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| Phillip Cuneo | |
| Biographical Information | |
| Aliases | Don Cuneo, Phill, Cuneo Sr., Red Boss, padrino, The Chocolate Man |
| Gender | Male |
| Born | 9 April, 1954 Villabate, Sicily, Italy |
| Affiliation |  Cuneo crime family
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| Title(s) | Don |
Phillip Cuneo was an Italian-American mobster and the first boss of the Cuneo crime family, one of New York City's Five Families of the 2000's. Cuneo was known to be a softer mob boss and the middle one of his siblings, refusing to sell drugs to children, and rather invested in the chocolate delivery business, using milk trucks as a front, getting him the nickname "The Chocolate Man" from his involvement in this practice while he also liked him some Swiss cheese and sold candies to kids.
Cuneo was gunned down at the Savannah Hotel in 2011 by the Barzini crime family assassins and replaced as a Don by his youngest son, Carmin Cuneo.
Biography[]
Phillip Cuneo Sr. was born in the town of Villabate, in Sicily, Italy. In 1996, him and his family immigrated from Sicily to Hell's Kitchen, NY, US, on a transport plane, and they were very poor, living in a tenement and were harassed by the local thugs of Irish descent. Cuneo became involved in pickpocketing and other petty crimes for which he was caught in 2000, but was let off after a fine of $500.
Cuneo managed a small group of thugs known as the "Hell's Kitchen Boys", and in 2001, Cuneo founded the Cuneo Family after befriending Mario DeBellis and killing off the Westies that used to crap on his family. The Cuneo family was based in Hell's Kitchen, which became Phillip's new base of operations, building a home for himself near the DeWitt Clinton Park.
As a small-time mafiosi, he began his career by extorting Leo's Milk Trucks, a company of milk deliverers, and made lots of money off of the business and even transformed them into chocolate milk deliveries. He also refused to invest in any businesses that could hurt any children, as his wife was always a lover of small ones, as was he.
The Cuneos played a large part in the on-coming Five Families War, but lost most of their made men and revenue to Corleone crime family attacks. Phillip then arranged some peace with the Corleones in 2011 after the murder of Vito Corleone's son, Sonny Corleone, but small-scale turf warfare continued. When Vito Corleone stepped as boss and retired, his rival Bruce Ultor prepared to get rid of the last enemies affiliated with the mob to consolidate his control over New York. Cuneo's financial assassin in Jersey, Nicholas Klaus, was arrested by Ultor just as school started in 2011, giving a large blow to the family.
Death[]
On November, 2011 Cuneo was at the Savannah Hotel in Midtown, collecting protection money along with his son, Phillip Cuneo Jr. when Rocky Rockson and Tommasino Lo Bello, two Barzini men, were sent to murder him from Tyler's Top Cuts. As he left the revolving door, he was gunned down in front of the hotel's elevator and his youngest son, Carmin Cuneo became boss.
It wouldn't be less than a decade later until the Joker would assume Carmin's position.
Trivia[]
- He is the father of Phillip Cuneo Jr., aka The Joker, who lead the family after Carmin Cuneo's death, Garnet's death and Jigsaw's step-down. He has since created his own gang and became a bigger mob boss than Phillip Sr. ever could be. Like Phillip, Joker is the arch-enemy of Bruce Ultor.
- He is the second version or reincarnation of the Don Cuneo character, the first being Carmine Cuneo.
Cigarette card of Phill Cuneo.