Thomas Pitera Net Worth, Age, Height, Bio, Birthday, Wiki!
Explore Thomas Pitera net worth, age, height, bio, birthday, wiki, and salary! In this article, we will discover how old is Thomas Pitera? Who is Thomas Pitera dating now & how much money does Thomas Pitera have?
Thomas Pitera Biography
Thomas Pitera is one of the most popular and richest Criminal who was born on December 2, 1954 in Brooklyn, New York, United States. A hitman from the United States of America, Sicilian, is known as “Karate Tommy” known as an infamous member of the Bonanno family. He was found guilty of a string of murders in the month of June in 1992 and received a life sentence prison.
He as well as Dominick Napolitano were both part of the Bonanno family.
As a child, Pitera had been a huge fan of the 1966 The Green Hornet television show and actor Bruce Lee, triggering his lifelong interest in martial arts. After winning an arduous kumite competition in Sheepshead Bay, Pitera spent 27 months in Japan training assiduously under the revered Hiroshi Masumi. He was trained to use the tonfa, nunchucks and katanas. While in Japan, he grew his hair down to his shoulders to adopt the Bruce Lee image. After his scholarship ended, he sought work in a chopsticks factory to underwrite his stay and earn more money. This led him to acquire the nickname “Tommy Karate” by friends and fellow mobsters.
Upon returning to Brooklyn, Pitera joined the Bonanno crime family and quickly became one of their most feared soldiers. He belonged to a Bonnano faction headed by caporegimes Alphonse “Sonny Red” Indelicato, Frank Lino, Dominick Trinchera and Philip Giaccone. This group opposed the current leadership under boss Philip Rastelli and his leading capos Joseph Massino and Dominick Napolitano. In 1981, Massino and Napolitano set up the murders of the three rival capos in a Gravesend club co-owned by Sammy Gravano. After their deaths, Massino made peace with the rest of the leaderless faction, including Pitera. During the 1980s, Pitera became a “made man” of the Bonanno family and was assigned to Lino’s crew by Bonnano consigliere Anthony Spero.
He was the son of Joseph Pitera, was a candy salesman.
| Name | Thomas Pitera |
| First Name | Thomas |
| Last Name | Pitera |
| Occupation | Criminal |
| Birthday | December 2 |
| Birth Year | 1954 |
| Place of Birth | Brooklyn |
| Home Town | New York |
| Birth Country | United States |
| Birth Sign | Sagittarius |
| Full/Birth Name | |
| Parents | Joe Pitera, Catherine Pitera |
| Siblings | Not Available |
| Spouse | Not Known |
| Children(s) | Not Available |
Ethnicity, religion & political views
Many peoples want to know what is Thomas Pitera ethnicity, nationality, Ancestry & Race? Let's check it out! As per public resource, IMDb & Wikipedia, Thomas Pitera's ethnicity is Not Known. We will update Thomas Pitera's religion & political views in this article. Please check the article again after few days.
Pitera’s defense lawyer, David A. Ruhnke, urged the jury to reject the death penalty on the grounds that Pitera had no prior criminal record and that other participants in the murders were allowed to plead guilty to lesser charges. Moreover, only two of the murder victims, Richard Leone and Solomon Stern, were killed on March 15, 1989, after the Federal death penalty law went into effect. The four other murders took place earlier, so those counts carried maximum sentences of life in prison. Pitera’s aunt, sister-in-law and two cousins testified on Pitera’s defense that he was a loving and caring family member.
Thomas Pitera Net Worth
Thomas Pitera is one of the richest Criminal from United States. According to our analysis, Wikipedia, Forbes & Business Insider, Thomas Pitera's net worth $5 Million. (Last Update: December 11, 2023)
He was employed in the factory that made chopsticks in Japan.
He was dubbed “Karate Tommy” due to his karate training in his youth during his stay of two years in Japan.
