid conflict, Shorty Spero allowed Gravano to leave the Colombo family and join the Gambino crime family.
Like his predecessor Carlo Gambino, Castellano favored emphasizing more sophisticated schemes involving construction, trucking, and garbage disposal over traditional street-level activities such as loansharking, gambling, and hijackings. Castellano had a particular interest in the construction business. Gravano began to change his boss' cowboy image of him when he entered into the plumbing and drywall business with his friend, Edward Garafola. Gravano's construction and other business interests soon earned him a reputation as a "good earner" within the Gambino organization and made him a multi-millionaire, enabling him to build a large estate for his family in rural Ocean County, New Jersey.
Flush with cash, Gravano also invested in trotting horses to race at the Meadowlands Racetrack in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Gravano also became the operator of a popular discotheque, The Plaza Suite, in the Gravesend section of Brooklyn. Gravano reportedly made $4,000 a week from the Plaza Suite alone. Gravano also used the club as his construction racket headquarters.
In February 2000, Gravano and 47 other ring members—including his wife Debra, daughter Karen, and Gerard—were arrested on federal and state drug charges. Gravano was implicated by informants in his own drug ring, as well as by recorded conversations in which he discussed drug profits with Debra and Karen. On May 25, 2001, Gravano pleaded guilty in a New York federal court to drug trafficking charges.
