Gerard Pappa - Gangland Slaying

Gangland Slaying

On July 1980 Gerard was shot to death in the Villa Sixty-Six Restaurant on Fourteenth Avenue and 66th Street in Brooklyn by a Colombo hit squad. It was for revenge of carrying out the murder of suspected Colombo crime family stool pigeon Ralph Spero, the uncle of Angelo Sepe. He was murdered by Dominick Cataldo and his nephews Nicholas and Joseph Cataldo Jr., the sons of Colombo crime family mafioso Joseph Cataldo. Knowing how hard Gerard would be to kill, that he was always armed, very fast and very game, they were hiding in the luncheonette's rear kitchen when he arrived. They approached him from behind and shot him in the head with a sawed-off shotgun, literally blowing his head to pieces. He was killed instantly. Sammy Gravano would later speak of feeling great sadness and remorse for the loss of his childhood friend. Genovese crime family mob boss Vincent Gigante was suspected of handing down the murder contract, but was acquitted of his alleged involvement in the murder in 1997.