The Hole: The Mafia's graveyard
This is the location where the Gambino crime family buried the remains of at least three men.
The site is in The Hole, a small, low-lying neighborhood that straddles the border between Brooklyn and Queens in New York City.
The desolate, five-block area consists of RV trailers, dilapidated buildings, rusted fences, vacant lots, and flooded streets that are littered with abandoned trailers and cars.
The Mafia took advantage of its isolation to bury bodies and discard hijacked trucks.
The Gambino site is on the eastern side of Ruby Street, between Blake Avenue and Dumont Avenue.
Six men were reportedly buried in the area during the 1970s and 1980s. However, only three of their bodies have been found.
The three capos murders
The infamous "three capos murders" took place on May 5, 1981, when Bonanno capo Joseph Massino lured three rival capos to the 20/20 Night Club in Brooklyn under the pretense of a peace meeting.
Massino's men killed Alphonse "Al" Indelicato, Dominick Trinchera, and Philip Giaccone shortly after they entered the club.
After the killings, Gambino capo John Gotti ordered his associates to bury the men as a personal favor to Massino, whom he had grown up with.
According to Bonanno mobster-turned-informant Salvatore Vitale, Massino's crew wrapped the remains in painters' drop cloths and transported them by van to Howard Beach in Queens.
He and Massino followed the van in a car and observed the operation.
The remains were turned over to Gotti's crew near the corner of Cross Bay Boulevard and 164th Avenue in Howard Beach.
Court testimony alleged that Gene Gotti, Angelo Ruggiero, and John Carneglia received the bodies.
Following the exchange, Gotti's crew brought the capos to The Hole.
The burial site was in a vacant lot on Ruby Street, which is notoriously prone to flooding.
On May 28, 1981, a group of children playing in the area found Indelicato's remains after they noticed his tattooed arm sticking out of the mud. The other two capos remained undiscovered for more than two decades.
2004 search
The bones of Trinchera and Giaccone weren't unearthed until October 2004.
The new search was launched after Bonanno boss Joseph Massino turned state witness to avoid the death penalty.
Acting on Massino's advice, a combined task force of FBI agents and NYPD investigators spent three weeks digging at the site.
Pumps were used to remove excess water, and two large backhoes broke up the concrete and heavy mud. The team searched the soil with rakes, shovels, and sifters.
During the dig, they found dozens of bones and personal effects, including Giaccone's watch and glasses and Trinchera's credit card.
In December 2004, the FBI confirmed that the remains belonged to the two missing capos.
Stolen merchandise
On October 1, 1981, a cargo truck containing rat poison and muscle relaxants was found parked on Ruby Street. It was one of two trucks that had been taken from a pharmaceutical company in Garden City on Long Island.
While speaking to Newsday, one police officer theorized that the hijackers took what they were looking for and dumped the rest in this neighborhood.
Other victims
The Hole is also suspected to be the resting place of Lucchese mobsters Thomas DeSimone and Joseph Spione, as well as John Favara, a furniture store manager who accidentally killed Gotti's 12-year-old son with his car.
The remains of the three men have never been found.
Address
The address and GPS coordinates for the site are as follows:
Address
Ruby Street, Queens, New York, NY 11414, USA
GPS Coordinates
40.672201, -73.860390
40°40'19.92"N 73°51'37.40"W
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Area Information
It is situated on the border of Brooklyn and Queens. The western part is in East New York, while the eastern section is in Lindenwood.
📍 The neighborhood sits between South Conduit Avenue and Linden Boulevard.
Private Property Warning
This is private property, not a public space. Please respect the owners and do not enter without permission. Entry without permission is trespassing and may be met with legal or other serious consequences.
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Crime Scenes Mafia Locations New York Mafia LocationsClosest Locations
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