Thomas Pitera (/p ɪ ˈ t ɛər ə / ; born December 2, 1954) is a former Mafia hitman in the Bonanno crime family. Pitera, a vicious and sadistic killer who enjoyed murdering people, was suspected by law enforcement of as many as 100 murders. Pitera was well known for his use of karate and other martial arts when fighting, a skill he had learned at a young age; it earned him the nickname “Tommy Karate”.
| Net Worth | $5 Million |
| Salary | Under Review |
| Source of Income | Criminal |
| Cars | Not Available |
| House | Living in own house. |
On June 4, 1990, Pitera was indicted for heading a drug dealing crew and for his involvement in seven murders, including the 1988 Johnson murder. Investigators alleged that Pitera had been involved in as many as sixty murders. Pitera’s crew sold about 220 pounds of cocaine per year, multiple kilos of heroin and hundreds of pounds of marijuana. FBI agents discovered more than sixty automatic weapons, knives, swords, and literature such as The Hitman’s Handbook and Kill or Be Killed, which dealt primarily with assassination techniques as well as torture and the dismemberment of cadavers, in Pitera’s apartment in Gravesend.
On June 25, 1992, Pitera was convicted of murdering six people and supervising a massive drug dealing operation in Brooklyn. However, Pitera was acquitted in the 1988 Johnson murder. During the deliberation on sentencing, the jury rejected the death penalty for Pitera. In October 1992, alluding to evidence that Pitera brutally killed his victims and dismembered their bodies, Judge Reena Raggi sentenced him to life in prison, saying, “Mr. Pitera, nobody deserves to die as these people died.”
Height, Weight & Body Measurements
Thomas Pitera height Not available right now. Thomas weight Not Known & body measurements will update soon.
| Height | Unknown |
| Weight | Not Known |
| Body Measurements | Under Review |
| Eye Color | Not Available |
| Hair Color | Not Available |
| Feet/Shoe Size | Not Available |
On August 29, 1988, Pitera allegedly ambushed and murdered Wilfred “Willie Boy” Johnson as he walked ahead to their car. Johnson had been a longtime associate and driver for Gambino family boss John Gotti. The hit was reportedly delegated to Pitera and fellow gunman Vincent “Kojak” Giattino after Gotti had discovered that Johnson had been a government informant since 1966. Pitera was charged with the Johnson murder but acquitted at trial.
Pitera was close to Spero, whose Bath Beach crew were involved in extortion, loan sharking, drug dealing and murder, as well as robbing drug dealers and then reselling their product. Pitera’s associates, Lloyd Modell and Frank Martini, murdered two Colombian dealers and stole sixteen kilograms of cocaine. The killers intended to drive their car to Staten Island to bury the bodies, but as they could not drive a stick shift, they left the car – with the bodies inside the trunk – in a Brooklyn parking garage. Modell used one of Pitera’s guns in the murder and threw it in the harbor, angering him.
Who is Thomas Pitera Dating?
According to our records, Thomas Pitera is possibily single & has not been previously engaged. As of December 1, 2023, Thomas Pitera’s is not dating anyone.
Relationships Record: We have no records of past relationships for Thomas Pitera. You may help us to build the dating records for Thomas Pitera!Later in 1992, Judge Raggi again refused a motion to reduce Gangi’s sentence. On April 3, 2012, the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals denied Pitera’s motion for DNA testing of the guns and other evidence in three of Pitera’s murders. As of April 2017, Pitera is serving a life sentence at the United States Penitentiary, McCreary near Pine Knot, Kentucky. Pitera’s inmate number is 29465-053.
Top Facts about Thomas Pitera
- Thomas Pitera was a member of the Bonanno crime family.
- He was known as “Tommy Karate” due to his martial arts skills.
- Pitera was convicted of six murders and other crimes.
- He operated a drug ring in Brooklyn, New York.
- Pitera’s victims were often dismembered and disposed of in acid.
- He received two life sentences without parole in 1992.
- Pitera was suspected of involvement in up to 60 murders.
- He had ties to the Japanese Yakuza crime syndicate.
- Pitera’s trial included testimony from former mob associates turned informants.
- His case inspired the character Joey Tai in the movie “The Freshman.”
Facts & Trivia
Thomas Ranked on the list of most popular Criminal. Also ranked in the elit list of famous people born in United States. Thomas Pitera celebrates birthday on December 2 of every year.
You may read full biography about Thomas Pitera from Wikipedia.