| Founding location | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |
|---|---|
| Territory | Greater Philadelphia,South Jersey,Baltimore, andWashington, D.C. |
| Ethnicity | Greek American |
| Activities | Racketeering, drug trafficking, arms trafficking, extortion, loansharking, illegal gambling, labor racketeering, fraud, smuggling, and murder |
| Allies |
ThePhiladelphia Greek Mob, also known as thePhiladelphia Greek Mafia, was a loose-knitGreek mafia faction consisting ofGreek-American racketeers and drug dealers operating inPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania. The group was closely affiliated with theItalian-AmericanPhiladelphia crime family, and fell under complete control of the family during the reign of Philadelphia Mafia bossNicky Scarfo.
A loose confederation of Greek-American gangsters headed by Chelsais "Steve" Bouras controlled a vast drug market inPhiladelphia and operated under the protection ofPhiladelphia crime family bossAngelo Bruno.[1]
Throughout the 1970s until 1981, Bouras headed the Greek Mob in Philadelphia, participating in mostlyloansharking,extortion,methamphetamine trade, and illegalgambling. Bouras directed the mob efficiently, and he carried out business with more prominent families such as thePhiladelphia Mafia. He was a close associate of Italian wiseguy and Scarfo soldierRaymond Martorano.[2]
On May 27, 1981, at the Venetis Greek restaurant inSouth Philadelphia, Bouras and his girlfriend, Jeannette Curro, were gunned down while dining with Ray Martorano and Philadelphia radio personalityJerry Blavat.
Bouras was 50 years old and Jeannette Curro was 54. Though Bouras and Curro were killed, Martorano and Blavat were only wounded. It is reported thatNicodemo Scarfo of Philadelphia's notoriousPhiladelphia crime family ordered the hit, as Bouras had refused to pay Scarfo's street taxes, specifically for his meth ring. There have also been speculations that Martorano arranged the hit for Scarfo because of eyewitness claims that the gunman motioned for Martorano to move out of the way before opening fire. To this day, no one has ever been connected with the hit.[2] The assassination took place just one day after the murder of another Greek mobster, Harry Boulas ofUpper Darby.[3][4][5]
Curro's family also had ties to the Mafia; the FBI had been investigating her nephew, Joe "Crutch" Curro, a made member of the Philadelphia Cosa Nostra, after they recorded him on a 1976 FBI wiretap at Frank’s Cabana Steaks in South Philadelphia, at the time a base of operations for Philadelphia Mafia capoFrank Sindone.[6]
After Bouras' assassination, the Greek Mob did get involved with themob war in Philadelphia in the 1980s, attempting to gain rackets inAtlantic City, but activity declined after the war. They were also involved in the high profile prosecution of Mafia lawyer Robert F. Simone in 1994. Simone was a close associate in the 1980s.
A two-year FBI investigation into a cocaine ring run by the Greek mafia in Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C. resulted in charges being filed in August 1987.[7]
 | This section needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(January 2021) |
Although rather prominent in the 1970s and 1980s, the Greek Mob has cooled down and remains rather dormant. However, there have been some occurrences of members being found loan sharking in Philadelphia in modern times. The reason for this dormant period could be traced back to the leaders' loss in the 1980s mob war in Philadelphia, which was initiated after Martineos' assassination.[8]
