Shocking past of NYC man, 86, decapitated after being accidentally struck by city truck
A man accidentally decapitated by a city truck while standing in a crosswalk in Brooklyn was a former acting captain of the Genovese crime family.
Anthony Conigliaro, 86, was known by a number of dessert-themed nicknames, including “Tony Cakes” and “Tony the Dessert Man.”
He was killed earlier this month, on June 12, when a Ministry of Transport truck accidentally hit him and he made a right turn.
Horrifying footage captured the aftermath and saw Conigliaro’s head lying feet from his body on the street in New York City.
Anthony Conigliaro, 86, a former acting captain of the Genovese crime family, was accidentally decapitated by a city truck
Conigliaro had crossed Dahlgren Place against a “do not walk” sign at a marked crosswalk
The 31-year-old truck driver is comforted by a member of the public as he kneels in the middle of the road
The driver of the truck could be seen explaining to officials what had happened
Conigliaro had been crossing Dahlgren Place against a “no walking” sign at a marked crosswalk when the 31-year-old driver of a Ford F550 truck turned on the green light and struck him. The octogenarian was pronounced dead at the scene.
The DOT driver remained at the scene and appeared devastated after the accident.
Footage taken by a member of the public shows the driver kneeling, possibly praying, as he is comforted by another passer-by.
No arrests have been made, police said.
“He spent his life looking over his shoulder, but forgot to look both ways before crossing the street,” a police source joked to police. New York Post.
Prior to his untimely death, Conigliaro had long left his life of crime behind and was living a quiet life in a small apartment complex in the Bay Ridge area.
One neighbor, who was completely unaware of his crime-riddled past and mafia connections, told The Post that he was always looking out for others.
Police were seen at the scene after the beheading of the 86-year-old man
Surveillance images show that the truck driver immediately stopped on the side of the road after the accident
The accident happened at this intersection in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, as Conigliaro was crossing the road
The driver of the truck that struck Conigliaro was comforted in an FDNY ambulance
‘We miss him. Everyone misses him,” they said.
But things were very different almost twenty years ago when Conigliaro was involved in a massive racketeering case involving the mafia.
At the time fEderal prosecutors in Brooklyn accused Conigliaro of being a soldier in the Genovese crime family.
He eventually pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge and served a 13-month prison sentence.
Conigliaro also served as a loan shark for the Genovese family and in 1999 he was also arrested for criminal usury – a crime in which he charged excessive interest on a loan. He was also arrested in 2006, this time in a grand theft case.
After his release from prison, he started working in the cake wholesale business.
Conigliaro sold candy throughout New York City and ran an Italian ice cream and gelato stand in Little Italy.
Besides having a sweet tooth, it earned him the colorful nickname “Tony Cheesecake.”
A memorial has been placed on the side of the road where the accident occurred.
The Genovese family is known as one of five families that make up an Italian-American syndicate that has long dominated organized crime in New York City, with the Gambino, Lucchese, Bonanno and Colombo families being the other four.