I saw a TV documentary called 'Seventies' about life in the US during the 1970s. There was a piece on Joe Coffey being the NYPD chief investigator of the 'Son of Sam' (David Berkowitz) serial killing spree in New York City. Coffey did a lot of mob related investigations, too. Which were his biggest cases?

Joe Coffey was big in the mob investigations. He was at the scenes of mickey spillane and carmine galante murders. Also was an arresting officer if castellano and gotti

Coffey was hated by a lot of detectives and fellow police officers for stealing the spotlight often. He also claimed credit for hard work put in by others, such as in the Son of Sam case. He was super media friendly, and never turned down an interview in order to promote himself. His second book also got many who had once supported him to turn on him.

Cops like this would tip off the media so their faces would be in the papers..Ego trips..As if they did all the work..

He was the commander of the organized crime squad....That's what all commanders do, take the credit for what the rank and file guys do, he was no different and he was a great interview !!

He denied it, but does anyone believe he put the cigar in Galante's mouth?

I like to believe someone, no matter what they did in life, wouldn't have their body desecrated after they die.

And it would have tainted an iconic picture!

Coffey has been done to death on here....good cop, then fell into a media trap basicallly.....

I'd bet the house that Coffey did it !!

Who cares, it made an iconic photo that would have made Galante proud !!

I read his book not too long ago. He said he found out a guy called Joe the Blonde was the one who really killed Albert Anastasia but annoyingly didn't go into anymore detail. Was part of the Roy DeMeo case too. Also a murder Funzi Tieri was involved in but I can't remember the details.

I think Joe the Blond was Crazy Joe Gallo's real nickname

yes it was.

This guy is brilliant on those old documentarys. He has a genuine hatred for the mobsters too and thinks they’re morons. Funny interview.

Joe The Blonde-Joseph Biondo. Carlo Gambinos first Underboss

Coffey told a story about how he and some cops visited with Castellano to ask him to call off the so-called contract on Joe Pistone. According to Coffey, Castellano did. Then, he said, Castellano invited him to his daughter's wedding. Yeah, right...

I never believed that the Commission put a price on Pistone's head. And if they did, NYPD wouldn't have intervened--no love lost between them and the FBI.

Thanks Louiebynochi. That makes sense he was behind it.

Coffey gives a very good rendition of John Gotti's degenerate gambling. My recollection is Coffey and the cops are listening to Gotti on wire. Gotti was bitching about losing every single NFL bet one weekend and in frustration yells, "God is a fag!". Coffey said Gotti and his crew would bet on 2 cockroaches walking across the room or climbing a wall.

Coffey gave good interviews and usually made me laugh.

I wonder if there is any correlation between calling God a fag and dying of an extremely aggressive and painful cancer at a young age?

Moe, it's called karma.