Antonio Rocco "Tony Bananas" Caponigro (22 January 1912 – 18 April 1980) was the consigliere of the Philadelphia crime family under Angelo Bruno. In 1980, he had Bruno killed during a dispute over the meth trade in Philadelphia, leading to his own murder for carrying out an unsanctioned hit against a mob boss.
Biography[]
Antonio Rocco Caponigro was born in Chicago, Illinois on 22 January 1912 to a family of Italian descent, and he later became a criminal in Newark, New Jersey. Caponigro became a made member of the Philadelphia crime family during the 1950s, and he served in Riccardo Biondi's crew. During the 1970s, Caponigro became consigliere to Angelo Bruno, and he was upset that Bruno forbade family members from partaking in the methamphetaime trade in Philadelphia. In 1980, he met with Frank Tieri of the Genovese crime family, who promised Caponigro that he would get The Commission's approval for a hit on Bruno. Caponigro mistakenly believed that this meant that he had already acquired the Commission's permission to whack Bruno, and he had Bruno murdered.
Death[]
Caponigro's body
On 18 April 1980, Caponigro was summoned to a meeting in The Bronx, New York City, to discuss the unsanctioned murder of Bruno. At that meeting, he was garrotted, stabbed, and killed. His killers stuffed dollar bills in his mouth and anus as signs of greed, and his body was found in the trunk of a car in the South Bronx with 14 bullet wounds and knife wounds. Philip Testa took over the family after Caponigro's killing.